Coral Calcium and the Environment

For years, coral calcium web sites have been claiming that they do not harm the environment when harvesting their coral. Taking a closer look at the harvesting processes that are used tell a different story about the effects of coral calcium on the environment. Now more than ever, the coral reefs of Okinawa Japan are endangered and need all the help we can provide.

Marine Coral Calcium

Many companies sell marine coral calcium that they say is “only the dead coral debris vacuumed up from around the reefs.” Unfortunately for the environment this dredging process includes a 250 foot industrial dredging ship lowering a large pipe to the bottom of the ocean and vacuuming. This method not only takes the dead coral debris but destroys the reef eco system by generating a thick layer of silt which smothers the reef killing the coral larvae that grow future reefs in the surrounding areas.

The problem with vacuuming up the dead coral debris is that one can not destroy part of an ecosystem without harming the remainder. For example, there are more living organisms and creatures that live in a dead tree than a live one. If all of the dead trees were eliminated from a forest, the forest would lose its vitality. The same is true for coral reefs: the dead coral debris plays an important role in the health of the entire reef.

To combat the negative press on the environmental effects of coral calcium, other marine coral calcium promoters have come out with a different story. This new story claims that their coral calcium is being harvested 4 miles from the reefs and therefore does not harm the reefs. If it is true that their coral is harvested miles away from the reef how can they have a pure coral calcium product? We are asked to believe that only bits of pure coral is carried by currents for 4 miles where it is deposited with no sand, shells, rocks and impurities. If this were true then why is the delicate ocean bottom ecology still being dredged and destroyed unnecessarily by competing marine coral calcium providers?

Above Sea Coral Calcium

The majority of coral calcium products are below-sea or marine coral calcium, that harm the environment with their questionable harvesting methods. But the news is not all bad because there is a few above sea coral calcium products available that do not harm the environment. Above-sea coral calcium uses Okinawa coral that was pushed up above-sea level geologically. The harvesting occurs by cleaning the top soil off of ancient coral heads and trucking them off to a grinding facility with minimal environmental impact.

Coral reefs are considered an endangered species. The coral used in above sea coral calcium products is eco safe. Above sea coral calcium protects living reefs by only using coral from above-sea level deposits on the islands of Okinawa. The eco safe coral grew under water millions of years ago and has been preserved under layers of soil until mined for the above sea coral calcium products. So if you buy or use coral calcium, do your part and protect the environment by choosing above sea coral calcium.