Today’s world is one that is encountering drastic climate and environmental changes, and one that has to witness ocean warming, plastic pollution and overfishing, which are destabilizing marine ecosystems at an alarming rate. Among them, seagrass beds, the blue carbon ecosystems, are facing a crisis. Seagrass beds are vital habitats, serving as breeding and feeding grounds for marine life. However, they are gradually declining. The loss of seagrass beds at a massive scale means not only the loss of food sources and sanctuary for marine life, but direct impacts on fishery resources and marine biodiversity. In light of the urgency, FENC reached across disciplines and formed a long-term partnership with Business Today and the Penghu Fishery Research Center of the Fisheries Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture. In September 2025, the partners kicked off the seagrass restoration project targeting the waters of Tongliang, Penghu in the hope of restoring the marine ecosystem acre by acre.

The project site is located approximately one kilometer off the coast of Tongliang. With  fine water quality and minimal human disturbance, the sandy subtidal area was chosen as the restoration base. Historically a vital nursery for juvenile fish, the site possesses immense potential for ecological recovery. As the sponsor of this project, FENC solicited the help of a professional team, which sent scuba divers to plant 1,200 seagrass shoots across the bare sandflats and made sure the restoration area exceeded 12 square meters. To boost the diversity of seagrass species and habitat resilience, the team adopted mixed-species planting and selected Halodule uninervis, Halophila ovalis and Zostera japonica, which are seagrass species among the primary food sources for green sea turtles and dugongs.

A number of techniques have been adopted for this project. Among them is a pioneering method recently developed by the Penghu Fishery Research Center involving protective netting over the newly transplanted seagrass shoots. Given their susceptibility to dislodgement caused by frequent disturbance from sand-burrowing organisms or grazing by herbivorous marine life such as rabbitfish (Siganus), the team installed specialized protective netting over the restoration area immediately after anchoring the seagrass into the substrate using the Rhizome Method. Underwater monitoring conducted 33 days after the transplantation witnessed the powerful protection provided by this innovative approach, which delivered a flawless record of a 0% dislodgement rate, a stark contrast to the initial dislodgement rates as high as 60% prior to the use of the protective netting. Moreover, the majority of the seagrass had been thriving with the growth of new leaves  and anchoring their roots firmly in the seabed.

As the shoots flourished, the seagrass coverage is significantly expanded from the initial 9.4% to 12% and the restoration area from 12 to 13.2 square meters. Especially evident was the growth of Halophila ovalis, a pioneer species. Gradually, the barren bare sandflats are transformed into a burgeoning seagrass bed with great potential to nourish a healthy habitat.

The restoration of seagrass beds is making a difference in terms of local biodiversity. Prior to the seagrass transplantation, Archaster typicus and Balcis grandis were the only two benthic species recorded on this stretch of the bare sandflats, with no traces of fish activities observed. However, as the seagrass flourished, food became abundant and sanctuaries available for benthic marine life, leading to growing species variety and composition. Within a single month, an additional eight species from five families were recorded, totaling 14 fish species across 10 families.

Additionally, with only two macroinvertebrate species initially recorded, the number has noticeably increased to 10. So far, a total of six species of mollusks have been recorded, including Natica gualteriana, Oliva mustelina, Balcis grandis, Dolabella auricularia, Vasticardium flavum and Atrina vexillum. Crustaceans have increased to three species, including Calappa hepatica, Portunus pelagicus and Dardanus lagopodes. As to echinoderms, the area has a large concentration of Archaster typicus.

For FENC and Business Today, the seagrass restoration project is a scientific and data-driven environmental action that has validated the clearly positive impact of habitat restoration on marine biodiversity. Meanwhile, it also paves the way for ensuring the sustainability of fishery resources and maintaining the vitality of the blue economy. The Seagrass Restoration Project aligns with the relevant strategies under 'Ocean 1-4: Investigation and Restoration of Oceanic Carbon Sink Ecosystems' within Taiwan's 2050 Net-Zero Transition Key Strategy Action Plan for Natural Carbon Sinks.

Fish Species Composition Before and After Seagrass Transplantation

Note: The term, “bare sandflat,” refers to an area without seagrass growth.