Tanga - An environmentalist has warned against rising human activities in the coastal region saying they are threatening the existence of corals.

Jane Goodall Institute zonal manager Mr Japhet Mwanang'ombe said corals in the region face extinction if people living along the coast are not educated on the need to preserve the seabirds.

He said a recent research his office had conducted along the Pangani coastal shores showed that coral population was decreasing fast as a result of increasing human activities.

Presenting a paper on marine life conservation at a two-day workshop on 'Environmental Education', the environmentalist said while there were many factors contributing to the depletion of corals, solid and liquid wastes disposed into the sea were affecting the seabirds' reproduction and the ecological system of marine diversity.

"Corals are very sensitive to waste. They would breed satisfactorily in unpolluted water.

People along coastal areas should be educated on the hazards of polluting the beach through wanton throwing of impurities and contaminants in the sea," he said.

Mr Mwanang'ombe also said water discoloration resulting from mud in the rivers; lime excavation and dynamite fishing were also impeding coral reproduction.

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