Coral reef health and management on the verge of a tourism boom: A case study from Miches, Dominican Republic

The Miches Municipality lies in the second poorest province in the Dominican Republic, and its inhabitants rely heavily on nearby coral reefs for food and livelihoods. With the sudden influx of tourism from the completion of a new highway, now is a crucial time to ensure that future tourist development in this region is locally driven and environmentally responsible. As coral reefs are a foundation of Miches' identity, economy, and natural wealth, they play an integral role in the realization of this goal. This study employed global reef monitoring protocols to conduct the first-ever quantitative health assessment of Miches' reefs in order to guide future management practices. Surveys of multi-taxa indicator species were conducted alongside assessments of coral bleaching, disease prevalence, and evidence of anthropogenic impacts. Key findings include extremely low abundances of fishery-targeted species, high prevalence of diseased coral, anchor damage at nearly every site, and high abundances of indicator species for nutrient-based pollution such as fertilizers and raw sewage. Deeper, offshore reefs exhibited better health than shallow, inshore reefs, though they were still more degraded than comparable reefs in Dominican marine protected areas. Overall, Miches reefs are highly threatened by four main factors: overfishing, land-based pollution, human-related structural damage, and coral bleaching. To improve the well-being of the region's coral reefs and the communities that depend on them, an adaptive management plan is recommended that encompasses strong fisheries regulations, basic yet consistent monitoring efforts, and the integration of land-based and marine management practices.