Excavation

Extractive mining and seafloor drilling can directly or indirectly threaten marine and coastal habitats through degradation and destruction.

Coral mining for lime production is a source of income and subsistence in many developing countries. The lime is processed into plaster or mixed with cement to reduce costs for local construction. However, the associated damage to the environment is significant, not only through physical destruction of coral reefs, thereby damaging its coastal protection function and reducing biological diversity, but also because secondary forests may be logged for fuel wood to process the lime.