Reef at centre of change
Veteran warns more must be done to protect marine icon
THE Australian Institute of Marine Science’s (AIMS) positive snapshot of the Great Barrier Reef confirms what locals are witnessing – but the nation as a whole must take ownership of the Reef’s future, according to veteran scuba diver and marine biologist Wendy Morris.
The daughter of Port Douglas icon John Morris, Ms Morris is out in the Coral Sea almost daily in some manner.
She is a member of the board of directors of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA), a Reef Trust Partnership member, a former chairperson and director of Tourism Tropical North Queensland and former director of Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef.
“The Reef is constantly changing and we can monitor and try to understand what we are seeing, but the longterm projection is that we must address climate change,” she said.
“It’s good to see that all sections of the Reef have had a year of recovery, as shown by AIMS long-term monitoring report just released, and as also observed and recorded by many reef tour operators,” Ms Morris said.
“I think we probably do the best job in the world of managing non-climate change related threats to reef health, with many partners from reef managers and scientists, to farmers and tourism all working together on a range of initiatives.
“But climate change clearly remains the greatest threat … and we must do everything possible, without delay, to make the changes needed to meet Paris targets.
“The reef tourism industry are frontline eyes on the Reef, contributing to monitoring and site stewardship, and most importantly giving more than two million people a year a first-hand experience and understanding of the Reef.
“Unlike land-based national parks, you can’t walk or drive there, it’s our reef fleet providing daily access, education and guiding – making visiting the Reef a lifelong memory and creating inspiration to do all we can to tread lightly, wherever we are.”
Under the Paris Agreement, Australia has committed to an ambitious target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 26 per cent, to 28 per cent below 2005 levels, by 2030.
UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee is meeting this week to consider whether the Reef should be formally declared in danger – a move that could ultimately see it lose its world heritage status.
The coral growth survey conducted by AIMS looked at 53 reefs in the central zone between Cooktown and the Whitsundays.
It found “moderate” hard coral cover had increased to 26 per cent in 2021.