Anthropogenic threats to sea grass beds include shoreline construction, mechanical damage and eutrophication, while natural causes include overgrazing, sand wave motion and storms. Overgrazing on seagrass by the sea urchins is the principal threat to the sea grass existence. Eutrophication and reduced predation by fish has triggered overgrazing on the seagrass by the sea urchin (NEMA, 2017).
Lack of a true continental shelf has resulted into overexploitation of coastal resource and increased human activities hence negatively affecting the development of seagrass. Human activities such as the deepening of the channels at harbours has resulted into seagrass uprooting and burial by dredge-spoil.
The increasing number of marine reserves, shore hotels and motor boat propellers because of the expanding and busting tourism industry has substantially damaged the seagrass ecosystem. Seagrass remain unprotected in some popular tourist attraction areas hence posing a threat to the survivability.
Damaging fishing practices such as dredging and the use of seine nets has hauled a large quantity of seagrass, casting them under severe pressure. Trawling and seining net techniques are non- selective in their capture hence posing a serious threat to the sea grass existence.
Other contributing factors to the poor status of sea grasses include: lack of awareness on the contribution of seagrass to the coastal ecosystem, absence of up-to-date information and the unknown status of most seagrass meadow, limited research on seagrass scientific conservation measures, limited understanding on the linkage between seagrass and climate change and a poor understanding of the threats posed to seagrass by the local coastal activities.