Off the coast of Dubai, the developer plans to create a coral reef with an area of up to 500,000 square meters.
Kleindienst Group, the developer of the heart of Europe mega-portal, which is part of a network of artificial islands called “The World”, founded the Coral Institute, which grows and restores coral.
He uses a technique known as “fragmentation”, where pieces of coral are cut with a small electric saw, allowing each coral to potentially regenerate hundreds of times.
The pieces of coral will then be stored in water tanks, under the supervision and care of a group of marine biologists, until they grow large enough to reproduce the reef.
“The Coral Institute will preserve and protect the genetic fund of corals … around the Persian Gulf,” Josef Kleindienst, chairman of the Kleindienst Group, told CNN.
A 2018 study found that 73% of corals in the UAE were destroyed as a result of discoloration, mainly due to climate change and human activities.
Kleindienst says the goal of Heart of Europe is to show that development and marine life can coexist in a sustainable environment. Corals will make this place environmentally friendly, and will adorn luxury, 4,000 homes and more than 50 tourist attractions in the heart of Europe, including the famous villas with floating seahorses.