Home aquaria a refuge, no. Probably not in the long term or big picture. On the other hand I think aquariums like the one on Monterey, Atlanta, or say Churaumi in Okinawa Japan could be. I'm sure there are others but these are a couple examples anyway.
I'll say this though - this is a hobby that can be self sustaining by sharing of coral frags, anemones that split, captive breeding of fish, among other things. Rock and sand can, and are, being aquaculture that help the hobbyist and environment by the reefs they form. While collectors of rare fish, and even us that collect fish that can't be captive bred, would throw a fit we can at least do our part with the rest and lower the burden.
Just the way I see it anyway.
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-saf1
Current Tank Info: 210 gallon mixed reef
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