SEVERANCE, Colo. — Nestled in Northern Colorado is the small town of Severance, a place known as the home of the Rocky Mountain oyster.
No, that Colorado cuisine has nothing to do with the ocean — but it may seem like the closest one can come in a landlocked state. That is, until you step inside Vince Malara's home.
Large aquariums are filled with coral of all different shapes and colors, which Malara will excitedly name and describe for anyone with questions about the marine animals. Wild coral makes up some of the most diverse ecosystems in the world, supporting thousands of species in the process, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA).
Malara, who was born and raised in Fort Collins, has been fascinated by coral since he was a teenager. When he turned 16 years old, he realized this might be more than a hobby, and decided he wanted to pursue his passion as a career.
Now, he's the man behind GHI Corals, which stands for "Gotta Have It Corals." The company does saltwater aquarium maintenance and setup, while shipping coral across the country.
"I'm super passionate about the ocean's reefs, and I really like that you can make it — even if it's a small impact — you can make an impact on not taking corals in and actually providing more corals to the reef," Malara said. "That's why we donate a portion of all our profits to organizations that rebuild and do coral research."
According to Malara, he mainly uses aquaculture-sourced coral.
"That's where you grow a coral in house, cut it up, and keep it all within your store, and you can ship that out," Malara explained. "And it's never touched the ocean. It's always been tank grown."
He said there are some practices in the industry that are not environmentally sustainable, where coral is cut out of reefs in the ocean. Malara also called shipping methods for fish collected from the reef inhumane.
"A lot of them die before they even get to a shop," Malara said about the fish.
As someone who understands how much care and attention coral needs in an aquarium, Malara is deeply concerned about the rising temperatures of the ocean.
"Temperature is probably the biggest killer of them [coral]," Malara said. "If we change the temperature in our systems by three to five degrees — instantly or even gradually — you would see a lot of stress come onto the corals, and some may even die."
Malara said research into coral is the way of the future, and he is concerned about certain legislation he believes could hinder that research. Specifically, he mentioned the Saving Natural Ecosystems and Marine Organisms Act of 2025, otherwise known as the Saving NEMO Act of 2025.
"It sounds great on paper, but it would essentially stop 90% of any research that we could possibly do," Malara said. "We're on board with keeping things in house as much as humanly possible."
U.S. Representative Ed Case from Hawaii reintroduced the legislation this year. A release from his office claims the bill will "protect the world’s increasingly fragile coral reef ecosystems by restricting international imports of protected ornamental reef fish and coral species collected through destructive practices."
Jonee Peters is the executive director of the Conservation Council for Hawaii.
"Native Hawaiians view the coral as our ancestors, and they bring life to our oceans. So, we want to protect that in that space as well," Peters said. "What this act does for us is it primarily saves our reef fish. Our reef fish have been taken at an alarming rate, and these are our herbivores, so they keep also our seaweed in check. So, it helps our coral to grow and be better."
Peters said she more commonly hears from individuals in the fishing industry who are opposed to this bill.
"We do have problems here in Hawaii with our coral, either from overharvesting of the fish and the damage to the coral reefs," Peters said. "Maybe we can lessen up on some things and be stronger on some other things, I just know that in Hawaii, our coral is at deep risk right now."
Back in Colorado, Malara believes there is a way to continue growing coral and protect ocean life simultaneously.
"Being able to make it not only sustainable, but also understand why the corals do this and investing into rebuilding the reefs, that would be the way to do it, rather than just stopping it [the industry] completely," Malara said.
He donates a portion of his profits to organizations studying coral. One of his favorites is The Great Barrier Reef Foundation, where donations can help repair the damage done to the reef by climate change and other threats. The organization also explores and develops new ways to "build its resilience to the challenges of tomorrow."
"It's super important because in 2025, they have, we have the ability to genetically modify these corals to withstand more heat," Malara said. "We know the oceans temperatures are rising. We know they have always gone through ups and downs, and so when there's an organization out there that has the ability to do that, to genetically modify coral, it will absolutely make an impact."
Malara believes through research and replanting coral programs, there is the ability to make a difference and help support our oceans.
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