Australia goes to war on reef-eating starfish

AUSTRALIA has announced a cull of crown-of-thorns starfish that have been destroying the Great Barrier Reef, in a £35million rescue package for the 1,500-mile stretch of delicate coast.

Malcolm Turnbull, the prime minister, unveiled an 18-month plan, which includes funds for diving patrols that have already cleared the reef of more than 300,000 starfish. Surveys by the Australian Institute of Marine Science found that the coral cover declined by half between 1985 and 2012, and that starfish were responsible for almost half of this decline.

The plan includes £21million to prevent pollution from entering the reef, particularly from coastal farms, as well as £6million for an “all-out assault on starfish” and £3.5million for research into improving the resilience of coral. The starfish have proliferated at the struggling reef due to pollution and agricultural run-off.

“There’s a very strong link between polluted water and outbreaks of the crown-of-thorns starfish,” Mr Turnbull said. Most of the funding would go to support farmers’ efforts to stop the run-off, via rainfall, of pollutants from their land.