
World Sea Grass Day
Editor
March 2, 2022

Raising public awareness on the importance of seagrass meadows is central to efforts in the protection and conservation of seagrass meadows worldwide. The international seagrass research and conservation community, together with the undersigned, call on the United Nations to declare a World Seagrass Day to recognize the importance of seagrass meadows to the health and well-being of the planet, as well as the people, communities, flora, and fauna that rely on them.
According to world sea grass association close to 30% of the world’s seagrass meadows have already been lost, and the rate of decline of seagrass meadows has accelerated since the 1990s. Currently, an estimated 110 square kilometers of seagrass is lost annually. This rate is equivalent to two football fields of seagrass being lost every hour. The actual loss may be more severe, as there are vast areas of the world where seagrass resources are abundant but haven’t been documented and accounted for. This includes regions such as Southeast Asia, and coastal East and West Africa
Sri Lanka is also home for sea grasses and declining of these eco systems cause issues to marine life in Sri Lanka. Seagrass form habitats that support an amazing array of plants and animals. Crustacean and fish abundances are seven to twenty times higher in seagrass meadows compared to adjacent bare sand areas. Many species of commercially important mangrove and reef fish rely on seagrass meadows as nurseries and foraging grounds. Seagrass are also an essential food source for endangered species such as sea turtles, manatees, and dugongs.