Great Barrier Reef Could Be Listed as ‘In Danger’

The United Nations World Heritage Committee has confirmed it is considering relisting the Great Barrier Reef on the ‘in danger’ list after environmentalists, NGOs, prominent scientists and lawyers wrote to the body asking it to intervene.

The environmentalists have been unhappy with how the Australia government has responded to narrowly avoiding enlistment last year. In the intervening months, the reef has suffered from the worst bleaching in its history and the government have not been forthcoming in plans to safeguard it.

Neglecting duties

Last year, the reef was a whisker away from being listed as ‘in danger’ by the UN. At the time, the government invested $400 million in lobbying for the UN not to include the reef on its watch list and have since used the exclusion as supposed evidence of ‘good government’, with environment minister Greg Hunt having been especially vocal on the subject.

However, one condition of the exclusion was that the Australian government must work to improve its wastewater treatment facilities and curb aquatic pollution, with an annual report due on the 1^st December outlining the challenges faced and the changes made.

However, the government has advanced plans for the coal export location at Abbot Point to be expanded, which is right next to the reef. The planned expansion would involve disrupting the ecosystems in place and dumping waste in the world heritage site – while its primary use would be to facilitate the exportation of coal from the newly-approved Carmichael coalmine.

Many NGOs within and without Australia have seen the government’s behaviour as negligent and argue that it endangers the reef’s welfare. It has been argued that the current 2050 plan is nowhere near adequate to save the reef and that more forceful action is required.

A bad situation made worse

Prior to the colossal bleaching incident which has turned huge swathes of the reef white and killed off or relocated much of the fauna which use it as a habitat, the reef already met criteria for it to be listed. Now that it has seen the worst coral bleaching in history, the UN must act, say lawyers.

“If the world heritage system is to have any value in protecting our most precious and irreplaceable places, the committee must address the threat of climate change and Australia must accept its duty to protect the Great Barrier Reef for the benefit of the global community by ceasing its relentless promotion of dirty fossil fuels,” explained Noni Austin, an Australian-born lawyer working in the US for environmental group Earthjustice.   

Meanwhile, PhD candidate Jon Day, of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University, agreed that the government must do more or risk damaging the reef beyond repair.

“The reef needs more government assistance, more leadership from industry and, crucially, more widespread public support if future generations are to enjoy what UNESCO considers is the most bio-diverse world heritage property on the planet,” he said.