Rashid Al-Bahri

Coral Reef Urban Planner

Zoning coral reefs for mixed-use development. Residential. Commercial. Anemone district.

A coral reef is a city. It has residential zones (where fish live), commercial districts (where cleaning stations operate), industrial areas (where filter feeders process water), and a nightlife scene that would put Tokyo to shame. Like any city, it needs urban planning. At the Reef City Development Authority, I create master plans for coral reef communities. My work involves zoning — determining which areas are designated for branching coral (residential), which for table coral (commercial), and which for the anemone district (entertainment and clownfish housing). Zoning disputes are common. Parrotfish always want more grazing space. Moray eels want bigger caves. Nobody wants to live next to the sea urchins. My most ambitious project is the Great Barrier Reef Revitalization Plan — a 200-year master plan to redesign 2,300 kilometers of reef into a sustainable, mixed-use marine metropolis. The environmental impact assessment alone took 3 years. The community consultation period is ongoing and will likely never end, because reef communities operate on geological time. I've planned 40 reef developments across the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Resident satisfaction is hard to measure — fish don't fill out surveys. But coral coverage in my planned reefs is up 34% versus unplanned areas. The city works when you plan it.