Can coral restoration save coral reefs? We hear this question a lot at the Coral Reef Alliance (CORAL). It’s a good question and a complex one. Let’s dive deeper into the nuances of restoration.
What is coral restoration?
Coral restoration refers to a set of conservation techniques aimed at helping degraded coral reefs recover by actively growing and reintroducing corals into damaged reef areas.
Often compared to “planting” corals, restoration typically involves cultivating coral fragments in nurseries—either in the ocean or on land—and transplanting them back onto reefs to support reef structure, biodiversity, and ecosystem function. While coral restoration can help stabilize damaged reefs and accelerate local recovery, it is most effective when paired with efforts that reduce the underlying threats to reefs, such as poor water quality, overfishing, and climate-driven marine heatwaves.
The Risks with Growing and Planting Corals
Growing and planting corals is one of the most visible (and appealing) approaches to coral reef conservation. But research shows that on its own, coral restoration is unlikely to save reefs if the conditions that caused reef decline in the first place are not addressed. When corals are planted in areas where existing reefs are still stressed by wastewater pollution, sediment runoff, or overfishing, survival rates are often low. New corals face the same pressures as the damaged reef around them.
Climate change adds another layer of risk. As ocean temperatures continue to rise, corals that are not heat tolerant are increasingly vulnerable to bleaching and mortality. In response, some restoration efforts focus on planting only coral species believed to be more tolerant of warmer conditions. While this may seem logical, it carries inherent uncertainty. Selecting a narrow set of species based on current projections assumes we know exactly what future ocean conditions will look like and which traits will be most important for survival—when, in reality, those conditions remain unpredictable.
More experimental approaches, such as breeding corals to be more heat tolerant (sometimes referred to as “super corals”) also come with significant limitations. Research, including a study we have collaborated on, suggests that for these methods to meaningfully protect reefs from climate change, outplanting would need to occur at extremely large scales, sustained over hundreds of years, and alongside aggressive efforts to reduce local threats. Without those parallel actions, the long-term benefits remain limited.
None of this means coral growing and planting lacks value. Restoration can be highly effective for repairing localized damage after storms, ship groundings, or anchor impacts. It can also play an important role in engaging communities, training local practitioners, and helping tourists and residents better understand what coral reefs are and why they matter. Many conservation partners use coral planting as part of broader reef management strategies and have seen promising results when restoration is paired with improved water quality, sustainable fishing practices, and long-term stewardship.
In short, coral restoration works best as a supporting tool, not a standalone solution, and only when the conditions are right for corals to survive and thrive.
True Coral Restoration Goes Beyond Just Planting Corals
Outside of scientific circles, the word restoration is often understood as returning an ecosystem to a healthier, more natural state. When it comes to coral reefs, that kind of restoration is possible, but it rarely starts with planting corals.
True coral reef restoration focuses on fixing the conditions that reefs need to survive. Poor water quality, overfishing, and chronic human pressures weaken reefs long before corals disappear. When those stressors are reduced, reefs can recover, rebuild complexity, and adapt to climate change largely on their own without constant human intervention.
This is where our work is focused. By securing clean water for reefs and supporting sustainable fisheries, we help restore the ecological balance that corals depend on. Research shows that reefs protected in this way are more resilient to bleaching, disease, storms, and other climate-driven impacts and better positioned to adapt over time.
What does this kind of restoration look like on the ground? It looks like community-led wastewater solutions in West End, Roatán, Honduras, where improved treatment infrastructure helped reduce coral disease from 25 percent to zero percent. It looks like erosion control efforts in Maui, Hawaiʻi, where volunteers restored degraded dirt roads using native plants to trap sediment before it reached nearby reefs. And it looks like work in Tela Bay, Honduras, where partnerships with local fishers helped drive a 483 percent increase in fish biomass, restoring the natural relationships that keep reef ecosystems functioning.
Importantly, this approach also ensures the long-term viability of conservation investments. Addressing pollution and overfishing protects not only reefs, but also the time, funding, and effort that communities, governments, and conservation groups put into reef recovery. Without these foundations, even the most well-intentioned restoration projects struggle to endure.
That’s not to say coral growing and planting has no place. In specific situations, short-term restoration efforts can help repair localized damage and engage people in hands-on conservation. These projects often inspire hope, provide opportunities to volunteer, and motivate deeper involvement in reef protection. But they are most effective (and most meaningful) when paired with solutions that tackle root causes and support long-term resilience.
We are not going to outplant our way to the coral reefs of the future. Protecting reefs at scale requires restoring the systems around them first. When clean water flows, fish populations rebound, and local communities are empowered as stewards, coral reefs have a fighting chance to recover and thrive in a changing climate.
So Can Restoration Save Coral Reefs?
The short answer is yes—but not in the way coral restoration is often portrayed.
Decades of research show that the most effective way to protect coral reefs over the long term is to restore them to a healthier ecological state and create the conditions that allow corals to adapt to climate change. That kind of restoration focuses less on adding corals and more on rebuilding the systems reefs need to survive.
There are two critical parts to this effort. The first is reducing the pace of climate change by curbing global carbon emissions. Many organizations are leading important work in clean energy, sustainable production, and climate policy. While the climate crisis remains urgent, growing global momentum around climate action offers real reason for hope. We support this work by contributing scientific expertise, joining public calls to action, participating in global committees, and helping elevate the urgency of climate decisions that directly affect coral reefs.
The second part is where our work is concentrated: building networks of healthy, adaptive coral reefs. Coral larvae can travel long distances before settling, and some coral populations are naturally more tolerant of heat and stress than others. By reducing local threats, such as wastewater pollution and overfishing, in places where corals are already showing greater heat tolerance and where new corals are settling, we help create pathways for resilience. Over time, this allows adaptive traits to spread and strengthens entire reef systems, not just individual sites.
This is why restoration that focuses on reducing human impacts and restoring reefs to a healthier, less threatened state can make a lasting difference. In certain situations, coral growing and planting may complement this work—particularly after localized damage or once major threats have already been addressed. But planting alone, without these foundations in place, cannot secure the future of coral reefs.
Ultimately, saving coral reefs depends on restoring the conditions that allow them to function, recover, and adapt. When those conditions are right, reefs can do what they’ve done for millions of years: build, regenerate, and support life at extraordinary scales.
