Can 3D Printed Reefs Save Fish, Oceans, And Beaches? – Forbes

A small Dutch crowdfunding project is trying to 3D print reefs to provide habitat for fish, protection for beaches and coastal communities at risk from rising seas, and a future for reefs devastated by bleaching and other damage.

If your first thought is: theres no way 3D printing, which works best in small scale, will be able to replace thousands of cubic kilometers of dead reef all over the planet, youre not wrong.

I dont believe we can rebuild all the coral reefs in the world. I think ... the scale is way too big, project cofounder and marine biologist Astrid Kramer told me recently on the TechFirst podcast.

But what we can do at some places is two things: its buy time by placing these structures, we can protect fragile low-lying areas that are suffering from erosion or flooding because the reefs are dying. And we are placing substrate for research purposes, because a lot of scientists are working extremely hard to find those species that can withstand higher temperatures, and they will grow into new reefs that can adapt to climate change.

A coral reef (not one built by 3D printing)

Coral reefs are in massive decline globally, and some scientists estimate we could lose 70-90% of our reefs due to warming ocean waters.

That has all kinds of negative consequences: a quarter of the worlds fish live in and around reefs, reefs are critically important protectors of beach communities threatened by high waves and tides, and they support a massive amount of biodiversity.

Thats led Kramer and her cofounder Nadia Fani, a computer scientist who led the building of the first large-format concrete printer, to start Coastruction.

Of course, no-one is printing corals themselves. Corals are tiny sea creatures who build exoskeletons of calcium carbonate. Put billions of them together over decades, and giant reefs form.

But the corals need an anchor: some place to attach. Floating around in sandy-bottomed waters, theyll never be able to settle down and start to build. Give them something to cling on to, and they might just start a colony.

Even small beginnings have big impact, says Fani.

So even if you start on a small scale ... a square kilometer already, it could have a great impact, Fani says. It could really protect a coast, a beach, a resort, like an area where there is a community living and they need protection because the sea is rising.

The first steps are being able to print reef substrate in about cubic meter sizes (think a sugar cube measuring about three feet by three feet by three feet). Being able to 3D print is important, because you match individual sites. Every location is different, Kramer says, with different hydrodynamics, different fish, different algae, and different coral species.

Its like everybody has a different house, Kramer says. You can take into account habitat requirements of not just the coral but also the herbivorous fish that live nearby and that keep the corals clean. You can take into account maybe the function of wave breaking, of providing habitat for octopus or sea urchins, also very interesting species when you look at reef ecology.

Their current technology can print complex shapes by delivering a binding agent, which can simply be water, over a powder mix. After finishing a layer, the machine deposits more powder, binds it again, and repeats. The result can be a stunningly natural-looking artificial rock with plenty of nooks, crannies, and crevices for both corals and other reef flora and fauna to attach themselves, make homes, hide out from predators, and start building.

A sample Coastruction reef substrate section.

Another thing thats unique: the local community.

The Coastruction founders dont think they can possibly scale for global demand, so their goal is to provide the tools like the 3D printer to local people and design the technology to use cheap and locally-available materials including cement, sand, and various binding agents to create the artificial coral reef substrate. No high temperatures or chemical additives are required, and any loose power or sand material not used in one print will be used in the next. The 3D printer works on-site, so theres no transport of finished blocks required.

Currently the team is working with communities in Hawaii, Fiji, and Seychelles, as well as local authorities in the Netherlands. Nature Seychelles, an environmental organization in the Western Indian Ocean, is testing some of their samples.

Its not just the Netherlands, with huge portions of its land famously dredged from the ocean and protected by dikes, or tropical islands that can benefit.

Fanis currently living in Florida, and her home literally sits four meters (about 12 feet) below sea level. Large portions of the US and other wealthy nations also sit below sea level, and if reefs erode because corals are dying, increased wave action is likely to increase flooding and storm damage. She grew up in Italy, which is fighting to save Venice from sinking into the Adriatic Sea.

The ultimate goal?

Restoration of damaged reefs, protection of communities, and habitat for at-risk ocean species.

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Can 3D Printed Reefs Save Fish, Oceans, And Beaches? - Forbes