The hydrodynamic model simulates the actual movements of the waters. The model has been modified for Palau’s waters, and PICRC uses it to determine what areas are contributing to coral reef conservation — areas that have the potential to keep the reef healthy; to monitor the flow of water in cases of oil spill, if someone was lost at sea; and to predict environmental impacts of new infrastructures.
“We’re also using this model to look at the currents in Palau, so we know what will happen in scenarios such as coral spawning,” said Jacques Idechong, PICRC researcher, in an interview.
With the possibility oil exploration in Palau, the model can be handy to see what happens if there’s oil spill in a certain area.
“If you want to do oil exploration in a certain area, we could run a scenario and show what will happen if there’s oil spill.”
Idechong said it’s the same scenario if someone or a boat was lost at sea. “We can use the model to predict where the lost person might be in two hours, 12 hours, in two days,” he said.
At present, PICRC is using the hydrodynamic model in doing a study on the resilience of Palau’s reefs.
“We’re going publish it sometime next year in Coral Reefs Journal,” said Idechong. “It’s over a ten-year study of all the major reef areas in Palau. We’re not just looking at the data that we have compiled over the years, but we’re also looking at how the hydrodynamics contributed to the changes over time, over the last ten years.”
Idechong said that through the model, they are also trying to determine which areas are rehabilitating well after the El Nino bleaching event in 1998. “Many coral reefs died, but many areas are recovering well. We want to find out which areas are contributing to the recovery,” explained Idechong.
