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FRESNO, CA 93794
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Tourism in U.S. coral reef areas generates more than $17 billion a year, while commercial fishing generates an additional $246.9 million. In South Florida alone, where many reefs are damaged or dying, reefs now support 44,500 jobs, providing a total annual income of $1.2 billion. Live coral cover in the Florida Keys has declined by 37 percent over the past five years.Whatever the cause, this looks like an economic as well as environmental disaster.