Data from: Motivations, success and cost of coral reef restoration

Coral reef restoration is an increasingly important part of tropical
marine conservation. Information about what motivates coral reef
restoration as well as its success and cost is not well understood but
needed to inform restoration decisions. We systematically review and
synthesise data from mostly scientific studies published in peer‐reviewed
and grey literature on the motivations for coral reef restoration, the
variables measured, outcomes reported, the cost per hectare of the
restoration project, the survival of restored corals, the duration of the
project and its overall spatial extent depending on the restoration
technique employed. The main motivation to restore coral reefs for the
projects assessed was to further our ecological knowledge and improve
restoration techniques, with coral growth, productivity and survival being
the main variables measured. The median project cost was 400,000 US$ ha‐1
(2010 US$), ranging from 6,000 US$ ha‐1 for the nursery phase of coral
gardening to 4,000,000 US$ ha‐1 for substrate addition to build an
artificial reef. Restoration projects were mostly of short duration (1‐2
years) and over small spatial extents (0.01 ha or 108 m2). Median reported
survival of restored corals was 60.9%. Future research to survey
practitioners who do not publish their discoveries would complement this
work. Our findings and database provide critical data to inform future
research in coral reef restoration.