Photographer : Andrew J. Cosgriff |
About the reef
The Great Barrier Reef is located in the water off the Queensland coast and is accessible from the port cities of Cairns and Port Douglas. The reef is enormous, bigger than the size of the UK, and it is the largest living being on earth.
Protecting it
The Great Barrier Reef has been protected as a World Heritage Site since 1981. It was identified as a site with significant importance to the world and will be protected for generations to come. The reef is home to a wealth of biodiversity.
With such a great honour comes great responsibility. The task of protecting the reef is a difficult one due to the size of the reef and the number of visitors it receives.
Impact of tourism
Over two million visitors each year travel to northern Australia to get a glimpse of the reef and all its wonder. That traffic can take a serious toll on the reef and its fragile environment.
Negative effects of tourism:
• walking on the reef
• anchors dropped and dragged on the reef
• pollution from boats and humans
• taking some of the reef as a souvenir.
The biggest threat
The biggest threat to the reef does not come from visitor activities but from human activities on land. Water runoff and quality issues constantly threaten to change the make-up of the water around the reef and to affect the balance of life. Climate change and global warming have the potential to warm the waters around the reef which could lead to coral bleaching and the death of coral. Only living coral is coloured, dead coral turns white.
An interlocking life system
The entire ecosystem of the Great Barrier Reef is one interlocking life system. When one part of the system is hurting, the whole ecosystem can be thrown out of balance.
How many species live on the reef and how many of those species are endangered?
The reef supports 1500 species of fish, 4000 mollusc species, 400 species of sponges and 300 species of coral. With all this biodiversity there is the added challenge of how to protect such a wealth of species. There are now more than 40 species on the reef that are endangered. The two most threatened species are the dugong and the loggerhead turtle. The dugong population is currently just 3 per cent of what it was in just and the loggerhead population has dropped by 90 per cent in the same amount of time. Action must be taken immediately or these species could disappear from the Great Barrier Reef permanently.
To really see what’s at stake in the fight to conserve the Great Barrier Reef, check out the National Geographic virtual dive site at
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/earthpulse/reef/...
You can also read about the best environmental practices to use when at the Great Barrier Reef at
http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/corp_site/key_issues/tour...
How do I know this?
Australian Institute of Marine Science,
http://www.aims.gov.au/
Australian Government Culture and Recreation Portal,
Great Barrier Reef,
http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/gr...
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority,
http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/
UNESCO World Heritage,
Great Barrier Reef,
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/154
Department of the Environment and Heritage,
The Great Barrier Reef http://www.deh.gov.au/heritage/worldheritage/sites...
Travelonline.com,
Tropical North Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef,
http://www.great-barrier-reef.com/
