Assault on reef predator
Patrols funded to deal with starfish pest
FIVE fully crewed boats will patrol the Great Barrier Reef for two years under a $28 million plan to ramp up an assault against coral-eating crown of thorns starfish.
The Morrison government will today announce the next stage of its plans to battle the native fish, which are one of the biggest threats to the Reef. Environment Minister Susan Ley said nearly $28 million worth of contracts had been awarded to boost the co-ordinated assaulton the fish which are considered as damaging to the Reef as cyclones and severe coral bleaching.
FIVE fully crewed boats will patrol the Great Barrier Reef for two years under a $28 million plan to ramp up an assault against coral-eating crown of thorns starfish.
The Morrison Government will today announce the next stage of its plans to battle the native starfish, which are voracious predators of coral and one of the biggest threats to the Reef.
Environment Minister Sussan Ley said nearly $28 million worth of contracts had been awarded to boost the co-ordinated assault on the starfish, which are considered as damaging to the Reef as cyclones and severe coral bleaching.
Four major outbreaks have been recorded since 1960 and Reef managers have been struggling to control numbers since 2010.
“Since the present outbreak began, more than 160 reefs have been patrolled and over 700,000 of the COTS have been culled, with indigenous rangers playing a vital role on the water,” Ms Ley said.
She said research agreements between scientists and reef managers had paved the way to strengthen a “co-ordinated assault on these coraleating predators”.
“Reducing the threat from COTS outbreaks, where they can consume coral faster than it can grow, is critical to helping the Reef remain vibrant in the face of a range of other pressures,” she said.
The boat program is the centrepiece of the new assault with operators leading culling missions, reef health surveys and research support to help reduce the starfish numbers.
Great Barrier Reef special envoy Warren Entsch said starfish control programs, which began in 2012, had successfully managed outbreaks.
“We want to ensure the Reef’s future for the benefit of all Australians, particularly communities in Queensland whose livelihoods depend on it,” he said.
Great Barrier Reef Foundation managing director Anna Marsden said authorities had to control outbreaks to protect the Reef and its marine life.
“As well as investing in manual efforts to control outbreaks, we are also establishing a major innovation program to develop even more effective methods to give us the best chance of preventing outbreaks in the future,” she said.
The latest funding comes from a $58 million crown of thorns starfish control investment under the $443.3 million Reef Trust Partnership with the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.