tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/great-barrier-reef-1234/articlesGreat Barrier Reef – The Conversation2024-03-09T08:43:31Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2253482024-03-09T08:43:31Z2024-03-09T08:43:31ZThe Great Barrier Reef’s latest bout of bleaching is the fifth in eight summers – the corals now have almost no reprieve<p>For the fifth time in just the past eight summers – 2016, 2017, 2020, 2022 and now 2024 - huge swathes of the Great Barrier Reef are experiencing extreme heat stress that has triggered yet another <a href="https://www2.gbrmpa.gov.au/learn/reef-health/reef-health-updates">episode of mass coral bleaching</a>. </p>
<p>Including two earlier heating episodes – in 1998 (which was at the time the hottest year globally on record) and 2002 – this brings the tally to seven such extreme events in the past 26 years. </p>
<p>The most conspicuous impact of unusually high temperatures on tropical and subtropical reefs is wide-scale coral bleaching and death. Sharp spikes in temperature can destroy coral tissue directly even before bleaching unfolds. Consequently, if temperatures exceed 2°C above the normal summer maximum, heat-sensitive corals die very quickly. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2LUyooQRUAM?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Reef Health Update (8 March 2024) Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What is coral bleaching?</h2>
<p>Bleaching happens when marine heatwaves disrupt the relationship between corals and their “photosynthetic symbionts” – tiny organisms that live inside the corals’ tissues and help power their metabolism.</p>
<p>Severe bleaching is often fatal, whereas corals that are mildly bleached can slowly regain their symbionts and normal colour after the end of summer, and survive. </p>
<p>Before 1998, coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef was infrequent and localised. But over the past four decades, bleaching has increased in frequency, severity and sptial scale, as a result of <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aan8048">human-induced climate heating</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-just-spent-two-weeks-surveying-the-great-barrier-reef-what-we-saw-was-an-utter-tragedy-135197">We just spent two weeks surveying the Great Barrier Reef. What we saw was an utter tragedy</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>“Mass coral bleaching” refers to bleaching that is severe and widespread, affecting reefs at a regional scale or even throughout the tropics triggered by rising global sea temperatures.</p>
<p>The Great Barrier Reef consists of more than 3,000 individual coral reefs. It’s the same size as Japan or Italy, and extends for 2,300km along the coast of Queensland. Widespread coral deaths during extreme heatwaves, affecting hundreds of millions of coral colonies, <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/gcb.15805">far exceed the damage</a> typically caused by a severe cyclone.</p>
<h2>How bad is 2024?</h2>
<p>Heat stress this week is reaching record levels on large parts of the Great Barrier Reef. </p>
<p>Climate scientists can measure the accumulation of heat stress throughout the summer by using a metric called “<a href="https://www.pacioos.hawaii.edu/voyager/info/coral_bleaching_degree_heating_week.html">degree heating weeks</a>” (DHW), which factors in both the duration and intensity of extreme heat exposure. This measures how far the temperature is above the threshold that triggers mild bleaching (1°C hotter than the normal summer maximum), and how long it stays above that threshold.</p>
<p>The same DHW exposure can result either from a long, moderate heatwave or from a short, intense peak in temperatures. The 2023–24 summer has been a slow burner on the Great Barrier Reef – sea temperatures have not been as extreme as during previous bleaching events, but they have <a href="http://www.bom.gov.au/oceanography/oceantemp/sst-outlook-map.shtml">persisted for longer</a>.</p>
<p>As a general rule of thumb, 2–4 DHW units can trigger the onset of bleaching, and heat-sensitive species of coral begin to die at 6–8 DHW units. So far this summer, <a href="https://x.com/profterryhughes/status/1762293105175445921?s=12&t=jfoU3j0RiQtYeeHqbSpjlA">according to the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration</a>, heat stress on the Great Barrier Reef has climbed to 10–12 DHW units on many individual reefs, and has been north and south compared to the central region. Heat stress will likely peak in the next week or two at levels above all previous mass bleaching and mortality events since 1998, before falling as temperatures drop.</p>
<p>Coral bleaching is typically very patchy at the enormous scale of the Great Barrier Reef. In each of the previous events since 1998, <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/pdfExtended/S0960-9822(21)01490-1">20–55% of individual reefs</a> experienced severe bleaching and coral deaths, whereas 14–48% of reefs were unharmed.</p>
<p>Given the near-record levels of heat stress this summer, we can expect heavy losses of corals to occur on hundreds of individual reefs over the next few months.</p>
<h2>What’s the longer-term outlook?</h2>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1765893314463838474"}"></div></p>
<p>This latest, still-unfolding event was entirely predictable, as ocean temperatures continue to rise due to global heating. </p>
<p>Three of the seven mass bleaching events so far on the Great Barrier Reef coincided with El Niño conditions (1998, 2016 and this summer), and the remaining four did not. Increasingly, climate-driven coral bleaching and death is happening regardless of whether we are in an El Niño or La Niña phase. Average tropical sea surface temperatures are <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aan8048">already warmer today</a> under La Niña conditions than they were during El Niño events only three or four decades ago.</p>
<p>The Great Barrier Reef is now a chequerboard of reefs with different recent histories of coral bleaching. Reefs that bleached in 2017 or 2016 have had only five or six years to recover before being hit again this summer – assuming they escaped bleaching during the 2020 and 2022 episodes. </p>
<p>Clearly, the gap between consecutive heat extremes is shrinking – we are vanishingly unlikely to see another 14-year reprieve like 2002 to 2016 again in our lifetimes, until global temperatures stabilise.</p>
<p>Ironically, the corals that are now prevalent on many reefs are young colonies of fast-growing, heat-sensitive species of branching and table-shaped corals – analogous to the rapid recovery of flammable grasses after a forest fire. These species can restore coral cover quickly, but they also make the Great Barrier Reef more vulnerable to future heatwaves. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/concern-for-the-great-barrier-reef-can-inspire-climate-action-but-the-way-we-talk-about-it-matters-216992">Concern for the Great Barrier Reef can inspire climate action - but the way we talk about it matters</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Attempts to restore depleted coral cover through coral gardening, assisted migration (by harvesting larvae) and assisted evolution (rearing corals in an aquarium) are prohibitively expensive and <a href="https://www.cell.com/one-earth/pdf/S2590-3322(23)00189-6.pdf">unworkable at any meaningful scale</a>. In Florida, coral nurseries <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/ap/ap-u-s-news/ap-hot-seawater-killed-most-of-cultivated-coral-in-florida-keys-in-setback-for-restoration-effort/">suffered mass deaths</a> due to record sea temperatures last summer.</p>
<p>The only long-term way to protect corals on the Great Barrier Reef and elsewhere is to rapidly reduce global greenhouse emissions.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225348/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Terry Hughes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Great Barrier Reef is facing its worst summer of sustained heat stress since the mass bleaching event of 1998, but now with less time to recover amid repeated brutal conditions.Terry Hughes, Distinguished Professor, James Cook UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2233222024-02-14T03:56:08Z2024-02-14T03:56:08ZThe world’s coral reefs are bigger than we thought – but it took satellites, snorkels and machine learning to see them<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/575519/original/file-20240214-20-mjiqz2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4607%2C2592&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/aerial-view-great-barrier-reef-whitsundays-1496224889">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The world’s coral reefs are close to 25% larger than we thought. By using satellite images, machine learning and on-ground knowledge from a global network of people living and working on coral reefs, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2949790624000016?via%3Dihub">we found</a> an extra 64,000 square kilometres of coral reefs – an area the size of Ireland. </p>
<p>That brings the total size of the planet’s shallow reefs (meaning 0-20 metres deep) to 348,000 square kilometres – the size of Germany. This figure represents whole coral reef ecosystems, ranging from sandy-bottomed lagoons with a little coral, to coral rubble flats, to living walls of coral. </p>
<p>Within this 348,000 km² of coral is 80,000 km² where there’s a hard bottom – rocks rather than sand. These areas are likely to be home to significant amounts of coral – the places snorkellers and scuba divers most like to visit. </p>
<p>You might wonder why we’re finding this out now. Didn’t we already know where the world’s reefs are? </p>
<p>Previously, we’ve had to pull data from many different sources, which made it harder to pin down the extent of coral reefs with certainty. But now we have high resolution satellite data covering the entire world – and are able to see reefs as deep as 30 metres down. </p>
<p>We coupled this with direct observations and records of coral reefs from over <a href="https://allencoralatlas.org/attribution">400 individuals and organisations</a> in countries with coral reefs from all regions, such as the Maldives, Cuba and Australia. </p>
<p>To produce the maps, we used machine learning techniques to chew through 100 trillion pixels from the Sentinel-2 and Planet Dove CubeSat satellites to make accurate predictions about where coral is – and is not. The team worked with almost 500 researchers and collaborators to make the maps. </p>
<p>The result: the world’s first comprehensive map of coral reefs extent, and their composition, produced through the <a href="https://allencoralatlas.org/">Allen Coral Atlas</a>. </p>
<p>The maps are already proving their worth. Reef management agencies around the world are using them to plan and assess conservation work and threats to reefs. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Researcher towing a GPS on Great Barrier Reef during an expedition." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/575477/original/file-20240213-26-wxc8ic.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/575477/original/file-20240213-26-wxc8ic.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575477/original/file-20240213-26-wxc8ic.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575477/original/file-20240213-26-wxc8ic.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575477/original/file-20240213-26-wxc8ic.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575477/original/file-20240213-26-wxc8ic.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575477/original/file-20240213-26-wxc8ic.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">We combined satellite data with real world observations. Here, Dr Eva Kovacs tows a GPS on the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://allencoralatlas.org/blog/meet-the-team-university-of-queensland/">Allan Coral Atlas</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Where is this hidden coral?</h2>
<p>You can see the difference for yourself. In the interactive slider below, red indicates the newly detected coral in reefs off far north Queensland. </p>
<p><iframe id="tc-infographic-1015" class="tc-infographic" height="400px" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/1015/df887cb0211a347030b52f7e8261bcacbc7e9463/site/index.html" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>This infographic shows the new detail we now have for the Tongue Reef, in the seas off Port Douglas in Far North Queensland. </p>
<p><iframe id="tc-infographic-1017" class="tc-infographic" height="400px" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/1017/21ab9e743c8e2a3a716df327b0946c4bf8e47468/site/index.html" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>Our maps have three levels of detail. The first is the most expansive – the entire coral reef ecosystem. Seen from space, it has light areas of coral fringed by darker deeper water. </p>
<p>Then we have geomorphic detail, meaning what the areas within the reef look like. This includes sandy lagoons, reef crests exposed to the air at low tide, sloping areas going into deeper water and so on.</p>
<p><iframe id="tc-infographic-1016" class="tc-infographic" height="400px" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/1016/ba3212ee64a358a16ca6b5ccfb454b415a72afe1/site/index.html" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>And finally we have fine detail of the benthic substrates, showing where you have areas dominated by coral cover. </p>
<p>Coral can’t grow on sand. Polyps have to attach to a hard surface such as rock before they can begin expanding the reef out of their limestone-secreting bodies. </p>
<p>Some of our maps include fine detail of benthic substrates, meaning where coral is most likely to be and the substrates (seafloor) available to the polyps, such as existing coral, sand, rubble, or seagrass. </p>
<iframe src="https://flo.uri.sh/visualisation/16796582/embed" title="Interactive or visual content" class="flourish-embed-iframe" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="width:100%;height:600px;" sandbox="allow-same-origin allow-forms allow-scripts allow-downloads allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<div style="width:100%!;margin-top:4px!important;text-align:right!important;"><a class="flourish-credit" href="https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/16796582/?utm_source=embed&utm_campaign=visualisation/16796582" target="_top"><img alt="Made with Flourish" src="https://public.flourish.studio/resources/made_with_flourish.svg"></a></div>
<iframe src="https://flo.uri.sh/visualisation/16784641/embed" title="Interactive or visual content" class="flourish-embed-iframe" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="width:100%;height:600px;" sandbox="allow-same-origin allow-forms allow-scripts allow-downloads allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<div style="width:100%!;margin-top:4px!important;text-align:right!important;"><a class="flourish-credit" href="https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/16784641/?utm_source=embed&utm_campaign=visualisation/16784641" target="_top"><img alt="Made with Flourish" src="https://public.flourish.studio/resources/made_with_flourish.svg"></a></div>
<p>It’s a crucial time for the world’s coral reefs. We’re discovering the full extent of shallow water reefs – while other researchers are finding large new <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/jan/19/deep-sea-coral-reef-atlantic-coast">black coral reefs</a> in deeper water. </p>
<p>But even as we make these discoveries, coral reefs are reeling. Climate change is steadily heating up the sea and making it more acidic. Coral polyps can’t <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-heroic-effort-to-save-floridas-coral-reef-from-extreme-ocean-heat-as-corals-bleach-across-the-caribbean-210974">handle too much heat</a>. These wonders of biodiversity are home to a quarter of the ocean’s species.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Scientist doing coral reef research." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/575481/original/file-20240213-20-h7bnsp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/575481/original/file-20240213-20-h7bnsp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575481/original/file-20240213-20-h7bnsp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575481/original/file-20240213-20-h7bnsp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575481/original/file-20240213-20-h7bnsp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575481/original/file-20240213-20-h7bnsp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/575481/original/file-20240213-20-h7bnsp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Making these maps took plenty of underwater research as well as satellite data. This photo shows Dr Chris Roelfsema conducting a photo transect in a remote area of the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://allencoralatlas.org/blog/new-funds-for-coral-reef-field-engagement/">Allen Coral Atlas</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In good news, these maps are already leading to real world change. We’ve already seen new efforts to conserve coral reefs in Indonesia, several Pacific island nations, Panama, Belize, Kenya and Australia, among others. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-do-coral-reefs-thrive-in-parts-of-the-ocean-that-are-low-in-nutrients-by-eating-their-algal-companions-212049">How do coral reefs thrive in parts of the ocean that are low in nutrients? By eating their algal companions</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/223322/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mitchell Lyons receives funding from Australian Research Council and Australian Commonwealth Government. Mitchell Lyons works for the University of Queensland and the University of New South Wales. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stuart Phinn receives funding from the Australian Research Council, Queensland and New South Wales state governments, Geoscience Australia and other Commonwealth agencies, and SmartSAT CRC. He works for the University of Queensland and was the founding director of Earth Observation Australia and Australia's Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN). </span></em></p>Our new maps show coral reefs are more extensive than we thought.Mitchell Lyons, Postdoctoral research fellow, The University of QueenslandStuart Phinn, Professor of Geography, Director - Remote Sensing Research Centre, Chair - Earth Observation Australia, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1943352023-12-10T19:07:20Z2023-12-10T19:07:20ZHow an underwater sculpture trail plays a role in the health – and beauty – of the Great Barrier Reef<p>The widespread demise of coral reefs due to climate change is <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/syr/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6_SYR_SPM.pdf">now a certainty</a>. But what role does art have in our future for coral reefs? </p>
<p>Art is about feelings. One of the great challenges today is that we often feel untouched by the problems of others and by global issues like climate change. This is where art can make a difference.</p>
<p>Engaging with a thoughtful work of art can connect you to your senses, body and mind. Art can be used as a tool to raise awareness, promote conversation and rally behind a cause. </p>
<p>One way this is happening on the Great Barrier Reef is through an underwater sculpture trail. Here reef sculptures are drawing attention to inspirational scientists, the science of climate change, reef restoration, citizen science and traditional culture.</p>
<h2>What are reef sculptures?</h2>
<p>Reef sculptures are a form of artificial reef: man-made structures placed into an aquatic environment to mimic certain characteristics of a natural reef.</p>
<p>Artificial reefs were historically deployed for fishers and divers to concentrate marine life and to shift pressure from other popular locations.</p>
<p>Artificial reefs take many forms, such as reef balls, pods, concrete pipes, wrecks and sculptures. They can be sites of ecological research, conservation and arts and culture.</p>
<p>The first modern reef sculpture was created by Jason deCaires Taylor at Grenada in the West Indies in 2006. This sculpture aimed to provide a restorative response to a damaged marine ecosystem and enhance marine tourism. </p>
<p>The largest underwater sculpture in the world is the <a href="https://www.moua.com.au/">Museum of Underwater Art</a> created with deCaires Taylor at John Brewer Reef, offshore from Townsville. The Coral Greenhouse is a skeletal building made from pH-neutral cement and corrosion-resistant stainless steel. It covers an area of 72 square metres and weights 165 tonnes, with eight human figures depicting scientists, conservationists and coral gardeners.</p>
<p>A <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/11/1617">recent report</a> on this sculpture found statistically significant increases in fish abundance and diversity. There were no changes over time in invertebrate abundance, invertebrate diversity and tourist perceptions of aesthetic values.</p>
<p>Structural designs of underwater sculptures need to be able to adapt into the surrounding natural landscape, creating a transition point from the manufactured to natural. </p>
<p>Small intricate matrices provide protection for small fish. Textured planters encourage coral restoration efforts by scientists.</p>
<p>But there are still <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3298/10/7/121">gaps in our knowledge</a> in how effective artificial reefs are for potential local, regional or global impact by increasing awareness of coral reef decline and positive actions.</p>
<h2>Government policy bans underwater sculptures</h2>
<p>A <a href="https://elibrary.gbrmpa.gov.au/jspui/bitstream/11017/4011/1/FINAL-Policy-on-Fish-Aggregating-Devices-and-Artificial-Reefs.pdf">new Reef Authority policy</a> on fish-aggregating devices and artificial reefs has banned the creation of new underwater sculptures on the Great Barrier Reef.</p>
<p>Its report found artificial reefs are “not compatible” with the main objective of the Marine Park Act, which is “to provide for the long-term protection and conservation of the environment, biodiversity and heritage values of the Great Barrier Reef Region”.</p>
<p>Instead of artificial reefs, the <a href="https://elibrary.gbrmpa.gov.au/jspui/bitstream/11017/3287/1/GBRMPA%20Blueprint%20for%20Resilience%20-%20Low%20Res.pdf">authority recommends initiatives</a> that include ramping up crown-of-thorns starfish control, strengthening compliance, enhanced protection of key species for reef recovery, and testing and deploying methods for reef restoration.</p>
<p>But since 2017, the community, artists, traditional owners, citizen scientists, the tourism industry and local, state and federal governments have supported <a href="https://www.dtis.qld.gov.au/tourism/funds/growing-infrastructure/museum-of-underwater-art">the Museum of Underwater Art</a>.</p>
<p>This museum has provided jobs and revenue, raised awareness and amplified <a href="https://www.dtis.qld.gov.au/tourism/funds/growing-infrastructure/museum-of-underwater-art">important messages about reef conservation</a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/young-crown-of-thorns-starfish-can-survive-heatwaves-thats-yet-more-bad-news-for-the-great-barrier-reef-215543">Young crown-of-thorns starfish can survive heatwaves. That's yet more bad news for the Great Barrier Reef</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The positive impact of the reef sculpture</h2>
<p>We have been surveying the life at the Museum of Underwater Art since 2018.</p>
<p>In 2018 (pre-installation), 2020 (post-installation), 2021 and 2022, divers recorded species and abundance of individuals sighted.</p>
<p>In 2018, 12 species and 65 individual creatures were recorded at the location of the museum. The <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/11/1617">2022 survey</a> found 46 species and 365 individuals. </p>
<p>The site has also become a <a href="https://reefecologic.org/project/moua/#:%7E:text=Bringing%20life%20to%20the%20Coral%20Greenhouse&text=On%2014%20March%202021%2C%20Reef,131%20corals%20on%20treatment%20locations">reef restoration demonstration site</a>. Planting corals on underwater sculptures is an innovative method of linking art, science, tourism, education and conservation. </p>
<p>Coral gardening is a reef-restoration technique modelled on terrestrial gardening. Small cuttings of coral colonies, called fragments, are transplanted from the surrounding reef to populate the new artificial reef. The corals help to rapidly transform the art installation into a biotic location.</p>
<p>In March 2020, 131 corals were transplanted onto Taylor’s sculptures. After one year, 91.6% of the coral survived. </p>
<p>Our research on planting corals in relatively deep water of 18 metres has been challenging and innovative. Interestingly, the results are better than for shallow-water coral projects, which average an 80% survival rate after one year.</p>
<p>We also assessed tourist attitudes to the artificial reef. We found high satisfaction with the art, coral and fish observed at the site.</p>
<p>Interestingly, tourists in the Whitsundays rated <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357916065_Innovative_local_response_to_cyclone_damaged_reef_leads_to_rapid_tourism_recovery">the beauty of underwater art</a> higher than the beauty of natural reefs.</p>
<h2>Reaching new hearts</h2>
<p>Katharina Fabricious, a senior research scientist at the Australian Institute of Marine Science, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-18/museum-of-underwater-art-great-barrier-reef-ocean-sentinels/102337556">says</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Conservation needs to be communicated in a whole range of different ways, and art is reaching people that scientists sometimes cannot reach.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The future of the Museum of Underwater Art is uncertain due to its classification as an artificial reef. The renewal or refusal of the many permits required for the artworks will be considered in the context of the new policy. It means this is the largest and possible the last underwater sculpture in the Great Barrier Reef.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/concern-for-the-great-barrier-reef-can-inspire-climate-action-but-the-way-we-talk-about-it-matters-216992">Concern for the Great Barrier Reef can inspire climate action - but the way we talk about it matters</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194335/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Adam Smith through Reef Ecologic Pty Ltd receives funding for research from the Australian and Queensland Government. He is a voluntary Board member of the not for profit Museum of Underwater Art Pty Ltd</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nathan Cook through Reef Ecologic Pty Ltd receives funding for research from the Australian and Queensland Government. </span></em></p>Reef sculptures are a form of artifical reef: man-made structures placed into an aquatic environment to mimic certain characteristics of a natural reef.Adam Smith, Adjunct Associate Professor, James Cook UniversityNathan Cook, Marine Scientist, James Cook UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2169922023-11-20T02:16:42Z2023-11-20T02:16:42ZConcern for the Great Barrier Reef can inspire climate action - but the way we talk about it matters<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/558779/original/file-20231110-27-ngo48.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=5%2C0%2C1991%2C1329&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.theoceanagency.org/ocean-image-bank">Matt Curnock / Ocean Image Bank</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>There’s no doubt you’ve heard the Great Barrier Reef is under pressure. The main culprit? Climate change. The main solution? An <a href="https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/scientists-call-code-blue-emergency-for-aussie-oceans-as-off-the-scale-marine-heat-looms/">urgent reduction</a> in greenhouse gas emissions and a shift away from fossil fuels.</p>
<p>Those who promote action to protect the reef therefore have a difficult task. How do we encourage more people to take action on climate change? Whether it’s reducing reliance on fossil fuels in our personal lives, or asking our government to transition from fossil fuels to renewables, what do people need to know, and how do we say it in a way that makes a difference?</p>
<p>Researchers in <a href="https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/about/what-is-climate-change-communication/">climate change communication</a> have been grappling with these questions for decades. But we have something other communicators don’t – the reef itself.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1462901123002848">our new research</a> we used experiments to show what many divers, tourism operators and local communities have known for decades – the wonder of the Great Barrier Reef inspires climate action. But it doesn’t just magically happen. The way we talk about it matters.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/558773/original/file-20231110-15-jeq5cw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Underwater view of a bumpy outcrop of coral higher than the surrounding platform of reef" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/558773/original/file-20231110-15-jeq5cw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/558773/original/file-20231110-15-jeq5cw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558773/original/file-20231110-15-jeq5cw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558773/original/file-20231110-15-jeq5cw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558773/original/file-20231110-15-jeq5cw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558773/original/file-20231110-15-jeq5cw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558773/original/file-20231110-15-jeq5cw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A ‘coral bommie’ or outcrop of coral rising above its surrounds on the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Yolanda Waters</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What’s happening on the Great Barrier Reef?</h2>
<p>Earlier this year the Bureau of Meteorology <a href="https://media.bom.gov.au/releases/1183/the-bureau-declares-el-nino-and-positive-indian-ocean-dipole-events/">officially announced</a> an El Niño weather event, which has already begun to bring hotter than average temperatures to much of Australia. But while Australia braces for a scorcher on land this summer, those working on the Great Barrier Reef are preparing for a marine heatwave.</p>
<p>The marine equivalent of bushfires, heat is set to <a href="https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/scientists-call-code-blue-emergency-for-aussie-oceans-as-off-the-scale-marine-heat-looms/">wreak havoc on marine ecosystems</a> all around Australia. For the Great Barrier Reef, this means increased risk of mass coral bleaching. </p>
<p>These events have occurred <a href="https://www.aims.gov.au/research-topics/environmental-issues/coral-bleaching/coral-bleaching-events">four times</a> in recent years (2016, 2017, 2020 and 2022). Scientists expect mass coral bleaching will happen every year if we do not urgently reduce greenhouse gas emissions and eliminate the use of fossil fuels.</p>
<p>But while <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-the-great-barrier-reef-reviving-or-dying-heres-whats-happening-beyond-the-headlines-210558">the science</a> around the Great Barrier Reef is clear, the way we talk about it isn’t.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-the-great-barrier-reef-reviving-or-dying-heres-whats-happening-beyond-the-headlines-210558">Is the Great Barrier Reef reviving – or dying? Here's what's happening beyond the headlines</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Different messages about the reef</h2>
<p>We are constantly flooded with all kinds of information about the Great Barrier Reef. This can make it tricky for people to understand what is going on and what they can do to help. </p>
<p>Some communicators convey a sense of urgency by emphasising the “<a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/coral-reefs-are-dying-desperate-scientists-are-turning-to-high-risk-strategies-20230519-p5d9mr.html">reef is dying</a>”. Others warn against the use of apocalyptic-style messages, suggesting <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1075547008329201">fear is an ineffective tool</a> for motivating action. These commentators suggest <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/11/24/australia-great-barrier-reef-coral-spawning/">stories of resilience</a>, restoration and recovery can strengthen motivation and <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/cobi.14020">hope</a>. But what really works? How do we talk about the reef in a way that motivates action?</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/558774/original/file-20231110-15-8tp5o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A partially submerged diver on the Great Barrier Reef, holding aloft a yellow sign bearing the words 'Climate Action NOW'" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/558774/original/file-20231110-15-8tp5o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/558774/original/file-20231110-15-8tp5o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558774/original/file-20231110-15-8tp5o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558774/original/file-20231110-15-8tp5o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558774/original/file-20231110-15-8tp5o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558774/original/file-20231110-15-8tp5o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/558774/original/file-20231110-15-8tp5o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Stronger action on climate change is needed to protect vulnerable and iconic places like the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Yolanda Waters</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/could-marine-cloud-brightening-reduce-coral-bleaching-on-the-great-barrier-reef-214308">Could 'marine cloud brightening' reduce coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Which messages work? An experiment</h2>
<p>To find out how best to inspire action, we provided 1,452 Australians with one of eight different messages about climate change and/or the Great Barrier Reef. We then looked at which messages were most likely to increase engagement in a range of climate actions. </p>
<p>We found climate messages focusing on the reef were more effective than generic climate messages, compared to a control that included an unrelated message or no message at all.</p>
<p>This suggests the reef itself is a valuable tool for motivating climate action. This was particularly true when we emphasised our collective potential to protect the reef, using language such as “together we can”, and asked people to take action by using their voice. That is, letting their friends, families and politicians know they support stronger action on climate change.</p>
<p>We also found sadness is a necessary ingredient, and there is no need to shy away from the reality of coral bleaching or fear provoking negative emotions. When exploring why these messages focusing on the reef were more effective, we found the effect was largely due to <a href="https://theconversation.com/sadness-disgust-anger-fear-for-the-great-barrier-reef-made-climate-change-feel-urgent-119232">feelings related to sadness</a>, worry and anxiety.</p>
<p>But here’s the rub. For reef messages to work, we found they must include tangible, specific and relevant calls to action. In other words, highlighting the reef is the hook, but we need to show people what they can do to help.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560292/original/file-20231120-30-hy9e7k.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Infographic comparing different climate messages and calls to action from the research" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560292/original/file-20231120-30-hy9e7k.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560292/original/file-20231120-30-hy9e7k.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=362&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560292/original/file-20231120-30-hy9e7k.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=362&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560292/original/file-20231120-30-hy9e7k.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=362&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560292/original/file-20231120-30-hy9e7k.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560292/original/file-20231120-30-hy9e7k.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560292/original/file-20231120-30-hy9e7k.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Reef messages were most effective when they focused on social and political actions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Yolanda Waters</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Preparing for a hot reef summer</h2>
<p>We can’t control the heatwaves or the headlines coming this summer, but we can do our best to leverage this opportunity to motivate widespread action for the reef. </p>
<p>Here’s how you can talk about the reef this summer:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>highlight the iconic nature of the reef and how it is a part of who we are</p></li>
<li><p>emphasise collective and motivational language (such as “together we can”) instead of personal and restrictive language (such as “you can reduce”)</p></li>
<li><p>state the problem (including the cause – burning fossil fuels) but don’t focus too much on explaining the threat. It’s time to talk about action</p></li>
<li><p>avoid broad policy statements such as “to protect the reef, we need to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees” unless they are followed by more specific calls to action</p></li>
<li><p>include very specific calls to action. People want to know exactly what you want them to do. Examples include encouraging people to commit to finding ways to reduce their <a href="https://www.footprintcalculator.org/home/en">personal carbon footprint</a>, join a <a href="https://www.cana.net.au/ourmembers">climate action group</a>, or <a href="https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/conversation-guide-time-to-act/#:%7E:text=This%20practical%20conversation%20guide%20gives,online%20and%20through%20social%20media.">have a conversation</a> about climate change with at least one family member or friend</p></li>
<li><p>be careful, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272494422000512">too many calls to action</a> can be overwhelming. Aim to give one to three options – a mix of easy and difficult actions tends to work best.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Of course, don’t forget to remind people they don’t need to live near the reef to make a difference – people can demand and support climate action from anywhere.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/plastic-action-or-distraction-as-climate-change-bears-down-calls-to-reduce-plastic-pollution-are-not-wasted-202780">Plastic action or distraction? As climate change bears down, calls to reduce plastic pollution are not wasted</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216992/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Yolanda Lee Waters is affiliated with Divers for Climate.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Angela Dean receives funding from the Great Barrier Reef Foundation and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority for projects related to monitoring reef stewardship actions. </span></em></p>Experimenting with climate messaging reveals the best ways to inspire individual action. Here’s how to talk about the Great Barrier Reef this summer.Yolanda Lee Waters, PhD Candidate, The University of QueenslandAngela Dean, Lecturer, School of Agriculture and Food Science & Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2155432023-10-18T19:06:09Z2023-10-18T19:06:09ZYoung crown-of-thorns starfish can survive heatwaves. That’s yet more bad news for the Great Barrier Reef<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554464/original/file-20231018-23-teqay1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C27%2C3642%2C2697&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>You might not realise it, but the infamous crown-of-thorns starfish is native to coral reefs throughout the Indo-Pacific – including the Great Barrier Reef. When they’re fully grown, these large, thorn-covered starfish dine on hard coral polyps.</p>
<p>That’s fine when their populations are small. They can play an important role in keeping reefs healthy by eating fast-growing branching corals and clearing space for slower-growing coral species.</p>
<p>But when their populations surge, they can decimate coral reefs – and strip habitat for the myriad species relying on them. </p>
<p>Our coral reefs are already suffering from marine heatwaves, pollution and overfishing. Crown-of-thorns outbreaks can push reefs over the edge. </p>
<p>But can these starfish survive the marine heatwaves now striking the oceans more and more regularly? To find out, we worked out what temperatures the starfish could handle. </p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16946">Our results suggest</a> baby crown-of-thorns starfish are, unfortunately, very tolerant of warmer water. It’s more bad news for our sick reefs. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554461/original/file-20231018-21-446vn8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="bleached coral reef near the surface of the sea" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554461/original/file-20231018-21-446vn8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554461/original/file-20231018-21-446vn8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554461/original/file-20231018-21-446vn8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554461/original/file-20231018-21-446vn8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554461/original/file-20231018-21-446vn8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554461/original/file-20231018-21-446vn8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554461/original/file-20231018-21-446vn8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Coral bleaching can actually be good for crown-of-thorns starfish.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Keystone predators of the reef</h2>
<p>At up to 80 centimetres across, crown-of-thorns starfish are one of the largest invertebrates on coral reefs. They are named after their toxic spines. </p>
<p>Their large central body houses a particularly large stomach. To eat, they force their stomachs out of their mouths to cover the coral underneath their body. Once wrapped around the coral, enzymes released from the stomach liquefies the coral’s soft tissues and absorbs the nutrients – leaving only the skeleton behind. </p>
<p>These starfish have evolved to become keystone predators. That is, relative to their population, they have a disproportionately large ability to control how abundant other species are. </p>
<p>During an outbreak, their swarms can eat up to 95% of hard corals on some reefs. When this happens, not only are coral species hard hit, but the animals dependent on them as well. </p>
<p>When the conditions are right, these starfish can go from a <a href="https://portlandpress.com/emergtoplifesci/article/6/1/67/230852/Crown-of-thorns-starfish-life-history-traits">very low abundance</a> of one per hectare to upwards of a thousand in a short period of time. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-the-great-barrier-reef-reviving-or-dying-heres-whats-happening-beyond-the-headlines-210558">Is the Great Barrier Reef reviving – or dying? Here's what's happening beyond the headlines</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>They are remarkably good at reproducing. The females can spawn hundreds of millions of eggs and the males can put out <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00227-016-3009-5">10 trillion sperm</a> into the water during the breeding season. </p>
<p>Not only that, but the larvae can <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X16310840">adjust their bodies</a> depending on the availability of food. When food is low, the arms of the larvae grow longer. These arms have bands of little hairs used to capture food. The longer these bands are, the more food they can capture. </p>
<p>Despite their ability to breed like rabbits, crown-of-thorns populations go through boom and bust. Why? We don’t fully know, even after decades of intensive research and enormous expenditure. Leading theories include a boom following nutrient run-off from rivers and the removal of predatory fish. Other important predators such as the <a href="https://www.barrierreef.org/the-reef/animals/giant-triton">giant triton shell</a> (which eats adults) and the <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00338-023-02364-w">red decorator crab</a> (which eats juveniles). </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554245/original/file-20231017-29-a0uhr1.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An adult crown-of-thorns starfish eating coral" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554245/original/file-20231017-29-a0uhr1.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554245/original/file-20231017-29-a0uhr1.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554245/original/file-20231017-29-a0uhr1.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554245/original/file-20231017-29-a0uhr1.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554245/original/file-20231017-29-a0uhr1.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554245/original/file-20231017-29-a0uhr1.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554245/original/file-20231017-29-a0uhr1.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">These starfish cover coral with their stomachs to eat it.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shawna Foo</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/theres-a-hidden-source-of-excess-nutrients-suffocating-the-great-barrier-reef-we-found-it-214364">There's a hidden source of excess nutrients suffocating the Great Barrier Reef. We found it</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What we did and what we found</h2>
<p>Virtually all research on crown-of-thorns starfish has focused on larval or adult stages, with little to no attention to juveniles, which are difficult to study. </p>
<p>The juveniles start their life on the reef as algae eaters. Our <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsbl.2019.0849">previous research</a> has shown they don’t have to grow up fast. They can remain herbivores for many years when there’s not enough coral to eat and feast on the algae growing on the skeletons of coral killed by heatwaves. </p>
<p>These Peter Pan-like juveniles can build up hidden in the reef over many years. But how do they cope with heat? </p>
<p>Our experiments revealed young starfish can survive tremendous heatwaves, well above the temperatures needed to bleach or kill coral. Coral can bleach or die when water gets 1–3°C warmer, depending on how long the heat lasts. But the starfish had much greater tolerance – almost three times the heat needed to bleach coral.</p>
<p>All of them survived in coral bleaching conditions – four consecutive weeks of temperatures 1°C above the average maximum temperatures for the sea surface in summer, as well as eight consecutive weeks (enough for mass death of corals) and even 12 weeks – extreme conditions well past what coral can survive. </p>
<p>Over the course of the experiment, the juveniles could handle waters up to 34–36°C.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554244/original/file-20231017-15-8q144e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A juvenile crown-of-thorns starfish eating algae from coral rubble." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554244/original/file-20231017-15-8q144e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554244/original/file-20231017-15-8q144e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=467&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554244/original/file-20231017-15-8q144e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=467&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554244/original/file-20231017-15-8q144e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=467&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554244/original/file-20231017-15-8q144e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=586&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554244/original/file-20231017-15-8q144e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=586&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554244/original/file-20231017-15-8q144e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=586&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">These starfish eat algae when young and coral when they’re fully grown.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Monique Webb and Matthew Clements</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>More bad news for coral reefs</h2>
<p>This is not good news for our reefs. Warming waters may actually make life easier for a major predator of coral. </p>
<p>Even if the coral-eating adults decline as their coral prey dies back, their young can wait patiently for the right moment to develop into predators able to devour corals just as they begin to recover. </p>
<p>This discovery may help explain why adult crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks can occur so suddenly. </p>
<p>For years, we’ve suspected the acceleration of outbreaks was linked to predator removal or a build-up of nutrients in the water. </p>
<p>Now we have evidence that coral bleaching and death could actually aid the juvenile crown-of-thorns starfish – and that the heat tolerance of juveniles could add even more pressure to struggling reefs. </p>
<p>Ultimately, the only real solution is to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/could-marine-cloud-brightening-reduce-coral-bleaching-on-the-great-barrier-reef-214308">Could 'marine cloud brightening' reduce coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/215543/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>For this project, Matt Clements received funding for a PhD scholarship from the University of Sydney and partial support from the Ian Potter Foundation crown-of-thorns starfish grants through the Lizard Island Research Foundation.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>For this project, Maria Byrne received partial support from the Ian Potter Foundation crown-of-thorns starfish grants through the Lizard Island Research Foundation. </span></em></p>Nature’s ultimate coral predator could benefit from climate change by surviving heatwaves and lie in wait for the right moment to feast on the reef.Matt Clements, PhD Student, University of SydneyMaria Byrne, Professor of Developmental & Marine Biology, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2143082023-10-16T19:07:21Z2023-10-16T19:07:21ZCould ‘marine cloud brightening’ reduce coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553900/original/file-20231016-21-cc921e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C10%2C3079%2C1444&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Southern Cross University</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>It might sound like science fiction, but “marine cloud brightening” is being seriously considered as a way to shield parts of the ocean from extreme heat. </p>
<p>We’re using water cannons to spray seawater into the sky. This causes brighter, whiter clouds to form. These low marine clouds reflect sunlight away from the ocean’s surface, protecting the marine life below from the worst of climate change.</p>
<p>Australia’s <a href="https://gbrrestoration.org">Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program</a> – a collaboration between several universities, CSIRO and the Australian Institute of Marine Science – is exploring whether cloud brightening could <a href="https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU23/EGU23-17057.html">reduce coral bleaching</a>. As an oceanographer and engineer I lead the program’s research into <a href="https://gbrrestoration.org/program/cooling-and-shading/">cooling and shading</a> techniques. </p>
<p>We started exploring cloud brightening after the mass bleaching event in 2016. First, we needed to develop and test the underlying technologies in the lab. Then we began pilot testing in the central Great Barrier Reef near Townsville during January 2020. After several iterations we have now moved beyond “proof of concept” to investigating the response of the clouds themselves.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_LmV94WSkmc?wmode=transparent&start=7" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The Cloud Brightening Field Trip of 2021 (Southern Cross University)</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/new-australian-laws-for-engineering-the-ocean-must-balance-environment-protection-and-responsible-research-209036">New Australian laws for ‘engineering’ the ocean must balance environment protection and responsible research</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>A bright idea</h2>
<p>British cloud physicist John Latham originally proposed cloud brightening in 1990 as a way to <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/347339b0">control global warming</a> by altering Earth’s energy balance. He calculated that brightening clouds across the most susceptible regions of the world’s oceans could counteract the global warming caused by a doubling of preindustrial atmospheric carbon dioxide. That’s a level likely to be reached by the year 2060.</p>
<p>Recently, scientists have begun to consider regional rather than global application of cloud brightening. Could brightening clouds directly over the Great Barrier Reef for a few months <a href="https://agu.confex.com/agu/os18/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/314949">reduce coral bleaching</a> during a marine heat wave? </p>
<p>Modelling studies are encouraging and suggest it could <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.201296">delay the expected decline in coral cover</a>. This could buy valuable time for the reef while the world transitions away from fossil fuels. </p>
<p>Lowering the heat stress on the ecosystem would produce <a href="https://gbrrestoration.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/T6-Modelling-Methods-and-Findings_26April_FINAL3.pdf">other benefits</a> when combined with other reef interventions – such as improved control of invasive crown of thorns starfish and planting of corals with increased heat tolerance. </p>
<p>But these studies also show there’s a limit to what can be achieved. Long-term benefits are only possible if the cloud brightening activity occurs alongside aggressive emissions reductions. </p>
<p>Cloud brightening does have <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lylzQsZUZnk">risks as well as benefits</a>, but the prospect of intermittent regional use is very different to large-scale “solar geo-engineering” proposals for shading and cooling the whole planet.</p>
<p>We expect the regional effect will be short-lived and reversible, which is reassuring. The technology must be operated continuously to modify clouds and could be stopped at any time. The sea salt particles sprayed in the process typically only persist in the atmosphere for <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-25579-3">one to several days</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553933/original/file-20231016-29-22ul5k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A photo from the university's aircraft looking down at the Great Barrier Reef" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553933/original/file-20231016-29-22ul5k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553933/original/file-20231016-29-22ul5k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553933/original/file-20231016-29-22ul5k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553933/original/file-20231016-29-22ul5k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553933/original/file-20231016-29-22ul5k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553933/original/file-20231016-29-22ul5k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553933/original/file-20231016-29-22ul5k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Southern Cross University’s aerosol and cloud microphysics aircraft operating over the Southern Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Southern Cross University</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-are-poised-to-pass-1-5-of-global-warming-world-leaders-offer-4-ways-to-manage-this-dangerous-time-213649">We are poised to pass 1.5℃ of global warming – world leaders offer 4 ways to manage this dangerous time</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>How do you brighten a cloud?</h2>
<p>A warm cloud (as opposed to an ice cloud) is a collection of small water droplets floating in the air. </p>
<p>A cloud of many small droplets is brighter than one with fewer large droplets – even if both clouds contain the same amount of water overall. </p>
<p>Every droplet begins with the condensation of water vapour around a nucleus, which can be almost any kind of tiny particle suspended in air. </p>
<p>Typically, in the lower atmosphere over land there are thousands to tens of thousands of these tiny particles suspended in every cubic centimetre of air. We call these airborne particles “aerosols”.</p>
<p><a href="https://earth.gsfc.nasa.gov/climate/data/deep-blue/aerosols">Aerosols may be natural</a> such as dust, sea salt, pollen, ash and sulphates. Or they may come from human activity such as burning fossil fuels or vegetation, manufacturing, vehicle exhaust and aerosol spray cans. </p>
<p>In very clean maritime air, the aerosols available to form clouds are mainly <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsta.2007.2043">sulphates and sea salt crystals</a>. And they are few and far between, only a <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2006GB002787">few hundred per cubic centimetre</a>.</p>
<p>When a cloud forms under these conditions, water vapour is forced to condense around fewer nuclei, creating <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0004698174900043">larger droplets and fewer of them</a>. Large droplets reflect less light for the same volume of cloud water. </p>
<p>To brighten such clouds, we can spray large quantities of microscopic seawater droplets into the air. This process of atomising seawater mimics the generation of sea salt aerosols by wind and waves in the ocean. If these are incorporated into a cloud and create extra droplets, the cloud will be brightened. </p>
<p>Sea salt also provides additional shade by <a href="https://acp.copernicus.org/articles/17/13071/2017/">direct scattering of light</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553894/original/file-20231016-23-h8j16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Photo of the latest cloud brightening generator (V model) in action, on board a vessel, with a person standing alongside it. The cannon is about as tall as the person." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553894/original/file-20231016-23-h8j16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553894/original/file-20231016-23-h8j16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553894/original/file-20231016-23-h8j16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553894/original/file-20231016-23-h8j16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553894/original/file-20231016-23-h8j16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553894/original/file-20231016-23-h8j16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553894/original/file-20231016-23-h8j16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The latest cloud brightening generator (V model) in action.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Southern Cross University</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Testing the theory</h2>
<p>Although scientists have researched cloud brightening for more than 30 years, no one had ever directly tested the theory. In Australia, we have now developed technology to a point where we are starting to measure the response of the clouds. </p>
<p>We are beginning such tests with the support and permission of Traditional Owners, who have sustainably managed their Sea Country for tens of thousands of years. </p>
<p>Our research program involves more than 15 research institutions and has multiple levels of <a href="https://gbrrestoration.org/our-team/governance/">governance</a> and oversight. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/out-of-danger-because-the-un-said-so-hardly-the-barrier-reef-is-still-in-hot-water-210787">Out of danger because the UN said so? Hardly – the Barrier Reef is still in hot water</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Not so far-fetched</h2>
<p>Most people probably don’t realise we are already inadvertently brightening the clouds. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates humanity’s unintentional release of aerosols <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/02/WG1AR5_Chapter08_FINAL.pdf">offsets around 30%</a> of the warming effect due to greenhouse gases. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1577608215059120129"}"></div></p>
<p>Sulphates in ship exhaust are such a potent source of aerosols for droplet formation, the passage of ships leaves cloud trails called <a href="https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/54/ship-tracks/">ship tracks</a>. </p>
<p>When the International Maritime Organisation introduced new rules limiting the sulphur content of marine fuels, the number and extent of ship tracks <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/missions/aqua/nasa-study-finds-evidence-that-fuel-regulation-reduced-air-pollution-from-shipping/">drastically reduced</a>, especially in the Northern Hemisphere. A <a href="https://www.science.org/content/article/changing-clouds-unforeseen-test-geoengineering-fueling-record-ocean-warmth">recent study</a> even suggests the devastating heat wave that swept the Northern Hemisphere earlier this year was worsened by the absence of ship tracks. </p>
<p>The world-first research we are conducting in Australia aims to determine if we could harness the clouds in an effective, environmentally responsible and socially acceptable manner for the future conservation of one of our most precious ecosystems.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/214308/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daniel Patrick Harrison receives funding from the The Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program which is funded by the partnership between the Australian Governments Reef Trust and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.
He would like to acknowledge the many indigenous traditional owners of the Great Barrier Reef whom have supported this work and thank them for their valuable insights and contribution to the design and conduct of the research. </span></em></p>Australian is experimenting with marine cloud brightening to cool and shade the Great Barrier Reef. Here’s how it works.Daniel Patrick Harrison, Senior Lecturer, Southern Cross UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2143642023-10-08T19:26:21Z2023-10-08T19:26:21ZThere’s a hidden source of excess nutrients suffocating the Great Barrier Reef. We found it<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551919/original/file-20231003-17-uvt38a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=46%2C108%2C5083%2C3337&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Coral impacted by excess nutrients in the Great Barrier Reef.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ashly McMahon</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Great Barrier Reef is one of Australia’s most important environmental and economic assets. It is estimated to contribute A$56 billion per year and supports about 64,000 full-time jobs, <a href="https://www.barrierreef.org/the-reef/the-value">according to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation</a>. However, the reef is under increasing pressure. </p>
<p>While much public attention is focused on the <a href="https://theconversation.com/severely-threatened-and-deteriorating-global-authority-on-nature-lists-the-great-barrier-reef-as-critical-151275">impacts of climate change</a> on the Great Barrier Reef and the <a href="https://theconversation.com/australian-government-was-blindsided-by-un-recommendation-to-list-great-barrier-reef-as-in-danger-but-its-no-great-surprise-163159">debate around its endangered status</a>, water quality is also crucial to the reef’s health and survival.</p>
<p>Our new study, published today in the journal <a href="https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.3c03725.">Environmental Science and Technology</a>, found that previously unquantified groundwater inputs are the largest source of new nutrients to the reef. This finding could potentially change how the Great Barrier Reef is managed.</p>
<h2>Too much of a good thing</h2>
<p>Although nitrogen and phosphorous are essential to support the incredible biodiversity of the reef, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272771416301469">too much nutrient</a> can lead to losses of coral biodiversity and coverage. It also increases the abundance of algae and the ability of coral larvae to grow into adult coral, and impacts seagrass coverage and health, which is crucial for fisheries and biodiversity. </p>
<p>Nutrient enrichment can also promote the breeding success of <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00338-010-0628-z">crown-of-thorns starfish</a>, whose increasing populations and voracious appetite for corals have decimated parts of the reef in recent decades. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551916/original/file-20231003-29-k9m16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A side by side underwater photo collage of vivid healthy coral and pale murky coral" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551916/original/file-20231003-29-k9m16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551916/original/file-20231003-29-k9m16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=200&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551916/original/file-20231003-29-k9m16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=200&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551916/original/file-20231003-29-k9m16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=200&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551916/original/file-20231003-29-k9m16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=252&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551916/original/file-20231003-29-k9m16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=252&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551916/original/file-20231003-29-k9m16h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=252&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pristine coral and coral affected by excess nutrient in the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ashly McMahon</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>What are the sources of nutrients driving the degradation of the reef? Previous studies have <a href="https://www.reefplan.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0031/45994/2017-scientific-consensus-statement-summary-chap02.pdf">focused on river discharge</a>. According to one estimate, there has been a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0025326X11005583">fourfold increase in riverine nutrient</a> input to the Great Barrier Reef since pre-industrial times.</p>
<p>This past focus on rivers has emphasised reducing surface water nutrient inputs through changing regulations for land-clearing and agriculture, while neglecting other potential sources. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/floods-of-nutrients-from-fertilisers-and-wastewater-trash-our-rivers-could-offsetting-help-203235">Floods of nutrients from fertilisers and wastewater trash our rivers. Could offsetting help?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>However, the most recent nutrient budget for the Great Barrier Reef found river-derived nutrient inputs can account for only a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0278434311003025">small proportion of the nutrients</a> necessary to support the abundant life in the reef. This imbalance suggests large, unidentified sources of nutrients to the reef. Not knowing what these are may lead to ineffective management approaches.</p>
<p>With recent government funding of <a href="https://www.barrierreef.org/what-we-do/reef-trust-partnership">more than $200 million to tackle water quality on the reef</a> which is largely focused on managing river water inputs, it is crucial to make sure other nutrient sources are not overlooked.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551905/original/file-20231003-19-ayf7sc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A diagram listing nutrient sources to the reef" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551905/original/file-20231003-19-ayf7sc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551905/original/file-20231003-19-ayf7sc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=270&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551905/original/file-20231003-19-ayf7sc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=270&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551905/original/file-20231003-19-ayf7sc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=270&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551905/original/file-20231003-19-ayf7sc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551905/original/file-20231003-19-ayf7sc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551905/original/file-20231003-19-ayf7sc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The source of potential groundwater inputs to the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Douglas Tait</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>We found a new nutrient source</h2>
<p>Our research team decided to try and track down this missing source of nutrients.</p>
<p>We used natural tracers to track groundwater inputs off Queensland’s coast. This allows us to quantify how much invisible groundwater flows into the Great Barrier Reef, along with the nutrients hitching a ride with this water. Our findings indicate that current efforts to preserve and restore the health of the reef may require a new perspective.</p>
<p>Our team collected data from offshore surveys, rivers and coastal bores along the coastline from south of Rockhampton to north of Cairns. We used the natural groundwater tracer radium to track how much nutrient is transported from the land and shelf sediments via invisible groundwater flows.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-a-disgruntled-scientist-looking-to-prove-his-food-wasnt-fresh-discovered-radioactive-tracers-and-won-a-nobel-prize-80-years-ago-214784">How a disgruntled scientist looking to prove his food wasn't fresh discovered radioactive tracers and won a Nobel Prize 80 years ago</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551907/original/file-20231003-19-ves2t4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A blue and white ship sailing on a calm ocean" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551907/original/file-20231003-19-ves2t4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551907/original/file-20231003-19-ves2t4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551907/original/file-20231003-19-ves2t4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551907/original/file-20231003-19-ves2t4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551907/original/file-20231003-19-ves2t4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551907/original/file-20231003-19-ves2t4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551907/original/file-20231003-19-ves2t4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The AIMS research vessel, Cape Ferguson.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ashly McMahon</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We found that groundwater discharge was 10–15 times greater than river inputs. This meant roughly one-third of new nitrogen and two-thirds of phosphorous inputs came via groundwater discharge. This was nearly twice the amount of nutrient delivered by river waters.</p>
<p>Past investigations have revealed that groundwater discharge delivers nutrients and affects water quality in a <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43017-021-00152-0">diverse range of coastal environments</a>, including estuaries, coral reefs, coastal embayments and lagoons, intertidal wetlands such as mangroves and saltmarshes, the continental shelf and even the global ocean.</p>
<p>In some cases, this can account for <a href="https://aslopubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.4319/lo.2011.56.2.0673">90% of the nutrient inputs</a> to coastal areas, which has major implications for global biologic production. </p>
<p>Nevertheless, this pathway remains overlooked in most coastal nutrient budgets and water quality models.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551909/original/file-20231003-29-npys7a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A beach early in the morning with people digging into the sand" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551909/original/file-20231003-29-npys7a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551909/original/file-20231003-29-npys7a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551909/original/file-20231003-29-npys7a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551909/original/file-20231003-29-npys7a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551909/original/file-20231003-29-npys7a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551909/original/file-20231003-29-npys7a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551909/original/file-20231003-29-npys7a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The research team sampling groundwater near the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ashly McMahon</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A paradigm shift needed?</h2>
<p>Our results suggest the need for a strategic <a href="https://niwa.co.nz/our-science/freshwater/tools/kaitiaki_tools/land-use/agriculture/mitigation">shift in management approaches</a> aimed at safeguarding the Great Barrier Reef from the effects of excess nutrients.</p>
<p>This includes better land management practices to ensure fewer nutrients are entering groundwater aquifers. We can also use ecological (such as seaweed and bivalve aquaculture, enhancing seagrass, oyster reefs, mangroves and salt marsh) and hydrological (increasing flushing where possible) practices at groundwater discharge hotspots to <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2018.00470/full">reduce excess nutrients in the water column</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://medium.com/water-food-nexus/water-recycling-and-reuse-in-agriculture-for-circularity-of-food-and-water-f08fe4b131b3">The reuse of nutrient-rich groundwater</a> for agriculture also needs to be explored as it represents an untapped and inexpensive nutrient source.</p>
<p>Importantly, unlike river outflow, nutrients in groundwater can be <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S004896972035539X">stored underground for decades</a> before being discharged into coastal waters. This means research and strategies to protect the reef need to be long-term. The potential large lag time may lead to significant problems in the coming decades as the nutrients now stored in underground aquifers make their way to coastal waters regardless of changes to current land use practices.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551908/original/file-20231003-17-z4u9tf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A vivid landscape of colourful corals in an underwater photo" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551908/original/file-20231003-17-z4u9tf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551908/original/file-20231003-17-z4u9tf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551908/original/file-20231003-17-z4u9tf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551908/original/file-20231003-17-z4u9tf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551908/original/file-20231003-17-z4u9tf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551908/original/file-20231003-17-z4u9tf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551908/original/file-20231003-17-z4u9tf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pristine corals on the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ashly McMahon</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The understanding and ability to manage the sources of nutrients is pivotal in preserving global coral reef systems.</p>
<p>While we need to reduce the impact of climate change on this fragile ecosystem, we also need to adjust our policies to manage nutrient inputs and safeguard the Great Barrier Reef for generations to come.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/out-of-danger-because-the-un-said-so-hardly-the-barrier-reef-is-still-in-hot-water-210787">Out of danger because the UN said so? Hardly – the Barrier Reef is still in hot water</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/214364/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors receive funding from the Australian Research Council, the Herman Slade Foundation and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Damien Maher receives funding from the Australian Research Council, Hermon Slade Foundation, Great Barrier Reef Foundation. </span></em></p>While the Great Barrier Reed needs nutrients to support the ecosystem, it is possible to have too much of a good thing.Douglas Tait, Senior Researcher, Southern Cross UniversityDamien Maher, Professor, Southern Cross UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2093882023-08-10T19:59:25Z2023-08-10T19:59:25ZAccelerated evolution and automated aquaculture could help coral weather the heat<p>Coral on the Great Barrier Reef has regrown strongly after the big losses of 2016 and 2017, when <a href="https://www2.gbrmpa.gov.au/learn/threats/sea-temperature">water temperatures</a> were significantly above the long-term average. While this is good news, it’s largely luck. The reef experienced mass bleaching in 2020 and 2022, but temperatures cooled just in time to prevent extensive coral deaths. </p>
<p>But the reef’s luck may be about to run out. Hotter El Niño conditions are returning to the Pacific, driving <a href="https://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/data_current/5km/v3.1_op/daily/png/ct5km_baa-max-7d_v3.1_nwcl_current.png">warmer ocean temperatures</a>. The past few months have seen global temperature records smashed. Already, reefs in Florida, the Caribbean and parts of the Pacific are bleaching. The looming southern summer is a significant concern. </p>
<p>Can anything be done? Keeping emissions under control is obviously vital. But we can also support the Great Barrier Reef’s resilience by speeding up natural adaptation processes. </p>
<p>In our paper <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adi3023">published today</a> in Science, we describe methods of accelerating the natural evolution of heat-tolerant corals, next-generation aquaculture to rear large numbers of baby corals, and collaborative decision-making with First Nations groups to place these corals onto the Great Barrier Reef at meaningful scale.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542086/original/file-20230810-23-ax7kkt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="national sea simulator corals" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542086/original/file-20230810-23-ax7kkt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542086/original/file-20230810-23-ax7kkt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542086/original/file-20230810-23-ax7kkt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542086/original/file-20230810-23-ax7kkt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542086/original/file-20230810-23-ax7kkt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542086/original/file-20230810-23-ax7kkt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542086/original/file-20230810-23-ax7kkt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A scientist examines baby coral at our National Sea Simulator, where we research heat tolerant corals and large scale coral aquaculture.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AIMS</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How to breed heat-tolerant coral</h2>
<p>Corals are very different in how they tolerate heat. Some can put up with hot water for longer, whereas others bleach at lower temperatures. </p>
<p>Globally, bleaching thresholds have increased by 0.5°C in a decade. That is, reefs are actually becoming more tolerant of heat. This is likely because more sensitive species and colonies have died off or become less abundant. </p>
<p>Within species, we know individual corals in warmer waters are typically more tolerant than those in cooler waters. </p>
<p>Understanding why some corals have better heat tolerance, and how these attributes can be passed on, means we can figure out which corals are best placed to adapt. Then we can start selectively breeding them.</p>
<p>Coral reefs support a huge diversity of lifeforms, from fish to shrimp to rays and sharks. But on a tiny scale, coral polyps have their own microbial ecosystems, ranging from symbiotic algae which give coral its colour – and much of its food, from photosynthesis – through to the rest of the <a href="https://www.barrierreef.org/news/explainers/coral-microbiome">coral microbiome</a>. </p>
<p>To breed coral better able to adapt to the heat, we have to understand how their microbiome works. One group of symbiotic algae (<em>Durusdinium</em>) living inside coral can actually give their host the gift of increased heat tolerance, though often at the cost of reduced growth. </p>
<p>But if we assist the evolution of other coral-associated algae (<em>Cladocopium</em>), we find heat tolerance of both coral and algae improves, usually without compromising other survival traits. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542088/original/file-20230810-29-ellk87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="coral scientist" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542088/original/file-20230810-29-ellk87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542088/original/file-20230810-29-ellk87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542088/original/file-20230810-29-ellk87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542088/original/file-20230810-29-ellk87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542088/original/file-20230810-29-ellk87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542088/original/file-20230810-29-ellk87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542088/original/file-20230810-29-ellk87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An AIMS coral scientist examining young coral on a seeding device.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">T.Whitman/AIMS</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This means we can inoculate the offspring of selectively bred corals with these algae to achieve greater heat tolerance. These methods have now been tested in the laboratory and should scale for mass production.</p>
<p>By interbreeding wild colonies of the same species of coral, we’ve found heat tolerance can be passed to the next generation. </p>
<p>Our researchers are developing tools to pick out these naturally more resilient individuals, during bleaching events or with rapid heat stress experiments. We are also analysing corals’ DNA to identify genetic markers.</p>
<p>Then we measure how heat tolerance and genetic diversity is maintained in the aquaculture facility and back in field conditions. </p>
<p>So while assisted evolution is still very new, our results are encouraging. There is real potential to increase coral heat tolerance to improve survival in hotter seas.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542077/original/file-20230810-28-7n4kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="coral spawning" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542077/original/file-20230810-28-7n4kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542077/original/file-20230810-28-7n4kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542077/original/file-20230810-28-7n4kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542077/original/file-20230810-28-7n4kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542077/original/file-20230810-28-7n4kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542077/original/file-20230810-28-7n4kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542077/original/file-20230810-28-7n4kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Coral spawning is an event on the reef. Can selective breeding of coral keep them healthy?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Accelerate aquaculture to achieve scale</h2>
<p>This year’s marine heatwaves are breaking records. To boost our chances of preserving the Great Barrier Reef, we’ll need to be able to scale up these techniques. </p>
<p>To date, coral restoration and adaptation has been done at relatively small scale and high cost. Coral breeding has largely been done by hand, in small laboratory aquarium facilities, which is slow and expensive. </p>
<p>But this is changing. At our site in Townsville, we’ve made advances in coral aquaculture with the potential to significantly boost production rates while cutting costs. </p>
<p>How do you produce heat-tolerant corals at scale? Settle selected baby corals on small tabs in modular sheets. Separate the individual tabs, each now home to a thriving baby coral, and attach them to special fist-sized structures designed to protect the babies in the ocean. This greatly increases their survival rate once on the reef. </p>
<p>We’re trialling these technologies by depositing these structures in carefully chosen places along the reef where they can grow and, eventually, reproduce. As we scale up production, we will be able to deliver large numbers of structures without requiring divers, by using boats or robots. </p>
<p>These technologies mean we can increasingly automate coral rearing. At present, these techniques are available for around 50 coral species on the Great Barrier Reef. </p>
<p>Making sure human systems work well is also vital. To ensure heat-resistant baby coral thrive, we have to have good ecological models and decision-making processes which take economic, social, and environmental factors into account. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542087/original/file-20230810-19-i6hwim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Woppaburra Traditional Custodians" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542087/original/file-20230810-19-i6hwim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542087/original/file-20230810-19-i6hwim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542087/original/file-20230810-19-i6hwim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542087/original/file-20230810-19-i6hwim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542087/original/file-20230810-19-i6hwim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542087/original/file-20230810-19-i6hwim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542087/original/file-20230810-19-i6hwim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Science and traditional knowledge can complement each other.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AIMS</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Success will also depend on meaningful partnerships with Traditional Owners. Combining conventional science and traditional knowledge can bring fresh insights. Marine management of Groote Eylandt in Australia’s north now uses <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.00716/full">maps produced</a> by scientists working with Anindilyakwa people to combine local knowledge, in-water surveys and satellite data. </p>
<p>As we move towards large-scale restoration and adaptation, Australia’s First Nations rangers could provide a vital community-based workforce to deliver a new suite of management and conservation activities, especially in remote regions. Traditional Owners could also play important roles in <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1232310#:%7E:text=Coral%20reef%20recovery%20from%20major,highly%20vulnerable%20to%20catastrophic%20disturbance.">monitoring progress</a>. </p>
<p>Until recently, conservation efforts were aimed at protecting ecosystems from damage and limiting access, allowing natural systems to bounce back. But in the era of global heating, this is no longer enough. Disruptions are coming faster, challenging nature’s resilience. </p>
<p>We have to help. Time is short and there is much to do.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-the-great-barrier-reef-reviving-or-dying-heres-whats-happening-beyond-the-headlines-210558">Is the Great Barrier Reef reviving – or dying? Here's what's happening beyond the headlines</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209388/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Line K Bay receives research funding from the Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program, the Paul G Allen Family Foundation, BHP and Revive & Restore</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paul Hardisty does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We used to focus just on protection of vital ecosystems like the reef. But as climate change and other threats accelerate, we need to actively help nature get ready for the heat.Paul Hardisty, CEO, Australian Institute of Marine ScienceLine K Bay, Research Program Director, Australian Institute of Marine ScienceLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2105582023-08-09T02:21:15Z2023-08-09T02:21:15ZIs the Great Barrier Reef reviving – or dying? Here’s what’s happening beyond the headlines<p>The Great Barrier Reef is not dead. Nor is it in good health. The truth is complex. To understand what’s going on takes more than a headline. </p>
<p>For the last 37 years, our organisation has monitored the health of the world’s largest reef. Each year, we add our findings to our dataset, the Reef’s longest running and largest coverage. This lets us produce annual updates for the northern, central and southern regions of the Reef. That makes us perhaps the team best qualified to answer the question many people have – how is the Reef going? </p>
<p>Released today, this <a href="https://www.aims.gov.au/monitoring-great-barrier-reef/gbr-condition-summary-2022-23">year’s update</a> paints a complex picture. It wasn’t long ago the Great Barrier Reef was reeling from successive disturbances, ranging from marine heatwaves and coral bleaching to crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks and cyclone damage, with widespread death of many corals especially during the heatwaves of 2016 and 2017.</p>
<p>Since then, the Reef has rebounded. Generally cooler La Niña conditions mean hard corals have recovered significant ground, regrowing from very low levels after a decade of cumulative disturbances to record high levels in 2022 across two-thirds of the reef. </p>
<p>The Reef has shown an impressive ability to recover from widespread disturbances, when it gets a chance – it’s not all just bleaching and death. But it’s also true we’re heading towards a future where hotter water temperatures will <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/srep39666">likely cause bleaching</a> every year, along with ongoing threats of cyclones and coral-eating starfish. Recovery requires reprieve – and those opportunities will diminish as climate change progresses.</p>
<p>Last year, for instance, parts of the Reef <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-08-09/mass-coral-bleaching-halts-great-barrier-reef-recovery/102706194">experienced bleaching</a> in the middle of La Niña – the first time that’s happened on record. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541837/original/file-20230809-17-7xg9in.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="barrier reef coral trends 2023" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541837/original/file-20230809-17-7xg9in.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541837/original/file-20230809-17-7xg9in.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541837/original/file-20230809-17-7xg9in.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541837/original/file-20230809-17-7xg9in.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541837/original/file-20230809-17-7xg9in.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541837/original/file-20230809-17-7xg9in.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541837/original/file-20230809-17-7xg9in.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Trends in hard coral cover across the Great Barrier Reef’s three sections from 1986-2023.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AIMS</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What’s happening on the Reef?</h2>
<p>To take the pulse of the Great Barrier Reef, one indicator we use is hard coral cover. It’s a widely used, robust indicator of reef health, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. We also collect detailed data on coral and fish populations, diversity, structural complexity, and abundance of juvenile corals. And we take digital photographs and convert them into 3D photogrammetry models so we can analyse what’s happening in more depth than ever before.</p>
<p>Here’s what our analysis shows. </p>
<p>Over the last few years, the Reef was mostly in La Niña conditions. That gave the hard-hit northern and central parts of the reef a chance to begin recovery. Many reefs had a high proportion of <em>Acropora</em> corals, of which the best known are the staghorn and plate corals. These species have been a vital part of the reef over 37 years of monitoring – and probably for millennia.</p>
<p>These corals are the most common on many reefs, and grow fast. Because of that, they tend to dominate trends in hard coral cover.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="High cover of Acropora corals on the southern GBR." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541826/original/file-20230808-31-49o8nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541826/original/file-20230808-31-49o8nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541826/original/file-20230808-31-49o8nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541826/original/file-20230808-31-49o8nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541826/original/file-20230808-31-49o8nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541826/original/file-20230808-31-49o8nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541826/original/file-20230808-31-49o8nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This reef in the southern section has a high cover of Acropora corals.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AIMS, CC BY-ND</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure> <p></p>
<p>Does this mean the Great Barrier Reef’s recovery in 2022 relied on “weedy” corals which are taking over? Yes and no. The natural ecological niche of <em>Acropora</em> corals has always been to rapidly fill empty space, which means it tends to dominate trends in coral recovery. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/record-coral-cover-doesnt-necessarily-mean-the-great-barrier-reef-is-in-good-health-despite-what-you-may-have-heard-188233">Record coral cover doesn't necessarily mean the Great Barrier Reef is in good health (despite what you may have heard)</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Again, the story is more complicated than the headlines. Some reefs have recovered strongly, some very little. Some reefs are recovering with less <em>Acropora</em> than before, some with more. Each reef is charting its own course on the journey from impact to recovery and back again. </p>
<p>Overall, the record high hard coral cover seen last year was welcome news, representing recovery across much of the Reef in the absence of common coral killers. </p>
<h2>But what about recent heating?</h2>
<p>This year, the rapid coral rebound paused. Some reefs continued to recover, but these were offset by others which lost coral. Coral loss came from effects of the 2022 bleaching event in northern and central regions, crown-of-thorns starfish predation in the northern and southern regions, damage from Tropical Cyclone Tiffany in the north and coral disease in some areas of the south. </p>
<p>The picture is complex. Recovery here, fresh losses there.</p>
<p>While the recovery we reported last year was welcome news, there are challenges ahead. The spectre of global annual coral bleaching will soon become a reality. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Bleached corals on the central Great Barrier Reef during the summer of 2022" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541819/original/file-20230808-25-fxdksi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541819/original/file-20230808-25-fxdksi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541819/original/file-20230808-25-fxdksi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541819/original/file-20230808-25-fxdksi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541819/original/file-20230808-25-fxdksi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541819/original/file-20230808-25-fxdksi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541819/original/file-20230808-25-fxdksi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Coral bleaching on on the central Great Barrier Reef during the summer of 2022.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AIMS, CC BY-ND</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Right now, marine heatwaves are <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2023/06/23/ocean-heatwave-northatlantic-uk-climate/">sweeping through</a> ocean basins in the northern hemisphere. Sea surface temperatures are far above long term averages. </p>
<p>At least eight countries are reporting coral bleaching, including <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/aug/04/florida-coral-bleached-ocean-heat">the United States</a> and Belize. This summer, it looks likely we’ll see our first El Niño on the Great Barrier Reef since 2016, bringing higher sea surface temperatures. That last El Niño – coupled with global heating – was the direct cause of the 2016–17 mass bleaching and mass death of corals.</p>
<p>The prognosis is, in short, extremely concerning. Yes, the Reef has rebounded beyond our expectations. But now the heat is back on. If we get mass bleaching like 2016 – or even worse – it could undo all the recent recovery. </p>
<p><hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/out-of-danger-because-the-un-said-so-hardly-the-barrier-reef-is-still-in-hot-water-210787">Out of danger because the UN said so? Hardly – the Barrier Reef is still in hot water</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210558/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mike Emslie works for the Australian Institute of Marine Science which receives funding from the Australian Government to conduct the Long-Term Monitoring Program.
AIMS also receives external funding from a number of sources including but not limited to the Australian Government's Reef Trust Partnership, Woodside Energy, Santos Ltd, BHP, Carnegie Institution for Science, The European Union’s Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, Taronga Conservation Society Australia, Taronga Foundation, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Accenture and the Allen Coral Atlas.
</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daniela Ceccarelli works for the Australian Institute of Marine Science which receives funding from the Australian Government to conduct the Long-Term Monitoring Program.
</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Wachenfeld works for the Australian Institute of Marine Science which receives funding from the Australian Government to conduct the Long-Term Monitoring Program. </span></em></p>In recent years, the Barrier Reef has had a reprieve – and coral has regrown strongly. But now the reprieve looks to be over and the heat is back onMike Emslie, Senior Research Scientist, Australian Institute of Marine ScienceDaniela Ceccarelli, Research fellow, Australian Institute of Marine ScienceDavid Wachenfeld, Research Program Director- Reef Ecology and Monitoring, Australian Institute of Marine ScienceLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2067502023-06-07T03:14:54Z2023-06-07T03:14:54ZWarm is the new norm for the Great Barrier Reef – and a likely El Niño raises red flags<p>The Bureau of Meteorology this week <a href="https://media.bom.gov.au/releases/1170/the-bureau-of-meteorology-issues-an-el-nino-alert/">declared</a> a 70% chance of an El Niño developing this year. This raises concern for the health of the Great Barrier Reef, which is under continuing threat from climate change.</p>
<p>Recent summers have shown the <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-major-heatwaves-in-30-years-have-turned-the-great-barrier-reef-into-a-bleached-checkerboard-170719">devastating damage</a> heat stress can wreak on the reef. We must act urgently to protect this underwater marvel – through this likely El Niño, and beyond.</p>
<p>We are coral reef and climate scientists, and policy experts. We’ve seen how the Great Barrier Reef is nearing its tipping point. After this point, it will become <a href="https://theconversation.com/adapt-move-or-die-repeated-coral-bleaching-leaves-wildlife-on-the-great-barrier-reef-with-few-options-179570">unrecognisable as a functioning ecosystem</a>.</p>
<p>But the scale of climate threat is beyond the tools currently used to manage the Great Barrier Reef. New measures and sustained effort are needed – at local, national, and international scales – if we’re serious about saving this natural wonder.</p>
<h2>International treasure under threat</h2>
<p>The Great Barrier Reef is internationally renowned for its <a href="https://elibrary.gbrmpa.gov.au/jspui/handle/11017/2787">biodiversity</a>, including more than 450 species of coral, 1,600 species of fish and 6,000 species of molluscs. </p>
<p>It is also an <a href="https://www2.gbrmpa.gov.au/learn/reef-facts">economic workhorse</a>, contributing about A$6 billion to the Australian economy and providing some 64,000 full-time jobs. Many industries and coastal communities in Queensland rely on a healthy Great Barrier Reef. </p>
<p>But Australia’s reefs are <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-great-barrier-reef-is-in-trouble-there-are-a-whopping-45-reasons-why-122930">in trouble</a> and climate change is the biggest threat – bringing heatwaves, severe cyclones and more acidic oceans.</p>
<p>The background temperature of the Great Barrier Reef has <a href="https://www2.gbrmpa.gov.au/learn/threats/sea-temperature">warmed by 0.8°C</a> since 1910. This warming can couple with ocean temperature variability, such as from El Niño and its counterpart, La Niña. But because the Great Barrier Reef is already struggling under climate change, an El Niño could mean even more pressure.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-the-next-australian-government-must-do-to-save-the-great-barrier-reef-182861">What the next Australian government must do to save the Great Barrier Reef</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Graph showing changes in sea temperature, ocean pH, sea level and tropical cyclones" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530022/original/file-20230605-29-jm1why.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530022/original/file-20230605-29-jm1why.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=327&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530022/original/file-20230605-29-jm1why.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=327&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530022/original/file-20230605-29-jm1why.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=327&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530022/original/file-20230605-29-jm1why.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530022/original/file-20230605-29-jm1why.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530022/original/file-20230605-29-jm1why.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Indicative changes in sea temperature, ocean pH, sea level and tropical cyclones based on climate projections (from Great Barrier Reef 2019 Outlook Report).</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The bathtub is filling</h2>
<p>We hope this analogy helps explain the situation.</p>
<p>Imagine a bathtub. The water inside it represents global sea-surface temperature. When the bathtub was only half-full, temporary heat variability (from El Niño) caused splashes, but they were contained in the tub.</p>
<p>Now fast-forward to the present day. For more than a century, humans have been heating the planet by burning fossil fuels. The background temperature has risen and the bathtub is now almost filled to the brim. Add a splash of heat from El Niño and the bath spills over.</p>
<p>These splashes bring consequences: more mass bleaching of coral and, in severe cases, widespread coral death.</p>
<p>El Niño and La Niña have become <a href="https://theconversation.com/new-study-helps-solve-a-30-year-old-puzzle-how-is-climate-change-affecting-el-nino-and-la-nina-205128">more variable</a> in recent decades. This has meant more frequent and stronger events – bigger splashes in the bathtub – that pose a grave threat to the Great Barrier Reef’s health and biodiversity. </p>
<p>All the while, the bathtub keeps filling. </p>
<p>The World Meteorological Organisation <a href="https://hadleyserver.metoffice.gov.uk/wmolc/WMO_GADCU_2023-2027.pdf">reported</a> that the next five years will be the warmest since records began. And 2023 will almost certainly be among the <a href="https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/monthly-report/global/202304/supplemental/page-2">ten warmest years</a> on record. </p>
<p>Earth’s average temperature is <a href="https://theconversation.com/global-warming-to-bring-record-hot-year-by-2028-probably-our-first-above-1-5-c-limit-205758">predicted</a> to exceed 1.5°C of warming in at least one of the next five years. This would produce a big splash – but it doesn’t represent the bathtub level reaching the brim.</p>
<p>Under the global climate accord known as the Paris Agreement, nations <a href="https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement">are pursuing efforts to limit</a> the average global temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Background warming beyond 1.5°C is widely considered by climate scientists as dangerous. We’re entering an era in which hot and more frequent splashes are imminent – and the survival of coral reefs is becoming increasingly threatened.</p>
<p>Clearly, the global warming we’re seeing now is unprecedented. We must turn off the tap.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="graph showing increase in atmospheric CO₂ concentration" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530226/original/file-20230606-23-9qrejq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530226/original/file-20230606-23-9qrejq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=349&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530226/original/file-20230606-23-9qrejq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=349&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530226/original/file-20230606-23-9qrejq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=349&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530226/original/file-20230606-23-9qrejq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530226/original/file-20230606-23-9qrejq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530226/original/file-20230606-23-9qrejq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration from the Mauna Loa Observatory has increased from below 320 parts per million (ppm) to over 420 ppm since 1958 (Data: Scripps CO₂ Program).</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>An inadequate tool kit</h2>
<p>Unless global emissions are drastically reduced, frequent severe bleaching is <a href="https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000265625">projected</a> this century for all 29 World Heritage-listed coral reefs.</p>
<p>This would cause untold ecological damage. It would also reduce the reefs’ ability to support human communities that depend on them.</p>
<p>Coral bleaching is not the only threat to the Great Barrier Reef. <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-all-know-the-great-barrier-reef-is-in-danger-the-un-has-just-confirmed-it-again-195551#:%7E:text=The%20most%20significant%20threats%20are,unsustainable%20fishing%20and%20coastal%20development.">Other</a> pressing problems include poor water quality from land-based runoff, crown-of-thorns starfish and unsustainable fishing and coastal development.</p>
<p>So how do we deal with all of this? A range of management actions exists. </p>
<p>Banning fishing in some areas and limiting exploitation elsewhere has benefited conservation, while also <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982212003958">enhancing fisheries</a>.</p>
<p>But other actions have had mixed success. And not all available tools are being applied effectively.</p>
<p>For example, “<a href="https://www2.gbrmpa.gov.au/access/zoning/special-management-areas">special management areas</a>” were intended to restrict human use of the Great Barrier Reef for conservation or management purposes. But their use has been limited. And emergency implementations of these areas, allowed under the law, have never been used.</p>
<p>Crucially, none of the available actions were designed to respond to climate threats. The reality is, the scale of climate disturbance is beyond the available management tools.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-all-know-the-great-barrier-reef-is-in-danger-the-un-has-just-confirmed-it-again-195551">We all know the Great Barrier Reef is in danger – the UN has just confirmed it. Again</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure>
<iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/404223289" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Source: Australian Academy of Science.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What are we waiting for?</h2>
<p>The scientific evidence is unequivocal. We must work at local, national, and international scales to help the Great Barrier Reef better cope with climate change. The likely arrival of an El Niño makes this task ever more urgent. </p>
<p>Australian and international governments must take immediate and decisive action on emissions reduction. This includes banning new coal and gas projects and rapidly shifting to renewable energy. Communities reliant on fossil-fuel industries should be helped to transition to new livelihoods.</p>
<p>Reef management agencies need to tackle climate threats more effectively – at a scale commensurate with the problem. This requires a new way of managing key areas. That could mean, for example, temporarily closing off parts of the Great Barrier Reef affected by coral bleaching to give them a reprieve from other stressors such as fishing and tourism.</p>
<p>And individuals must also ensure our everyday choices – in transport, consumption and elsewhere – help tackle the climate threat.</p>
<p>It’s time for us all to double-down and ensure the survival of the Great Barrier Reef, and the planet. There is no room for complacency. So what are we waiting for?</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/adapt-move-or-die-repeated-coral-bleaching-leaves-wildlife-on-the-great-barrier-reef-with-few-options-179570">Adapt, move, or die: repeated coral bleaching leaves wildlife on the Great Barrier Reef with few options</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/206750/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Scott F. Heron is receiving and has received funding from Australian Research Council, as well as from international government sources. Together with Jon Day, Scott developed the Climate Vulnerability Index (CVI) for World Heritage that has also been applied to assess climate impacts upon other areas of significance.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jodie L. Rummer has received funding from the Australian Research Council. She is the current Vice President of the Australian Coral Reef Society.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jon Day previously worked for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority between 1986 and 2014, and was one of the Directors at GBRMPA between 1998 and 2014. He represented Australia as one of the formal delegates to the World Heritage Committee between 2007-2011.</span></em></p>The scale of climate threat is beyond the tools we have to manage the Great Barrier Reef. New measures and sustained effort are needed.Scott F. Heron, Associate Professor in Physics, James Cook UniversityJodie L. Rummer, Professor of Marine Biology, James Cook UniversityJon C. Day, PSM, Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, College of Science and Engineering, James Cook UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2027802023-04-17T01:15:21Z2023-04-17T01:15:21ZPlastic action or distraction? As climate change bears down, calls to reduce plastic pollution are not wasted<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/520992/original/file-20230414-22-x66bti.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=30%2C12%2C3971%2C3011&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.theoceanagency.org/search-result?s=plastic">Ocean Image Bank / Naja Bertolt Jensen</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Climate change, pollution and overfishing are <a href="https://oceanliteracy.unesco.org/threats-to-the-ocean/">just a few</a> problems that need addressing to maintain a healthy blue planet. Everyone must get involved – but it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and unsure where to start.</p>
<p>Of course we can start with the obvious - making sure we reduce, reuse and recycle. Yet, given the scale of the challenge, these small, relatively simple steps are not enough. So, how can we encourage people to do more?</p>
<p>There is controversy about the best approach. <a href="https://theconversation.com/simple-steps-to-save-the-environment-may-not-make-much-difference-6507">Some argue</a> focusing on easy actions is distracting and can lead people to overestimate their positive impact, reducing the chance they will do more. </p>
<p>However, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308597X23001070">our new research</a> found promoting small and relatively easy actions, such as reducing plastic use, can be a useful entry point for engaging in other, potentially more effective actions around climate change. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/6-reasons-2023-could-be-a-very-good-year-for-climate-action-197680">6 reasons 2023 could be a very good year for climate action</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The plastic distraction debate</h2>
<p>Marine plastic pollution is set <a href="https://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?4959466/Ocean-plastic-pollution-to-quadruple-by-2050-pushing-more-areas-to-exceed-ecologically-dangerous-threshold-of-microplastic-concentration">to quadruple by 2050</a> and efforts to reduce this have received a lot of attention. In this arena, Australia is making significant progress. </p>
<p>For example, <a href="https://theconversation.com/local-efforts-have-cut-plastic-waste-on-australias-beaches-by-almost-30-in-6-years-184243">last year</a> scientists discovered the amount of plastic litter found on Australian coasts had reduced by 30% since 2012-13. <a href="https://www.marineconservation.org.au/which-australian-states-are-banning-single-use-plastics/">Seven out of eight</a> Australian states and territories have also committed to ban single-use plastics.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-bioplastics-wont-solve-our-plastic-problems-200736">Why bioplastics won't solve our plastic problems</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Yet, <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-obsession-with-plastic-pollution-distracts-attention-from-bigger-environmental-challenges-111667">some scientists are concerned</a> all this fuss about plastic distracts us from addressing the more pressing issue of climate change, which is <a href="https://soe.dcceew.gov.au/marine/introduction">degrading marine ecosystems</a> at an alarming rate and making oceans <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/apr/08/headed-off-the-charts-worlds-ocean-surface-temperature-hits-record-high">hotter than ever before</a>.</p>
<p>For example, without an urgent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, coral reefs could lose more than 90% coral cover within the next decade. This <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-major-heatwaves-in-30-years-have-turned-the-great-barrier-reef-into-a-bleached-checkerboard-170719">includes</a> our very own Great Barrier Reef.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Coral gardens on the Great Barrier Reef" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/520482/original/file-20230412-16-utej5l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/520482/original/file-20230412-16-utej5l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520482/original/file-20230412-16-utej5l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520482/original/file-20230412-16-utej5l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520482/original/file-20230412-16-utej5l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520482/original/file-20230412-16-utej5l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520482/original/file-20230412-16-utej5l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Climate change is the major threat to the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Yolanda Waters</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>When it comes to climate action, Australia is <a href="https://ccpi.org/country/aus/">behind</a>. Many Australians are also unsure which actions to take. For example, a 2020 <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/conl.12765">study</a> asked more than 4,000 Australians what actions were needed to help the Great Barrier Reef. The most common response (25.6%) involved reducing plastic pollution. Only 4.1% of people mentioned a specific action to mitigate climate change.</p>
<h2>‘Spillover’ behaviour</h2>
<p>We ran <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308597X23001070">an experiment</a> to test whether we could shift this preference for action on plastic into action on climate change.</p>
<p>Our experiment was based on a theory known as “<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167487014001068#f0005">behavioural spillover</a>”. This theory assumes the actions we take in the present influence the actions we take in future.</p>
<p>For example, deciding to go to the gym in the morning <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6639161/">may influence what you decide to eat</a> in the afternoon.</p>
<p>Some <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272494420306861">experts argue</a> focusing on reducing plastic use – a relatively simple action – can help build momentum and open the door for other environmental actions in the future. This is known as positive spillover. </p>
<p>Conversely, those in the “<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308597X1830681X">plastic distraction</a>” camp argue if people reduce their plastic use, they might feel they have done enough and become less likely to engage in additional actions. This is known as negative spillover.</p>
<h2>Experimenting with spillover from plastic to climate</h2>
<p>To test whether we could encourage spillover behaviour in the context of the Great Barrier Reef, we conducted an online experiment with representative sample of 581 Australians.</p>
<p>Participants were randomly allocated to one of three experimental groups or a control group. The first group received information about plastic pollution on the reef along with prompts to remind them of their efforts to tackle the problem in the past week (a “behaviour primer”). The second group received the reef plastic information only. The third group received information about the reef and climate change. The control group received general information about World Heritage sites, with no call to action or mention of the Great Barrier Reef. </p>
<p>Participants were then asked whether they would be likely to take a range of climate actions, such as reducing personal greenhouse gas emissions and talking to others about climate change. They also had the opportunity to “click” on a few actions embedded within the survey such as signing an online petition for climate action. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521131/original/file-20230415-20-zibzju.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521131/original/file-20230415-20-zibzju.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521131/original/file-20230415-20-zibzju.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521131/original/file-20230415-20-zibzju.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521131/original/file-20230415-20-zibzju.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521131/original/file-20230415-20-zibzju.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521131/original/file-20230415-20-zibzju.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Participants were asked how likely they were to take a range of climate actions. (Note: this graphic was not used in the survey.)</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Yolanda Waters</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Compared to the control group, those provided with information about plastic pollution were more willing to engage with climate actions, particularly when they were reminded of positive past behaviours. Whereas those provided with information about climate change showed no significant difference.</p>
<p>Plastic messages also had a stronger positive effect on climate action for those who were politically conservative, compared to those more politically progressive.</p>
<p>But the approach didn’t work for everyone. We <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308597X23001070#sec0100">repeated the experiment</a> with 572 self-identified ocean advocates, many of whom already engaged with marine conservation issues. For this audience, talking about plastic and their past efforts made them <em>less likely</em> to engage with climate action compared to the control group.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef with diver in the background." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/520487/original/file-20230412-16-83v20h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/520487/original/file-20230412-16-83v20h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520487/original/file-20230412-16-83v20h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520487/original/file-20230412-16-83v20h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520487/original/file-20230412-16-83v20h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520487/original/file-20230412-16-83v20h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/520487/original/file-20230412-16-83v20h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The ocean is warming at an alarming rate, bleaching coral on the Great Barrier Reef. Should we still be talking about plastic?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">The Ocean Agency / Ocean Image Bank</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>So what does all this mean?</h2>
<p>Our results suggest it’s possible to motivate climate action for the reef without slipping back into conversations about plastic. Here are four ways to help achieve this:</p>
<ol>
<li><p><strong>Remind people of the small actions they already take:</strong> reminding people of their positive contributions and making them feel like they are capable of doing more can open the gateway to further action.</p></li>
<li><p><strong>Connect the dots between plastic and climate:</strong> <a href="https://www.wwf.org.au/news/blogs/plastic-waste-and-climate-change-whats-the-connection#gs.sxdwkq">plastics are primarily derived from fossil fuels</a> and production alone accounts for billions of tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each year. Making it clear that a fight against fossil fuels is a fight against both plastic and climate can help guide people towards those extra climate actions.</p></li>
<li><p><strong>Provide clear calls to (climate) action:</strong> <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/conl.12765">research shows</a> most people are unable to identify climate actions on their own. As a result, they tend to get stuck on common behaviours such as recycling. Giving people clear advice on how they can contribute to mitigating climate change is crucial.</p></li>
<li><p><strong>Know your audience:</strong> spillover from plastic to climate is more likely in a general audience. If your network is full of ocean advocates, it might be better to skip the plastic conversation and dive straight into conversations about climate change actions.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>It’s important to remember that people’s first steps don’t have to be their only steps. Sometimes, they just need a little guidance for the journey ahead.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/households-find-low-waste-living-challenging-heres-what-needs-to-change-197022">Households find low-waste living challenging. Here's what needs to change</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/202780/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Promoting small actions, such as reducing plastic use, can be a useful entry point for other actions around climate change. It’s an example of ‘positive spillover behaviour’.Yolanda Lee Waters, PhD Candidate and Research Assistant, The University of QueenslandAngela Dean, Lecturer, School of Agriculture and Food Science & Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2012352023-03-22T19:42:44Z2023-03-22T19:42:44ZThe Great Southern Reef is in more trouble than the Great Barrier Reef<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516604/original/file-20230321-173-sfwzc9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4928%2C3260&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Graham Edgar/Reef Life Survey</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Marine heatwaves are damaging reef ecosystems around Australia, but while the tropical north has received the lion’s share of the attention to date, we equally need to worry about the temperate south. </p>
<p>That’s partly because the Great Southern Reef is of immense biodiversity value. Species found here are found nowhere else in the world. Even their distant relatives are long gone. It’s also because these temperate reefs are suffering even more from heatwaves than the Great Barrier Reef. </p>
<p>After 30 years counting thousands of marine species on Australian reefs, we could see the situation was changing rapidly. But our research team wasn’t able to survey enough locations to adequately track the changes. These occurred out of sight, beneath the waves, off coastlines extending thousands of kilometres. We realised we needed help. </p>
<p>So we enlisted the help of enthusiastic volunteer divers to complete the world’s first <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-05833-y">continental audit of shallow marine life</a>. This unique Australian effort was a tremendous collaborative achievement. But it’s nothing compared to what’s needed in the years to come, to defend our reef ecosystems from the impacts of climate change and other human pressures. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/grq8dfIbm8Q?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Reef Life Survey makes the underwater world visible.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-other-reef-is-worth-more-than-10-billion-a-year-but-have-you-heard-of-it-45600">Australia's 'other' reef is worth more than $10 billion a year - but have you heard of it?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Answering questions with data</h2>
<p>Our goal was to answer crucial questions from managers, including: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>which marine species are rapidly heading towards extinction? </p></li>
<li><p>how can threats to reef species be addressed cost effectively? </p></li>
<li><p>how large do marine reserves need to be, to achieve conservation goals?</p></li>
<li><p>which regulations work best?</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Our solution was to headhunt the most enthusiastic and experienced recreational divers, then train them to scientific standards in underwater survey methods. </p>
<p>More than 200 highly trained volunteers have now participated in the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320720309137">Reef Life Survey</a> of Australia. Together they have counted more than 3,000 species of fishes, corals and other invertebrates at over 2,500 sites around Australia, including offshore locations not previously visited by divers. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/514787/original/file-20230311-3813-mkv1o3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Volunteer Reef Life Survey diver counting fishes in South Australia" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/514787/original/file-20230311-3813-mkv1o3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/514787/original/file-20230311-3813-mkv1o3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514787/original/file-20230311-3813-mkv1o3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514787/original/file-20230311-3813-mkv1o3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514787/original/file-20230311-3813-mkv1o3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514787/original/file-20230311-3813-mkv1o3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/514787/original/file-20230311-3813-mkv1o3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Reef Life Survey is a non-profit citizen science program in which trained SCUBA divers undertake standardised underwater visual surveys of reef biodiversity on rocky and coral reefs around the world. This photo was taken in South Australia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Graham Edgar/Reef Life Survey</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This information, combined with survey data from the Australian Temperate Reef Collaboration (collected using similar methods) and the Australian Institute of Marine Science in Queensland, has allowed us to produce the first continental audit of shallow marine life completed anywhere in the world. Our <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-05833-y">new research</a> is published today in the journal Nature. </p>
<p>Our investigation revealed that heatwaves have damaged many (but not all) reef communities over the past decade. The effects have been patchy. Some reef populations have been devastated, other reefs nearby have declined and recovered, and others have flourished. </p>
<p>Species tended to increase numbers in years when water temperatures rose less than 0.5°C above average, but declined rapidly once this heatwave threshold was passed. Overall, more species were declining than increasing.</p>
<p>Coral density has showed little overall change across the Great Barrier Reef since 2010. Many, but not all, coral reef communities impacted by the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-much-coral-has-died-in-the-great-barrier-reefs-worst-bleaching-event-69494">2016 heatwave</a> have recovered. Coral populations tended to decline in the north, show little change in the central region, and increase in the south. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516882/original/file-20230322-22-bwzxjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A diver surveys life on Elizabeth Reef, off the coast of northern New South Wales." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516882/original/file-20230322-22-bwzxjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516882/original/file-20230322-22-bwzxjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516882/original/file-20230322-22-bwzxjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516882/original/file-20230322-22-bwzxjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516882/original/file-20230322-22-bwzxjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=582&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516882/original/file-20230322-22-bwzxjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=582&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516882/original/file-20230322-22-bwzxjx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=582&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Although some locations on the Great Barrier Reef had suffered catastrophic coral losses, heatwave impacts were highly patchy, with no consistent trend for population increase or decrease among the 51 tropical coral species investigated. This photo was taken on Elizabeth Reef, a southern coral reef off the coast of northern New South Wales.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://greatsouthernreef.com/nature-paper-march-2023-media">Scott Ling, courtesy Great Southern Reef Foundation 2023</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Around Australia, fishes, mobile invertebrates such as crabs, snails and seastars, and seaweeds showed similar responses to warming. Numbers typically declined in the north of species’ ranges and increased in the south. The increasing abundance of warm water species in the south has, however, squeezed populations of cold water species. </p>
<p>At the limit, southern Tasmanian species trapped by the deep Southern Ocean barrier cannot migrate further south. The common sea dragon (<em>Phyllopteryx taeniolatus</em>), for example, has declined in numbers by 57% over the past decade across monitoring sites.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515098/original/file-20230314-3619-cpaicg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="The common sea dragon (_Phyllopteryx taeniolatus_) at Blackmans Bay" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515098/original/file-20230314-3619-cpaicg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515098/original/file-20230314-3619-cpaicg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515098/original/file-20230314-3619-cpaicg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515098/original/file-20230314-3619-cpaicg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515098/original/file-20230314-3619-cpaicg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515098/original/file-20230314-3619-cpaicg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515098/original/file-20230314-3619-cpaicg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Numbers of the common sea dragon (<em>Phyllopteryx taeniolatus</em>) have halved across the 43 Great Southern Reef dive sites. This beautiful specimen was spotted at Blackmans Bay.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Graham Edgar/Reef Life Survey</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many species living on Tasmanian reefs, particularly echinoderms such as sea stars and sea urchins, have shown precipitous population declines over the past decade. </p>
<p>A strong <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-marine-heatwave-has-wiped-out-a-swathe-of-was-undersea-kelp-forest-62042">heatwave off southwestern Australia</a> in 2011 also caused seaweed populations to drop rapidly. Most affected seaweeds remain at greatly reduced levels. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/can-seaweed-save-the-world-well-it-can-certainly-help-in-many-ways-201459">Can seaweed save the world? Well it can certainly help in many ways</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Overall, cool-temperate species inhabiting the Great Southern Reef - the interconnected network of kelp-covered rocky reefs that extends from northern New South Wales to southwestern Australia — are generally declining in number more rapidly and are more threatened with extinction, than tropical species. </p>
<p>This is perhaps not surprising given that Great Southern Reef species live in a climate change hotspot (where sea temperatures are rising more rapidly than elsewhere worldwide) along the most densely populated Australian coast. Impacts from infrastructure development, catchment degradation, pollution and fishing are widespread.</p>
<h2>Why the southern reef is so great</h2>
<p>Australia’s southern reefs - in temperate waters between the tropical north and the Southern Ocean - are hotspots of biodiversity. Most species are found nowhere else in the world (70% of the temperate species surveyed were endemic to Australia). In contrast, almost all of the tropical species censused in our study are widely distributed across the Indo-Pacific (only 3% endemic to Australia).</p>
<p>Furthermore, temperate Australian species often have no close relatives. Their evolutionary roots run deep. Examples include the red velvet fish (<em>Gnathanacanthus goetzii</em>) and the giant creeper snail (<em>Campanile symbolicum</em>). Both species sit alone in their families, and were found in our census to have rapidly declining populations.</p>
<p>Worldwide, the most threatened fish family is the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320720308892">handfishes</a>. This is a group of 14 species restricted to southeastern Australia, primarily Tasmania. The critically endangered red handfish (<em>Thymichthys politus</em>) and spotted handfish (<em>Brachionichthys hirsutus</em>) have declined to tiny populations of around 100 (red) and 5000 (spotted) individuals living in shallow bays near Hobart. The smooth handfish (<em>Sympterichthys unipennis</em>) is probably already extinct.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516884/original/file-20230322-26-8mp2nb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Two divers explore the deep reef off Bicheno in the Freycinet Commonwealth Marine Reserve" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516884/original/file-20230322-26-8mp2nb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516884/original/file-20230322-26-8mp2nb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516884/original/file-20230322-26-8mp2nb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516884/original/file-20230322-26-8mp2nb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516884/original/file-20230322-26-8mp2nb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516884/original/file-20230322-26-8mp2nb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516884/original/file-20230322-26-8mp2nb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Abundant sponge gardens, impressive kelp beds, prolific fish life and caves packed with delicate invertebrates make Bicheno an ideal destination for SCUBA divers, snorkelers and underwater photographers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://greatsouthernreef.com/nature-paper-march-2023-media">Scott Ling, courtesy Great Southern Reef Foundation 2023</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What we stand to lose</h2>
<p>The loss of most Australian marine species will likely occur unseen. Government funding does not generally support systematic monitoring of native plants and animals. </p>
<p>Data provided by volunteer Reef Life Survey divers has provided the only population trend information for over 1,000 species, while tens of thousands of species lack any information at all. Only the Great Barrier Reef Long Term Monitoring Program run by the Australian Institute of Marine Science receives dedicated funding covering marine habitats. </p>
<p>Until more attention is paid to the conservation of temperate marine species, the living heritage of future generations will continue to slip away. We will also remain in the dark as to what already has been lost. The little public, scientific or management attention paid to the Great Southern Reef belies its status as a global marvel, and one that is highly threatened.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/playing-sea-soundscapes-can-summon-thousands-of-baby-oysters-and-help-regrow-oyster-reefs-188006">Playing sea soundscapes can summon thousands of baby oysters – and help regrow oyster reefs</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/201235/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Graham Edgar is a Board Member of Reef Life Survey Foundation.
Field surveys that provide the basis for this study have been supported by the Reef Life Survey Foundation; Australian Research Council; the Australian Institute of Marine Science; the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies; Parks Australia; Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania; New South Wales Department of Primary Industries; Parks Victoria; South Australia Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources; Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions; The Ian Potter Foundation; Minderoo Foundation; Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment; and the CERF, NERP and NESP Marine Biodiversity Hubs.
Data management is supported by Australia’s Integrated Marine Observing System.</span></em></p>The first comprehensive audit of marine life around Australia, deploying an army of volunteer research divers alongside scientists, has revealed southern reefs are suffering the most.Graham Edgar, Senior Marine Ecologist, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1995122023-02-09T01:26:50Z2023-02-09T01:26:50ZTanya Plibersek killed off Clive Palmer’s coal mine. It’s an Australian first – but it may never happen again<p>Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has <a href="https://epbcpublicportal.awe.gov.au/all-notices/project-decision-no-comment/?id=f81a6532-08b2-eb11-80c4-00505684c137">formally rejected</a> mining magnate Clive Palmer’s proposed Central Queensland Coal Project. Her decision was based on the risk of damage to the Great Barrier Reef, freshwater creeks and groundwater.</p>
<p>The 20-year open-cut mine project would have extracted up to 10 million tonnes of metallurgical coal – used to make steel – each year.</p>
<p>Plibersek’s decision is significant. It’s the first time a coal mine has been refused in the two decades our federal environment law has been in place. But those hoping the decision sets a precedent for other mine proposals are likely to be disappointed.</p>
<p>Palmer’s mine was not refused on climate change grounds. Objectors to coal mines will still need to persuade the federal government of the link between future coal mine developments and global warming.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="man smiling on sign with words 'put Australia first'" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/509056/original/file-20230208-21-shlzxm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/509056/original/file-20230208-21-shlzxm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=321&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509056/original/file-20230208-21-shlzxm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=321&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509056/original/file-20230208-21-shlzxm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=321&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509056/original/file-20230208-21-shlzxm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509056/original/file-20230208-21-shlzxm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509056/original/file-20230208-21-shlzxm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Clive Palmers coal mine has been rejected.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A rare decision indeed</h2>
<p>Australia’s federal environment law is known as the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (<a href="https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2021C00182">EPBC</a>) Act. It came into force in 2000 to provide federal oversight of large projects. </p>
<p>Under the law, proponents must refer a proposal to federal environment authorities if it’s likely to significantly impact so-called “matters of national environmental significance”. These matters include the Great Barrier Reef.</p>
<p>But it’s extremely rare that any development is refused under the EPBC Act. As of July last year, more than 7,000 projects had been referred to the federal government under the law, for assessment of the proposal’s impacts. <a href="https://www.transparency.gov.au/annual-reports/department-agriculture-water-and-environment/reporting-year/2021-22-38">Just 13</a> were ultimately refused.</p>
<p>So why did Palmer’s proposed mine cross this exceptional hurdle for refusal? Largely because of its location. The proposed site was <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-08/tanya-plibersek-blocks-clive-palmer-central-qld-coal-mine/101945208">just ten kilometres</a> from the Great Barrier Reef world heritage area. </p>
<p>Explaining the decision on Wednesday, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-08/tanya-plibersek-blocks-clive-palmer-central-qld-coal-mine/101945208">Plibersek said</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>[…] risks to the Great Barrier Reef, freshwater creeks and groundwater are too great. Freshwater creeks run into the Great Barrier Reef and onto seagrass meadows that feed dugongs and provide breeding grounds for fish.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Coral reef with boards moored" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/509066/original/file-20230209-19-kjht87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/509066/original/file-20230209-19-kjht87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=365&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509066/original/file-20230209-19-kjht87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=365&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509066/original/file-20230209-19-kjht87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=365&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509066/original/file-20230209-19-kjht87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=459&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509066/original/file-20230209-19-kjht87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=459&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509066/original/file-20230209-19-kjht87.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=459&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Plibersek said the mine posed unacceptable risks to the Great Barrier Reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The thin end of the wedge?</h2>
<p>Plibersek’s decision has triggered calls for the federal government to reject other fossil fuel projects.</p>
<p>For example, Greens environment spokeswoman Sarah Hanson-Young on Wednesday described Plibersek’s decision as “the thin edge of the wedge”. She went on:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>There [were] 118 new coal and gas projects in the pipeline. One down, 117 to go.</p>
<p>From Narrabri’s double-whammy new coal and gas projects, Woodside’s North West Shelf offshore gas extension, billionaire miner Gina Rinehart’s proposed CSG expansion in the Surat Basin, or the Mount Pleasant coal project extension in the Hunter, the Minister has many projects left to rule out.</p>
<p>Approving more coal and gas in the midst of a climate crisis is reckless and dangerous.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>However, persuading the federal minister to reject these mines will not be easy.
That’s because the law contains no explicit requirement for the minister to consider the climate change impacts of a proposal. </p>
<p>This certainly <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/aug/29/greg-hunts-approval-of-adanis-queensland-mine-upheld-by-federal-court">hasn’t stopped</a> litigants from <a href="https://theconversation.com/todays-disappointing-federal-court-decision-undoes-20-years-of-climate-litigation-progress-in-australia-179291">challenging</a> projects on climate grounds. But to date, none have succeeded.</p>
<p>Other legal objections – <a href="https://www.judgments.fedcourt.gov.au/judgments/Judgments/fca/full/2017/2017fcafc0134">such as</a> one brought by the Australian Conservation Foundation against the Adani mine – have taken a different tack. They’ve sought to show the carbon emissions resulting from burning coal from a mine would harm a matter of national environmental significance. </p>
<p>The ACF argued the Adani mine was inconsistent with Australia’s international obligations to protect the Great Barrier Reef. But the challenge was unsuccessful. </p>
<p>Such arguments are difficult to run. That’s partly because they string together a number of causal links. In other words, they rest on the assumption that one action is definitively responsible for another, and so on down the chain.</p>
<p>Such links may be possible to show in cases such as the Palmer mine, when a development is close to the coast and its direct operation might pollute waterways. But it’s harder to show that coal from a single mine, burnt by a third party, will damage the Great Barrier Reef. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/this-case-has-made-legal-history-young-australians-just-won-a-human-rights-case-against-an-enormous-coal-mine-195350">'This case has made legal history’: young Australians just won a human rights case against an enormous coal mine</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"770112444480053248"}"></div></p>
<h2>Room for hope</h2>
<p>Plibersek’s decision is unlikely to set a precedent for federal mine approvals.</p>
<p>The EPBC Act could, in theory, be strengthened to give the minister more power to reject a proposal on climate grounds. But unfortunately, the Albanese government’s <a href="https://www.dcceew.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/nature-positive-plan.pdf">promised reforms</a> of the law fail to do so.</p>
<p>First, the reforms failed to include a “<a href="https://theconversation.com/labor-has-introduced-its-controversial-climate-bill-to-parliament-heres-how-to-give-it-real-teeth-187762">climate trigger</a>” – a mechanism by which development proposals are not approved unless their climate impact has been considered.</p>
<p>Second, the reforms fail to make so-called “scope 3 emissions” a mandatory consideration in environmental approvals. These types of emissions are produced indirectly – such as when a company’s coal is burned for energy.</p>
<p>There is room for hope, however. The federal government’s <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/albanese-government-passes-climate-change-bill-house-representatives">Climate Change Act</a> enshrines in law Australia’s goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050. Under this policy position, the approval of large coal mines will become increasingly difficult to reconcile.</p>
<p>And in recent years, <a href="https://theconversation.com/landmark-rocky-hill-ruling-could-pave-the-way-for-more-courts-to-choose-climate-over-coal-111533">some state courts</a> <a href="https://theconversation.com/this-case-has-made-legal-history-young-australians-just-won-a-human-rights-case-against-an-enormous-coal-mine-195350">have been convinced</a> by causal arguments linking mines to climate change. So future federal decisions are unlikely to be immune from further challenge. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/labor-has-introduced-its-controversial-climate-bill-to-parliament-heres-how-to-give-it-real-teeth-187762">Labor has introduced its controversial climate bill to parliament. Here's how to give it real teeth</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What’s next for Clive Palmer?</h2>
<p>Plibersek’s decision comes during a bad few months for Palmer. In November last year, Queensland’s Land Court recommended Palmer’s proposed Waratah coal project in Queensland also be rejected <a href="https://theconversation.com/this-case-has-made-legal-history-young-australians-just-won-a-human-rights-case-against-an-enormous-coal-mine-195350">due to</a> its likely contribution to climate change, and subsequent erosion of human rights.</p>
<p>Palmer can seek a judicial review of the latest decision. But success would rest on whether it could be shown Plibersek’s decision involved a legal error. These types of challenges are notoriously difficult – so there’s a good chance this proposed mine has reached the end of the road. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/todays-disappointing-federal-court-decision-undoes-20-years-of-climate-litigation-progress-in-australia-179291">Today's disappointing federal court decision undoes 20 years of climate litigation progress in Australia</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/199512/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Justine Bell-James receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the National Environmental Science Program.</span></em></p>The mine was not refused on climate change grounds. So without legal reform, other fossil fuel projects may still go ahead.Justine Bell-James, Associate Professor, TC Beirne School of Law, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1938462023-01-19T00:17:35Z2023-01-19T00:17:35ZWriting from the edge of catastrophe: two new books clarify what’s at stake if we fail to mitigate climate change<p>The Australian Black Summer fires of 2019-2020 were unspeakably grim. Twenty-four million hectares were burnt, 33 people died, and over a billion animals perished. </p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.stormbirdpress.com/book/fire/">Fire: A Message from the Edge of Climate Catastrophe</a>, Margi Prideaux tells us that on Kangaroo Island, which lies off the Australian mainland, just south-west of Adelaide, 211,500 hectares were burnt, two human lives were lost – a fire-fighting father and son – and 60,000 farm animals died. </p>
<p>But so much more was lost as the Kangaroo Island community sought to save itself from the monster fire that was started by a lightning strike, burst into two <a href="https://glossary.ametsoc.org/wiki/Pyrocumulonimbus">pyrocumulonimbus clouds</a>, and devoured everything before it at lethal, unstoppable speed. </p>
<p>It will take years before the toll on the island’s biodiversity is fully understood, not least because these fires burned “hotter, deeper and were far more extreme” than its landscape has adapted to. </p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499713/original/file-20221208-23-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499713/original/file-20221208-23-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499713/original/file-20221208-23-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=904&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499713/original/file-20221208-23-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=904&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499713/original/file-20221208-23-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=904&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499713/original/file-20221208-23-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1136&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499713/original/file-20221208-23-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1136&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499713/original/file-20221208-23-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1136&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To add to this, Australia has recently suffered from unprecedented, ravaging rain and flood events. Warnings abound that climate change – driven by the burning of coal, gas and oil – is consigning Australia to <a href="https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/the-great-deluge-australias-new-era-of-unnatural-disasters/">an era of climate disasters</a>. </p>
<p>Australia’s national science agency <a href="https://www.csiro.au/en/research/environmental-impacts/climate-change/Climate-change-QA/Impacts">reports</a> that Australia will be hotter and drier, with fewer but more intense tropical cyclones. Heavy rainfall and floods will continue. Intense, longer-lasting marine heatwaves are expected, as is more frequent and severe bleaching of coral reefs. </p>
<p>These are not natural disasters. They are unnatural. And Australian governments are not prepared. They have, as <a href="https://www.sydney.edu.au/law/news-and-events/news/2022/04/27/op-ed-we-need-to-talk-about-australias-unnatural-disasters.html">Professor Rosemary Lyster has argued</a>, “a terrible track record of policies for disaster prevention, preparedness and response”. </p>
<p>We must be better prepared, Lyster argues. Yet if the focus shifts from preventing disaster to simply responding better, we will lull the community into a false sense of the inevitability of loss, and we will let governments off the hook.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Review: Fire: A Message from the Edge of Climate Catastrophe – Margi Prideaux (Stormbird); Saving the Reef – Rohan Lloyd (University of Queensland Press).</em></p>
<hr>
<h2>Failure and loss</h2>
<p>In the wake of loss, trauma and shock, comes the grieving.</p>
<p>Margi Prideaux is a formidable international politics and legal academic, who has written extensively on environmental topics. Threaded through her book are first-hand accounts of the shocking consequences of the monster bushfire for the Kangaroo Island community. Her stories of loss are heartbreaking. </p>
<p>There is a striking rhythm to Prideaux’s narrative. Each chapter opens with traumatised community voices that speak of fire-breathing dragons, melting aluminium, darkness and death. Her own faltering but powerful voice is interwoven with these tales of trauma, and the stark objective facts as she assesses them.</p>
<p>Prideaux writes on newly scorched land in a temporary shipping container – having lost her home, vineyard, everything, despite her and her partner’s efforts, and despite the community’s. But she is inspired by her own experience of profound loss to advocate for the innocent human and non-human victims of climate change. </p>
<p>She also bears witness to the political failure to mitigate climate change and develop genuine adaption plans. She describes the bleak tragedy experienced by her community in the context of the clear dictates of climate science, the wickedness of politics, and the failures of public policy. </p>
<p>Her message is delivered with some urgency because disaster is already upon us. Climate change is happening now, she warns: there is no time for politics or division. Communities, livelihoods and ecosystems are already being lost. Local communities, which are in the front line, must be empowered by all levels of government to act. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499707/original/file-20221208-19-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=7%2C0%2C5037%2C3305&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499707/original/file-20221208-19-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=7%2C0%2C5037%2C3305&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499707/original/file-20221208-19-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499707/original/file-20221208-19-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499707/original/file-20221208-19-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499707/original/file-20221208-19-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499707/original/file-20221208-19-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499707/original/file-20221208-19-qh64s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A green turtle swimming at Ribbon Reef near Cairns, Australia, 2019.
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">HOGP/AP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-black-summer-of-fire-was-not-normal-and-we-can-prove-it-172506">Australia's Black Summer of fire was not normal – and we can prove it</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Reef in danger</h2>
<p>Loss also hits hard in Rohan Lloyd’s <a href="https://www.uqp.com.au/books/saving-the-reef-the-human-story-behind-one-of-australias-greatest-environmental-treasures">Saving the Reef</a>. </p>
<p>The Great Barrier Reef is one of the seven wonders of the natural world. It is the only living thing on earth <a href="https://greatbarrierreef.org/">visible from space</a>. </p>
<p>Since its inclusion in UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1981, it has lost over half its coral. It is now listed as “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/nov/29/explainer-great-barrier-reef-flagged-as-in-danger-world-heritage-site-what-does-this-mean">in danger</a>”. It will be gone, as will all coral reefs, if global warming is not held at <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/last-refuges-for-coral-reefs-to-disappear-above-1-5c-of-global-warming-study-finds/">1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels</a>. </p>
<p>Saving the Reef is a forensic, historical cataloguing of loss. Lloyd describes an ecosystem suffering a gruesome death by a thousand cuts – from the loss of beche-de-mer, pearl and trochus shell fisheries, to the damaging effects of invasive species, coral mining, the oil and tourism industries, and, increasingly, from climate change.</p>
<p>Lloyd is an environmental historian, curious about the Western impact on the Great Barrier Reef since first contact. He pieces together the historical evidence and finds that the roots of the reef’s present danger can be readily found in the past. </p>
<p>“Our current crisis,” he writes, “is a messy knot that has threads entangling back through time that can’t be unravelled but can be seen.” </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499714/original/file-20221208-14-4pofku.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499714/original/file-20221208-14-4pofku.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499714/original/file-20221208-14-4pofku.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=896&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499714/original/file-20221208-14-4pofku.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=896&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499714/original/file-20221208-14-4pofku.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=896&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499714/original/file-20221208-14-4pofku.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1126&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499714/original/file-20221208-14-4pofku.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1126&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499714/original/file-20221208-14-4pofku.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1126&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Lloyd appreciates the way that different voices, including the voices of First Nations people, have told differing stories about the reef. Differing economic, cultural and environmental values have been attributed to it. And the threats that it has faced have varied greatly over time.</p>
<p>Saving the Reef documents several fraught, but ultimately successful, efforts to stave off rampant exploitation of the reef’s resources. Mineral and oil exploration were early, significant threats. Then came the plague of crown-of-thorns starfish, followed by tourism and over-fishing. </p>
<p>Today the most immediate environmental concerns are marine debris, agricultural run off, and the overwhelming need to ward off the effects of extreme weather events and the ravages of global warming.</p>
<p>Lloyd describes the clash between exploitation and protection that led to the establishment of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Of particular note is his analysis of the tensions that arose between the Commonwealth and Queensland governments, with the oil companies and conservationists caught between. </p>
<p>Notable, too, is Lloyd’s awareness of the plethora of competing interests still staking a claim in the future of the reef. Conservationists, naturalists, geologists, developers, tourism operators, and industry lobby groups are all still looking to influence future decisions.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/friday-essay-i-feel-my-heart-breaking-today-a-climate-scientists-path-through-grief-towards-hope-188589">Friday essay: 'I feel my heart breaking today' – a climate scientist's path through grief towards hope</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Hope in the face of disaster</h2>
<p>Fire and Saving the Reef are both written on the edge of catastrophe. But the catastrophe is clarifying for Prideaux, just as historical understanding is clarifying for Lloyd – and essentially for the same reason. The past offers our best hope, providing lessons for averting future disaster. </p>
<p>If we are on the brink of losing everything, Prideaux writes, having just lost everything herself, then we have no choice. We must radically empower local action. First Nations peoples, farmers, fishers, conservationists, landholders and scientists must sit and plan together to protect local communities and environments. </p>
<p>Both authors are wary of government and its motives. They see bureaucratic processes as distractions from real, measurable action. Bureaucrats have not prevented bush fire disasters, nor have they protected communities. Greenhouse gas emissions are not reducing and reef restoration simply tinkers in the face of catastrophic global warming.</p>
<p>But both books offer some hope. For Prideaux, the bushfire catastrophe inspires radical localism; for Lloyd, saving the reef is also a local project for many. Both authors are acutely aware, however, that the losses they document have global causes and that now is the time for Australia to act urgently to reduce its contributions to climate change.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/193846/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kate Crowley does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>With the disastrous effects of climate change already upon us, past events may have lessons for the future.Kate Crowley, Adjunct Associate Professor, Public and Environmental Policy, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1956472022-12-08T01:07:09Z2022-12-08T01:07:09ZRepairing gullies: the quickest way to improve Great Barrier Reef water quality<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499526/original/file-20221207-24-jpxu0y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">James Daley </span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Back-to-back <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-major-heatwaves-in-30-years-have-turned-the-great-barrier-reef-into-a-bleached-checkerboard-170719">bleaching events</a> have highlighted the critical threat that climate change poses to the Great Barrier Reef. But few people are aware of the network of gullies pumping out <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112163">about half</a> the sediment that is polluting reef water quality and threatening its <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-all-know-the-great-barrier-reef-is-in-danger-the-un-has-just-confirmed-it-again-195551">World Heritage status</a>. </p>
<p>These gully networks are like miniature Grand Canyons, some with walls up to 20 metres high. They make a spectacular sight but are a disaster for the land, the reef and the rivers that connect them. </p>
<p>In the UNESCO delegation’s latest <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/document/197090">report</a> on the reef, dramatically scaling up gully repair efforts is the top recommendation. </p>
<p>Along with global warming, degraded water quality is a key threat to the reef. But as the world continues to debate how to combat climate change, the report recognises that fixing gullies will give the reef a fighting chance to survive warming oceans. This is something Australia can do right now.</p>
<p>Over more than a century, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112193">land use changes</a> have disturbed fragile soils in grazing country. The unearthed fine sediment from below the surface dissolves like a Berocca tablet when it rains, creating a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.5291">gully</a>. Left alone, this process will continue for hundreds of years and keep eating into the landscape. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499287/original/file-20221206-16-nobs2a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499287/original/file-20221206-16-nobs2a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499287/original/file-20221206-16-nobs2a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499287/original/file-20221206-16-nobs2a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499287/original/file-20221206-16-nobs2a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499287/original/file-20221206-16-nobs2a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499287/original/file-20221206-16-nobs2a.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Gullies can expose hectares of soil to severe erosion which feeds sediment directly into waterways.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">James Daley</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our team at <a href="https://www.griffith.edu.au/coastal-marine-research-centre/our-research/coastal-processes-management/precision-erosion-sediment-management">Griffith university</a> have been researching gullies since 2005. Over the last decade we’ve <a href="https://nesptropical.edu.au/index.php/round-5-projects/project-5-10/">developed the tools</a> to identify and target the highest priority gullies, and helped design ways to fix them. </p>
<p>Through detailed mapping we’ve found we can identify and target just a few percent of the tens of thousands of gullies to achieve a massive, cost-effective water quality improvement. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/5-major-heatwaves-in-30-years-have-turned-the-great-barrier-reef-into-a-bleached-checkerboard-170719">5 major heatwaves in 30 years have turned the Great Barrier Reef into a bleached checkerboard</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>More than 400,000 dump trucks of sediment a year</h2>
<p>As the planet warms, Australia is already experiencing record heat. For our team working in Queensland’s gullies, temperatures can reach over 50°C in the midday sun. </p>
<p>Field work in these conditions usually feels about as comfortable as working on the surface of Mars. Nonetheless, our team of scientists keep returning because of the staggering implications of the data we’ve been collecting. </p>
<p>Each wet season, the exposed soils in these gullies turn to a yoghurt-like consistency. Their chemistry primes them to readily erode, which they do with every raindrop that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2022.106760">falls on them</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lR0uOHA7f8w?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The eureka moment that could help save the reef.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In fact, an individual gully can produce <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-23/unsoiling-the-great-barrier-reef/6963598">thousands of tonnes of fine sediment</a> each year from just a few hectares of land. If you look at the total flow of sediment from all gullies, on average over 400,000 truckloads are dumped across the reef every year, mostly within the inner lagoon.</p>
<p>As sediment and nutrients travel freely down the rivers, they pollute fragile ecosystems, filling water holes, clouding the water and reducing biodiversity. Once they reach the reef lagoon, they smother corals and seagrasses, which struggle to survive.</p>
<p>As the UNESCO report identifies, degraded water quality severely affects the resilience of the reef, limiting its ability to recover from bleaching and cyclones, and to withstand the changes caused by global warming. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-all-know-the-great-barrier-reef-is-in-danger-the-un-has-just-confirmed-it-again-195551">We all know the Great Barrier Reef is in danger – the UN has just confirmed it. Again</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The most effective solution for improving water quality</h2>
<p>Stabilising gullied landscapes requires an approach akin to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1WBR_VTpmM">mine site rehabilitation</a>. In 2016, we demonstrated that if you reshape (with major earthworks), recap (with rock, soil and mulch) and revegetate the gullies, you can <a href="https://nesptropical.edu.au/index.php/round-3-projects/project-3-1-7/">rapidly repair</a> them. Our research has shown that erosion from priority gullies can be reduced by <a href="https://nesptropical.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/NESP-TWQ-Project-3.1.7-Final-Report.pdf">98% within a space of one to two years</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498847/original/file-20221205-19-uud054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498847/original/file-20221205-19-uud054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498847/original/file-20221205-19-uud054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498847/original/file-20221205-19-uud054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498847/original/file-20221205-19-uud054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498847/original/file-20221205-19-uud054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498847/original/file-20221205-19-uud054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Most gullies have eroded over the last 160 years due to land use changes and fragile soils.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Justin Stout</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We’ve now mapped more than 25,000 individual gullies in three hot spot areas in the Normanby, Burdekin and Fitzroy River catchments. </p>
<p>Remarkably, we <a href="https://nesptropical.edu.au/index.php/round-5-projects/project-5-10/">discovered</a> that only a small proportion of the mapped gullies in each area are contributing a large proportion of the sediment pollution.</p>
<p>For example, in the Burdekin hot spot, we found only about 2% of the gullies contribute 30% of the sediment load to the reef. Targeting these gullies provides the best and quickest way to improve the reef’s water quality.</p>
<p>But the number of gullies repaired to date is a drop in the ocean compared to what still needs to be done.</p>
<p>So far, our method of identifying priority gullies for repair has been implemented across only 1% of the 44-million-hectare reef catchment. The urgent task, as the UNESCO report notes, is to identify other hot spot areas and rapidly roll out the prioritisation mapping to enable targeted remediation to get under way. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499288/original/file-20221206-22-6m77fv.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499288/original/file-20221206-22-6m77fv.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=359&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499288/original/file-20221206-22-6m77fv.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=359&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499288/original/file-20221206-22-6m77fv.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=359&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499288/original/file-20221206-22-6m77fv.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499288/original/file-20221206-22-6m77fv.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499288/original/file-20221206-22-6m77fv.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Gullies can be remediated back to healthy landscapes in less than two years.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">James Daley</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What needs to happen now</h2>
<p>UNESCO highlights the critical need to speed up effective action, recommending:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>there is a need to secure a greater reduction of [sediment and nutrient] pollutants in the next three years than has been achieved since 2009. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>The good news is the research has already been done. The data demonstrates it is possible to achieve this ambitious goal. The implementation of on-ground gully repair works with economies of scale is the quickest and most cost-effective way to do it.</p>
<p>Since 2008, Australian governments have set <a href="https://www.reefplan.qld.gov.au/water-quality-and-the-reef/the-plan">sediment reduction targets</a> and invested considerable funds to improve reef water quality. The federal government intends to spend an additional <a href="https://www.dcceew.gov.au/parks-heritage/great-barrier-reef/billion-dollar-reef-protection-package/accelerating-actions">A$580 million</a> over nine years, and a further <a href="https://statements.qld.gov.au/statements/96689">$270 million</a> has been committed by the Queensland government.</p>
<p>Importantly, rapid progress can be made given the current funds earmarked for reef water quality. There are also proven working relationships already in place between our Griffith team, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1WBR_VTpmM">Traditional Owners </a>, government and <a href="https://ldc.nqdrytropics.com.au/griffith-uni-about/">other stakeholders</a>.</p>
<p>The challenge ahead is delivery. The next step requires a coordinated program to develop a pipeline of targeted gully projects. </p>
<p>The pieces of the puzzle are now all in place and there is no reason for delay.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/does-tourism-really-suffer-at-sites-listed-as-world-heritage-in-danger-60697">Does tourism really suffer at sites listed as World Heritage In Danger?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195647/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrew Brooks has received funding from the Australian Government's National Environmental Science Program (NESP) program and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation's Innovation Program. He also consults to The Palladium Group providing technical advice related to the establishment and implementation of Reef Credits . </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Daley receives funding from the Australian Government's National Environmental Science Program (NESP) program and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation's Innovation Program.</span></em></p>UNESCO report highlights what needs to be done to save the global icon. But you might be surprised by its top recommendation.Andrew Brooks, Principal Research Fellow - Fluvial Geomorphologist - specialising in catchment erosion research, Griffith UniversityJames Daley, Research Fellow, Coastal and Marine Research Centre, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1955512022-11-29T07:14:29Z2022-11-29T07:14:29ZWe all know the Great Barrier Reef is in danger – the UN has just confirmed it. Again<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/497824/original/file-20221129-18-4gf988.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C232%2C3519%2C2548&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kristin Hoel/Unsplash</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>You might be forgiven for thinking it’s Groundhog Day <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-29/united-nations-queensland-great-barrier-reef-danger-report/101705908">reading headlines</a> about the Great Barrier Reef potentially being listed on the World Heritage “in danger” list. After all, there have been similar calls in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2017.</p>
<p>Successive federal governments have lobbied hard to keep the largest coral reef in the world off the <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/danger/">high-profile list</a> kept by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). </p>
<p>Only last year, former environment minister Sussan Ley jetted around the world in a successful effort to <a href="https://theconversation.com/not-declaring-the-great-barrier-reef-as-in-danger-only-postpones-the-inevitable-164867">stave off the inevitable</a>, pointing to hundreds of millions of dollars spent on issues such as water quality. The new minister, Tanya Plibersek, also <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/australia-argues-endangered-barrier-reef-status-94118273">wants to avoid</a> having the reef “singled out” in this way. </p>
<p>The question is, what does in-danger mean? Everyone knows the reef is in trouble. An in-danger listing is not a sanction or punishment. Rather, it’s a call to the international community that a World Heritage property is under threat, requiring actions to protect it for future generations. In-danger listing is not permanent, nor does it mean the Reef will be permanently removed from the World Heritage list.</p>
<p>The reef faces a <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-great-barrier-reef-is-in-trouble-there-are-a-whopping-45-reasons-why-122930">multitude of threats</a>. The most significant threats are coral bleaching worsened by climate change, poor water quality from land-based runoff, and unsustainable fishing and coastal development. We already have regulations to tackle many of them – but we need more effective enforcement to ensure compliance. </p>
<h2>What just happened?</h2>
<p>The Great Barrier Reef has been <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/154/">World Heritage listed</a> since 1981. This means it’s considered an area of outstanding value to humanity. Covering an area the size of Italy, this iconic area includes some 3,000 separate reefs, over 1,000 islands and a variety of other significant habitats. </p>
<p>The latest UN mission has just <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/document/197090">reported back</a>, finding the reef’s condition is worsening and recommending it be listed as “in danger”. It also offered practical solutions.</p>
<p>Previous governments have fought to ensure the reef is not listed as in-danger despite their own five-yearly reviews demonstrating an obvious decline. In 2009, the reef’s condition was <a href="https://elibrary.gbrmpa.gov.au/jspui/handle/11017/199">rated poor</a> and declining. In 2014 it was <a href="https://elibrary.gbrmpa.gov.au/jspui/handle/11017/2855">poor</a> and declining and in 2019, <a href="https://www2.gbrmpa.gov.au/our-work/outlook-report-2019">very poor</a> and declining. </p>
<p>So the government knows the reef is in danger. We know, and the tourism industry knows. While some tourism operators worry about their business, the opposite appears to be true: <a href="https://theconversation.com/does-tourism-really-suffer-at-sites-listed-as-world-heritage-in-danger-60697">more people go</a>, thinking it might be their last chance to see it. And already, operators are adapting by taking tourists to areas still in good condition.</p>
<p>Federal governments just don’t want the reef on the list because of the hit to their international reputation – and to their domestic standing. </p>
<p>If the reef is officially listed as “in danger” next year, it will draw a much greater focus to the reef’s plight. And that may help galvanise effective national and global action. </p>
<p>Take the case of the famous coral reefs of Belize in Central America. When these reefs were listed, the government banned nearby oil exploration and protected mangroves. Belize’s reefs have now been <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/1838">taken off</a> the in-danger list. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/does-tourism-really-suffer-at-sites-listed-as-world-heritage-in-danger-60697">Does tourism really suffer at sites listed as World Heritage In Danger?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>So what has to be done?</h2>
<p>The mission’s report lays out what needs to be done for the major issues.</p>
<p>Australia already has a <a href="https://www.dcceew.gov.au/parks-heritage/great-barrier-reef/long-term-sustainability-plan">long-term plan</a> aimed at ensuring the reef’s sustainability. There are regulations governing, say, sediment and water quality in run off from agriculture and towns. We have some targets too, particularly around water quality. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/497880/original/file-20221129-16-kzqmd9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="flood plume reef" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/497880/original/file-20221129-16-kzqmd9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/497880/original/file-20221129-16-kzqmd9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497880/original/file-20221129-16-kzqmd9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497880/original/file-20221129-16-kzqmd9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497880/original/file-20221129-16-kzqmd9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497880/original/file-20221129-16-kzqmd9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497880/original/file-20221129-16-kzqmd9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This 2019 photo shows two threats to the Great Barrier Reef: coal ships anchored near Abbot Point and a flood plume from the Burdekin River. These plumes can carry pollutants and debris to the reef.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Matt Curnock</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The problem is delivery. There is a need to scale up efforts and improve compliance. Regulations mean very little if there’s ineffective enforcement. For example, while most farmers have taken on board the rules around fertiliser use, erosion and run-off, those flouting the rules get only a slap on the wrist. As the state government <a href="https://www.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/110591/reef-protection-regulations-factsheet.pdf">notes</a>, enforcement is a “last resort”. </p>
<p>The UN mission has called on Australia to improve in four key areas: </p>
<p><strong>1. Look after land and water</strong></p>
<p>When native vegetation is cleared, it makes erosion more likely. Eroded soils are washed downstream and out to sea, where they can settle on coral and seagrass, smothering them. In Queensland, native vegetation is still being cleared at unsustainable levels. </p>
<p><strong>2. Phase out gillnets</strong></p>
<p>These long nets catch fish by their gills. But they also catch dugongs, dolphins and turtles, which then die. The UN mission made a very strong recommendation: phase out gillnets in the marine park. </p>
<p><strong>3. More effective disposal of dredge spoil</strong></p>
<p>Dredging shipping channels and ports produces a lot of silt and sand. If this is dumped in shallow areas, it can also spread to nearby corals and seagrass beds already under stress from climate change. A previous government policy ended the dumping of capital dredge spoil (dredging previously undisturbed areas). But maintenance dredge spoil is still being dumped at sea or used for reclamation, both causing adverse impacts. </p>
<p><strong>4. Tackle climate change</strong></p>
<p>This month, the northern reefs are sweltering in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/nov/25/record-heat-over-great-barrier-reef-raises-fears-of-second-summer-of-coral-bleaching">record water temperatures</a> – raising the chance of further bleaching events. The UN report makes it clear that climate change is the biggest threat. Climate change heats up tropical waters, causing coral bleaching and potentially coral death. Australia, as one of the world’s top exporters of fossil fuels gas and coal, has long tried to go slow on climate action. The new government has moved to legislate a stronger 2030 emissions reduction target, but the UN report calls for even more ambition to keep warming under 1.5°C as this is widely accepted as the critical threshold for <a href="https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000265625">reef survival</a>. </p>
<p>The report doesn’t make reference to the impacts of shipping on nearby coral and seagrass areas, such as sediment churned up by propellers of large ships and tankers. </p>
<h2>Death by a thousand cuts</h2>
<p>If you dive the reef for the first time this year, you might wonder if there really is a problem. After all, there are still fish and coral. When I first dove on the reef more than 35 years ago, it was in much better condition. What you see now <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-grandparents-should-talk-to-children-about-the-natural-world-of-their-youth-144807">may seem okay</a> – but it’s a pale shadow of what it could or should be. It’s death by a thousand cuts. </p>
<p>As reef expert Professor Ove Hoegh-Guldberg <a href="https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2016/06/04/the-real-story-the-great-barrier-reef/14649624003332">has said</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>The reef is in dire trouble, but it’s decades away before it’s no longer worth visiting. That’s the truth. But unless we wake up and deal with climate change sincerely and deeply then we really will have a Great Barrier Reef not worth visiting.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>We’re never going to restore the reef to its pre-European conditions. But unless we take real action, future generations will wonder how and why we failed them so badly. We don’t need to wait for the World Heritage Committee to make in-danger listing to know the reef is in real trouble. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/severely-threatened-and-deteriorating-global-authority-on-nature-lists-the-great-barrier-reef-as-critical-151275">'Severely threatened and deteriorating': global authority on nature lists the Great Barrier Reef as critical</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195551/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jon Day previously worked for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority between 1986 and 2014, and was one of the Directors at GBRMPA between 1998 and 2014. He represented Australia as one of the formal delegates to the World Heritage Committee between 2007-2011.</span></em></p>Environment ministers from both sides are determined not to see the Barrier Reef listed as in danger. The question is – why?Jon C. Day, PSM, Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1951122022-11-23T13:19:32Z2022-11-23T13:19:32ZScientists discover five new species of black corals living thousands of feet below the ocean surface near the Great Barrier Reef<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496848/original/file-20221122-17-4lu9z6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=10%2C15%2C3375%2C1888&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Researchers discovered five new species of black corals, including this *Hexapathes bikofskii* growing out of a nautilus shell more than 2,500 feet (760 meters) below the surface.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jeremy Horowitz</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/research-brief-83231">Research Brief</a> is a short take about interesting academic work.</em> </p>
<h2>The big idea</h2>
<p>Using a remote-controlled submarine, my colleagues <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=inNswpIAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra">and I</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5213.1.1">discovered five new species of black corals</a> living as deep as 2,500 feet (760 meters) below the surface in the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea off the coast of Australia.</p>
<p>Black corals can be found growing both in <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4821.3.7">shallow waters and down to depths of over 26,000 feet</a> (8,000 meters), and some individual corals <a href="https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/invertebrates/how-old-black-coral">can live for over 4,000 years</a>. Many of these corals are branched and look like <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-394282-1.00002-8">feathers, fans or bushes, while others are straight</a> like a whip. Unlike their colorful, shallow-water cousins that rely on the sun and photosynthesis for energy, black corals are <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-394282-1.00002-8">filter feeders and eat tiny zooplankton</a> that are abundant in deep waters.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MYncyEIDr10?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The team of researchers collected 60 specimens of black corals over 31 dives using a remotely operated submarine.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In 2019 and 2020, I and a team of Australian scientists used the <a href="https://schmidtocean.org/">Schmidt Ocean Institute’s</a> remotely operated vehicle – a submarine named SuBastian – to explore the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Our goal was to collect samples of coral species living in waters from 130 feet to 6,000 feet (40 meters to 1,800 meters) deep. In the past, corals from the deep parts of this region were collected <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4472.2.5">using dredging and trawling</a> methods that would often destroy the corals. </p>
<p>Our two expeditions were the first to send a robot down to these particular deep-water ecosystems, allowing our team to actually see and safely collect deep sea corals in their natural habitats. Over the course of 31 dives, my colleagues and I collected 60 black coral specimens. We would carefully remove the corals from the sandy floor or coral wall using the rover’s robotic claws, place the corals in a pressurized, temperature-controlled storage box and then bring them up to the surface. We would then examine the physical features of the corals and sequence their DNA. </p>
<p>Among the many interesting specimens were five new species – including one we found growing on the shell of a nautilus more than <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5213.1.1">2,500 feet (760 meters) below the ocean’s surface</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A robotic arm grabbing a thin coral off of a rock." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=680&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=680&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=680&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Researchers used the robotic arm of their rover to collect over 100 samples of rare corals and brought them up to the surface for further study.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jeremy Horowitz</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Why it matters</h2>
<p>Similarly to shallow-water corals that build colorful reefs full of fish, black corals act as important habitats where <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-394282-1.00002-8">fish</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.26496/bjz.2019.33">invertebrates</a> feed and hide from predators in what is otherwise a mostly barren sea floor. For example, a single black coral colony researchers collected in 2005 off the coast of California was <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228350918">home to 2,554 individual invertebrates</a>.</p>
<p>Recent research has begun to paint a picture of a deep sea that contains <a href="https://doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2020.supplement.01">far more species</a> than <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.608665">biologists previously thought</a>. Considering there are only 300 known species of black corals in the world, finding five new species in one general location was very surprising and exciting for our team. Many black corals are <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/304623882_Illegal_harvesting_and_trading_of_black_corals_Antipatharia_in_Madagascar_the_necessity_of_field_studies">threatened by illegal harvesting for jewelry</a>. In order to pursue smart conservation of these fascinating and hard-to-reach habitats, it is important for researchers to know what species live at these depths and the geographic ranges of individual species. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A large, white, tree-like coral underwater." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=647&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=647&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=647&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Black corals don’t form large reefs like shallow corals, but individuals can get quite large – like this <em>Antipathes dendrochristos</em> found off the coast of California – and act as habitat for thousands of other organisms.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Antipathes_dendrochristos.jpg#/media/File:Antipathes_dendrochristos.jpg">Mark Amend/NOAA via Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What still isn’t known</h2>
<p>Every time scientists explore the deep sea, they discover new species. Simply exploring more is the best thing researchers can do to fill in knowledge gaps about what species live there and how they are distributed.</p>
<p>Because so few specimens of deep-sea black corals have been collected, and so many undiscovered species are likely still out there, there is also a lot to learn about the evolutionary tree of corals. The more species that biologists discover, the better we will be able to understand their evolutionary history – including how they have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-020-01291-1">survived at least four mass extinction events</a>.</p>
<h2>What’s next</h2>
<p>The next step for my colleagues and me is to continue to explore the ocean’s seafloor. Researchers have yet to <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5213.1.1">collect DNA from most of the known species of black corals</a>. In future expeditions, my colleagues and I plan to return to other deep reefs in the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea to continue to learn more about and better protect these habitats.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195112/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeremy Horowitz currently works for the Smithsonian Institution.
This research was funded through the ARC DECRA (DE170100516), the ARC
Centre of Excellence Program (CE140100020), and ARC Centre of Excellence Discovery Grant DP180103199.
</span></em></p>Black corals provide critical habitat for many creatures that live in the dark, often barren, deep sea, and researchers are learning more about these rare corals with every dive.Jeremy Horowitz, Post-doctoral Fellow in Invertebrate Zoology, Smithsonian InstitutionLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1920142022-11-14T19:00:33Z2022-11-14T19:00:33ZAt least 700,000 years ago, the world’s largest sand island emerged as the barrier that helped the Great Barrier Reef form<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494994/original/file-20221114-15-f7r4qi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1279%2C0%2C4749%2C3215&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Scientists had always been puzzled why the Great Barrier Reef formed long after Australia had conditions suitable for reef growth. It turns out the answer might be K'gari (Fraser Island). </p>
<p>K’gari, the world’s largest sand island and a <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/630/">UNESCO World Heritage Area</a>, juts out from the Australian coastline where the continent extends furthest east. It lies at the northern end of one of the world’s largest and longest <a href="https://www.internetgeography.net/topics/what-is-longshore-drift/">longshore drift</a> systems. If not for the presence of K’gari, the sand carried by this system would continue to migrate northward directly into the area of the Great Barrier Reef, which starts a little north of the island.</p>
<p>The volumes of sand carried along the coast are immense. It is estimated <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-06-13/weather-longshore-drift-queensland-nsw-beaches/12347828">500,000 cubic metres of sand</a> moves north past each metre of shoreline every year. </p>
<p>K’gari plays a key role in delivering this sand to the deep ocean. Sand moving along its eastern beaches is directed across the continental shelf and into the deep immediately north of the island. The dominant south-easterly trades would drive sand all the way into the full tropics if K’gari did not direct it off the shelf.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-022-01062-6">Our research</a>, published today, has established the age of K'gari as being older than the Greater Barrier Reef. This suggests the reef became established only after the island protected it from the northward drift of sand.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437049/original/file-20211212-170692-b3s288.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437049/original/file-20211212-170692-b3s288.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437049/original/file-20211212-170692-b3s288.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=672&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437049/original/file-20211212-170692-b3s288.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=672&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437049/original/file-20211212-170692-b3s288.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=672&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437049/original/file-20211212-170692-b3s288.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=844&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437049/original/file-20211212-170692-b3s288.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=844&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437049/original/file-20211212-170692-b3s288.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=844&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The northernmost point of K’gari, Sandy Point, marks where the sand heads deeper underwater, moving along the continental shelf before dropping off the edge.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Data: Geoscience Australia Landsat 5 and 8 Geomedian. Compilation: Will Farebrother, from Conversation article by Hanna Power</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/from-enormous-tides-to-millions-of-shells-here-are-6-unique-beaches-for-your-summer-road-trip-169164">From enormous tides to millions of shells, here are 6 unique beaches for your summer road trip</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Why does the reef depend on the island?</h2>
<p>The southern limit of the Great Barrier Reef is not a result of the climate being too cool further south. Corals can and do grow many hundreds of kilometres further south in places like Moreton Bay (Brisbane) and Lord Howe Island. </p>
<p>The main limiting factor for the southern extent of the reef is the drowning of corals by the rivers of sand going north. The corals in places like Moreton Bay occur where they have a hard substrate to grow on and are sheltered from sediment inundation. </p>
<p>The sand comes from sediment delivered to the Tasman Sea via the Hawkesbury and Hunter rivers in mid-New South Wales. Prevailing south-easterly breezes and their associated coastal wave systems sweep these sediments north for more than 1,000 kilometres. </p>
<p>The geological setting of eastern Australia is rather stable, so this longshore drift system should have been in operation for many millions of years. The Great Barrier Reef corals could not have survived without some protection from this northward flow of sand.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/esp.5387">techniques</a> we used to establish the age of the coastal dune fields of K’gari and the adjacent Cooloola Sand Mass on the mainland south of K’gari show the first coastal dunes date to about 1 million years ago. The modern dune fields were established by 700,000-800,000 years ago. Prior to 1 million years and definitely prior to 700,000-800,000 years ago, sand would have drifted north into the region of the modern barrier reef. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Looking out to sea from a coastal dune" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494996/original/file-20221114-20-ks48az.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494996/original/file-20221114-20-ks48az.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494996/original/file-20221114-20-ks48az.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494996/original/file-20221114-20-ks48az.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494996/original/file-20221114-20-ks48az.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494996/original/file-20221114-20-ks48az.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494996/original/file-20221114-20-ks48az.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Dating of the Cooloola dune fields on the mainland shows the oldest dunes are about 1 million years old.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/celebrating-kgari-why-the-renaming-of-fraser-island-is-about-so-much-more-than-a-name-168378">Celebrating K’gari: why the renaming of Fraser Island is about so much more than a name</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Why did K'gari form at that time?</h2>
<p>This timing coincides with a major geo-astronomical event, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mid-Pleistocene_Transition">Mid-Pleistocene Transition</a>. At this time Earth’s glacial cycles changed from a period of about 40,000 years to about 100,000 years. This change had a major impact on global sea levels because the longer cycles supported the growth of larger ice caps during cold periods. </p>
<p>Prior to this transition, global sea levels went up and down about 70 metres between warm (interglacial) and cold (glacial) periods. Afterwards, the range increased to 120-130m.</p>
<p>Under a longshore drift system some sediment “leaks” out into deeper water where currents and waves are not strong enough to move it. A drop of 70m would still leave the South-East Queensland coastline on the continental shelf. So, before the Mid-Pleistocene Transition, sand moving north would be gradually stored on the outer parts of the continental shelf, potentially accumulating over millions of years. </p>
<p>Once the first 100,000-year cycle occurred, sea levels would have dropped to the outer edge of the continental shelf. During the start of the next warm period, rising sea levels would erode the accumulated sands and transport it shoreward. This would drive a major period of dune building along the coast. </p>
<p>This was a major event because sediment accumulated over millions of years was added back into the sedimentary system. The very different dune types associated with plentiful sand are recorded in the oldest parts of the cliff sections at Cooloola and K’gari. </p>
<p>Again, remnants of dunes formed when sea levels were low are preserved directly off this coastline. We have shown a major pulse of sand was released into the dune systems formed during the earliest high sea-level periods of the 100,000-year climate cycles.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-explained-humans-have-dealt-with-plenty-of-climate-variability-145043">Climate explained: humans have dealt with plenty of climate variability</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494999/original/file-20221114-42960-xt8y6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/494999/original/file-20221114-42960-xt8y6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494999/original/file-20221114-42960-xt8y6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494999/original/file-20221114-42960-xt8y6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494999/original/file-20221114-42960-xt8y6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494999/original/file-20221114-42960-xt8y6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/494999/original/file-20221114-42960-xt8y6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The extraordinary beauty and diversity of the Great Barrier Reef would not exist without protection from the rivers of sand flowing north along the coast.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How does that line up with the age of the reef?</h2>
<p>K’gari was constructed in its “modern” form between about 1 million and 700,000 years ago. Once it was in place, any further sand driven up the coast during interglacial high sea levels was lost to deep water off the north of K’gari.</p>
<p>The last piece of the puzzle is the age of the Great Barrier Reef. For a heavily investigated natural wonder, this is remarkably poorly defined, but the oldest evidence dates the reef to <a href="https://doc.rero.ch/record/9147/files/spezzaferri_isc.pdf">about 650,000 years ago</a>. </p>
<p>In short, coral reef development appears to not have started until sediment drift from the south was blocked off. In this way the whole of the east coast of Australia is linked together as a single story and K’gari has played a key role in the formation and protection of the Great Barrier Reef.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/192014/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Shulmeister received funding for this work from the Australian Research Council. James Shulmeister has been funded from the Marsden Fund (NZ), he has also participated in US NSF and Chinese NSF grants as well as received grants from other sources.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daniel Ellerton completed his PhD which was funded by the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p>Establishing the age of K'gari (Fraser Island) confirms it emerged before the reef, despite the climate being suitable for coral growth long before then.James Shulmeister, Adjunct Professor, University of Queensland, and Professor and Head of School of Earth and Environment, University of CanterburyDaniel Ellerton, Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Geological Sciences, Stockholm UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1932152022-10-26T03:53:16Z2022-10-26T03:53:16ZLabor’s ‘sensible’ budget leaves Australians short-changed on climate action. Here’s where it went wrong<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491805/original/file-20221026-17-iu5ab.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=12%2C24%2C7999%2C5309&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Joel Carrett/AAP</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Treasurer Jim Chalmers last night delivered a budget he declared was “solid, sensible and suitable to the times”. But what does a sensible budget look like in a world that is fast running out of time on climate change? </p>
<p><a href="https://poll.lowyinstitute.org/charts/attitudes-to-global-warming">Lowy Institute polling</a> this year suggests most Australians believe immediate and substantial action on climate change is eminently sensible. Some 60% agreed global warming was a serious and pressing problem for which “we should begin taking steps now even if this involves significant costs”. A further 29% want mitigation to occur gradually. </p>
<p>Chalmers unveiled his budget in a precarious economic environment and amid fears of a looming global recession. But while the national conversation is focused on short-term economic pressures, the world is entering <a href="https://public.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/united-science-we-are-heading-wrong-direction">unprecedented territory</a> of climate disruption. </p>
<p>This federal budget was Labor’s first opportunity to establish its economic vision for emissions reduction. Even as Chalmers prepared <a href="https://ministers.treasury.gov.au/ministers/jim-chalmers-2022/speeches/budget-speech-2022-23">his speech</a>, parts of Australia’s east coast were battling floods, and the summer rain outlook <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-10-10/bom-severe-weather-outlook-summer-flood-and-cyclones/101517352">looks grim</a>. </p>
<p>The budget earmarked a suite of worthwhile climate-related measures, but many are relatively piecemeal. As extreme weather events occur at a record-breaking frequency and severity, federal spending on climate action still falls well short.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="two men in suits walk down path" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491804/original/file-20221026-19-nvgvuh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491804/original/file-20221026-19-nvgvuh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491804/original/file-20221026-19-nvgvuh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491804/original/file-20221026-19-nvgvuh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491804/original/file-20221026-19-nvgvuh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491804/original/file-20221026-19-nvgvuh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491804/original/file-20221026-19-nvgvuh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The budget was Labor’s first opportunity to establish its economic vision for emissions reduction.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Lukas Coch/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Where’s the tangible action?</h2>
<p>Over the past few months, Labor has generated significant headlines on climate change. </p>
<p>It’s <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r6885">Climate Change Bill</a> passed parliament last month. It means Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions must fall by 43% (relative to 2005 levels) by 2030, and emissions must reach net-zero by 2050.</p>
<p>Labor on Sunday also announced Australia will <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/oct/23/australia-will-join-bidens-global-pledge-to-cut-methane-emissions-by-30-by-2030-albanese-confirms">sign a global pledge</a> to reduce methane emissions by 30% by 2030.</p>
<p>But setting these targets is just the first step. Limiting climate change to 1.5°C degrees – the goal of the Paris Agreement – requires immediately reversing the upward trend in global emissions and making significant cuts over the next two decades. That means tangible actions must occur right now. </p>
<p>But looking at the budget papers released last night, it’s hard to see how Australia’s climate targets will be met.</p>
<h2>What’s in the budget for climate?</h2>
<p>Most budget measures related to climate change and the environment formed part of Labor’s pre-election platform. They <a href="https://budget.gov.au/2022-23-october/content/overview/download/budget_overview.pdf">include</a>:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>A$224 million over four years to fund 400 community batteries, and $100 million for community solar banks</p></li>
<li><p>the Rewiring the Nation plan: $20 billion of low-cost finance to improve Australia’s transmission network, and new investments in renewable electricity generation which aren’t yet detailed</p></li>
</ul>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/albanese-governments-first-budget-delivers-election-promises-but-forecasts-soaring-power-prices-192844">Albanese government's first budget delivers election promises but forecasts soaring power prices</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="transmission tower in mist" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491810/original/file-20221026-21-95pfs8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491810/original/file-20221026-21-95pfs8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491810/original/file-20221026-21-95pfs8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491810/original/file-20221026-21-95pfs8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491810/original/file-20221026-21-95pfs8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491810/original/file-20221026-21-95pfs8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491810/original/file-20221026-21-95pfs8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Labor’s $20 billion Rewiring the Nation plan will improve Australia’s transmission network.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Lukas Coach/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Also worth noting are measures to mitigate the future impact of climate change:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>the Disaster Ready Fund to support adaptation measures such as flood levees, sea walls, fire breaks and evacuation centres</p></li>
<li><p>$225 million over four years to implement the Threatened Species Action Plan and funding to establish Indigenous Protection Areas and protect heritage places</p></li>
<li><p>increased funding to preserve and restore the Great Barrier Reef.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>These initiatives are, in part, funded by <a href="https://budget.gov.au/2022-23-october/content/bp2/download/bp2_2022-23.pdf">a $747 million reduction</a> in environment spending over the next four years. The cancelled spending includes projects for gas and carbon capture and storage, funding earmarked for the Murray Darling Basin, and other Morrison government measures. </p>
<p>The budget also contained subsidies and infrastructure investment to support the uptake of electric vehicles. This includes 117 electric vehicle charging stations on highways, exempting electric cars from the fringe benefits tax and removing custom duties on electric car imports.</p>
<p>Electric cars will <a href="https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/ev-impact-electric-vehicle-growth-to-sever-oil-from-key-market-66514990">reduce Australia’s dependence</a> on international oil markets made volatile by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.</p>
<p>But whether electric cars significantly reduce Australia’s transport emissions depends on <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/dec/08/electric-car-emissions-climate-change">the extent</a> to which renewables power the electricity grid. Until coal and gas are phased out, many electric cars in Australia will be powered by fossil fuels. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="electric vehicle at charging station" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491814/original/file-20221026-17-lt2ynt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491814/original/file-20221026-17-lt2ynt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491814/original/file-20221026-17-lt2ynt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491814/original/file-20221026-17-lt2ynt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491814/original/file-20221026-17-lt2ynt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491814/original/file-20221026-17-lt2ynt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491814/original/file-20221026-17-lt2ynt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The budget contained support for the uptake of electric vehicles.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Lukas Coch/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Is it enough? No</h2>
<p>Chalmers said the budget drives investment in renewable energy and delivers thousands of new jobs. But what’s lacking are mechanisms that encourage or compel companies to reduce their emissions in line with nationally legislated targets. </p>
<p>Of course, it’s hardly the present government’s fault that such mechanisms are not in place. The former Coalition government’s decision to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/jul/17/australia-kills-off-carbon-tax">axe</a> Labor’s carbon price left a gaping policy hole that put Australia at the back of the global pack on climate action. </p>
<p>The initiatives outlined in this budget should be applauded. But many Australians who voted for Labor, the Greens or the Teal independents wanted significant action on climate change – and they’re still waiting. </p>
<p>So what climate measures should the government be taking?</p>
<p>Many of the policies at its disposal would require new legislation and would not necessarily appear in the budget. They include ending logging of old-growth forest to reduce forestry emissions, and changes to the safeguard mechanism.</p>
<p>The government has flagged <a href="https://consult.industry.gov.au/safeguard-mechanism-reform-consultation-paper">reforms</a> to this policy, a legacy of the previous government that purports to set limits on emissions from big industrial polluters.</p>
<p>Given a price on carbon is politically challenging in Australia, the safeguard mechanism appears the most likely means through which industrial emissions reductions will be curbed. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/nearly-30-of-australias-emissions-come-from-industry-tougher-rules-for-big-polluters-is-a-no-brainer-190264">Nearly 30% of Australia’s emissions come from industry. Tougher rules for big polluters is a no-brainer</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="here" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491817/original/file-20221026-15-lwyx09.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491817/original/file-20221026-15-lwyx09.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491817/original/file-20221026-15-lwyx09.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491817/original/file-20221026-15-lwyx09.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491817/original/file-20221026-15-lwyx09.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491817/original/file-20221026-15-lwyx09.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491817/original/file-20221026-15-lwyx09.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The budget is likely to disappoint those wanting drastic action on climate change, including those who voted for independent Teal candidates.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Mark Baker/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Hopefully other initiatives appear in future budgets, in good haste. They should include: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>larger capital investments in renewable electricity generation and battery storage</p></li>
<li><p>a very significant funding boost for science and engineering research to produce further technological breakthroughs in low-carbon manufacturing and green steel production</p></li>
<li><p>electric vehicle charging stations powered by 100% renewable energy in every city and major highway </p></li>
<li><p>taxes on the worst climate offenders such as the <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-meat-tax-is-probably-inevitable-heres-how-it-could-work-188023">beef</a> and dairy industries and other sources of methane emissions.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>And then we come to the elephant in the room: the emissions created when Australia exports fossil fuels to countries where it’s burned for energy.</p>
<p>Domestically, Australia is responsible for about 1.5% of global emissions. But factor in our fossil fuel exports and that rises to about 5% – and <a href="https://climateanalytics.org/media/australia_carbon_footprint_report_july2019.pdf">may jump to</a> up to 12% by 2030. </p>
<p>So perhaps the most significant decisions Labor will make for the climate change aren’t budget initiatives at all – but rather, what fossil fuel exploitation the government allows in coming years.</p>
<h2>Let’s get started</h2>
<p>This budget <a href="https://budget.gov.au/2022-23-october/content/bp1/download/bp1_2022-23.pdf">included</a>, for the first time, a statement on the fiscal impact of climate change. </p>
<p>It outlined the damage climate change can cause to government budgets including the cost of “responding to extreme weather events, which are likely to increase in severity and frequency”.</p>
<p>One thing is clear: Australia must reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and transition away from its reliance on fossil fuel exports. It’s in the nation’s best economic interests – and there’s no better time than now to begin this work in earnest.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-is-poised-to-be-a-world-leader-in-offshore-wind-but-any-potential-risks-to-marine-life-remain-poorly-regulated-193212">Australia is poised to be a world leader in offshore wind, but any potential risks to marine life remain poorly regulated</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/193215/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Timothy Neal does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The budget earmarked worthwhile climate measures, but many are piecemeal. Amid record-breaking extreme weather in Australia, federal spending on climate action still falls well short.Timothy Neal, Senior research fellow in the Department of Economics, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1882332022-08-05T03:35:29Z2022-08-05T03:35:29ZRecord coral cover doesn’t necessarily mean the Great Barrier Reef is in good health (despite what you may have heard)<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477785/original/file-20220805-20-jsghmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C22%2C5000%2C3300&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In what seems like excellent news, coral cover in parts of the Great Barrier Reef is at a record high, according to <a href="https://www.aims.gov.au/information-centre/news-and-stories/highest-coral-cover-central-northern-reef-36-years">new data</a> from the Australian Institute of Marine Science. But this doesn’t necessarily mean our beloved reef is in good health.</p>
<p>In the north of the reef, coral cover usually fluctuates between 20% and 30%. Currently, it’s at 36%, the highest level recorded since monitoring began more than three decades ago. </p>
<p>This level of coral cover comes hot off the back of a <a href="https://theconversation.com/another-mass-bleaching-event-is-devastating-the-great-barrier-reef-what-will-it-take-for-coral-to-survive-180180">disturbing decade</a> that saw the reef endure six mass coral bleaching events, four severe tropical cyclones, active outbreaks of crown-of-thorns starfish, and water quality impacts following floods. So what’s going on? </p>
<p>High coral cover findings <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-lot-of-coral-doesnt-always-mean-high-biodiversity-10548">can be deceptive</a> because they can result from only a few dominant species that grow rapidly after disturbance (such as mass bleaching). These same corals, however, are extremely susceptible to disturbance and are likely to die out within a few years. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jWAmmeh-Tek?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The Great Barrier Reef Long-Term Monitoring annual summary | AIMS.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The data are robust</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://peerj.com/articles/4747/">Great Barrier Reef spans</a> 2,300 kilometres, comprising more than 3,000 individual reefs. It is an exceptionally diverse ecosystem that features more than 12,000 animal species, plus many thousand more species of plankton and marine flora.</p>
<p>The reef has been teetering on the edge of receiving an “in-danger” <a href="https://theconversation.com/not-declaring-the-great-barrier-reef-as-in-danger-only-postpones-the-inevitable-164867">listing</a> from the World Heritage Committee. And it was <a href="https://theconversation.com/this-is-australias-most-important-report-on-the-environments-deteriorating-health-we-present-its-grim-findings-186131">recently described</a> in the State of the Environment Report as being in a poor and deteriorating state. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/this-is-australias-most-important-report-on-the-environments-deteriorating-health-we-present-its-grim-findings-186131">This is Australia's most important report on the environment's deteriorating health. We present its grim findings</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>To protect the Great Barrier Reef, we need to routinely monitor and report on its condition. The Australian Institute of Marine Science’s long-term monitoring program has been collating and delivering this information since 1985.</p>
<p>Its approach involves surveying a selection of reefs that represent different habitat types (inshore, midshelf, offshore) and management zones. The <a href="https://www.aims.gov.au/monitoring-great-barrier-reef/gbr-condition-summary-2021-22">latest report</a> provides a robust and valuable synopsis of how coral cover has changed at 87 reefs across three sectors (north, central and south) over the past 36 years.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477781/original/file-20220805-19495-n38306.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477781/original/file-20220805-19495-n38306.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477781/original/file-20220805-19495-n38306.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477781/original/file-20220805-19495-n38306.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477781/original/file-20220805-19495-n38306.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477781/original/file-20220805-19495-n38306.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477781/original/file-20220805-19495-n38306.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">2018: A bare patch of reef at Jiigurru, Lizard Island in 2018 after most of the corals died in the 2016/2017 coral bleaching event.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Andy Lewis</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477783/original/file-20220805-2246-2olazh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477783/original/file-20220805-2246-2olazh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477783/original/file-20220805-2246-2olazh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477783/original/file-20220805-2246-2olazh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477783/original/file-20220805-2246-2olazh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477783/original/file-20220805-2246-2olazh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=629&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477783/original/file-20220805-2246-2olazh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=629&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477783/original/file-20220805-2246-2olazh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=629&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">2022: By 2022, the same patch of reef was covered by a vibrant array of plating <em>Acropora</em> corals.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Andy Lewis</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The results</h2>
<p>Overall, the long-term monitoring team found coral cover has increased on most reefs. The level of coral cover on reefs near Cape Grenville and Princess Charlotte Bay in the northern sector has bounced back from bleaching, with two reefs having <a href="https://www.aims.gov.au/sites/default/files/2022-08/AIMS_LTMP_Report_on%20GBR_coral_status_2021_2022_040822F3.pdf">more than 75% cover</a>.</p>
<p>In the central sector, where coral cover has historically been lower than in the north and south, coral cover is now at a region-wide high, at 33%.</p>
<p>The southern sector has a dynamic coral cover record. In the late 1980s coral cover surpassed 40%, before dropping to a region-wide low of 12% in 2011 after Cyclone Hamish. </p>
<p>The region is currently experiencing outbreaks of crown-of-thorns starfish. And yet, coral cover in this area is still relatively high at 34%.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1555332997628407808"}"></div></p>
<p>Based on this robust data set, which shows increases in coral cover indicative of region-wide recovery, things must be looking up for the Great Barrier Reef – right?</p>
<h2>Are we being catfished by coral cover?</h2>
<p>In the Australian Institute of Marine Science’s report, reef recovery relates solely to an increase in coral cover, so let’s unpack this term. </p>
<p>Coral cover is a broad proxy metric that indicates habitat condition. It’s relatively easy data to collect and report on, and is the most widely used monitoring metric on coral reefs.</p>
<p>The finding of high coral cover may signify a reef in good condition, and an increase in coral cover after disturbance may signify a recovering reef. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477779/original/file-20220805-15-eaj1ez.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477779/original/file-20220805-15-eaj1ez.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477779/original/file-20220805-15-eaj1ez.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477779/original/file-20220805-15-eaj1ez.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477779/original/file-20220805-15-eaj1ez.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477779/original/file-20220805-15-eaj1ez.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477779/original/file-20220805-15-eaj1ez.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477779/original/file-20220805-15-eaj1ez.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Acropora hyacinthus</em>, a pioneering species of coral at Lizard Island.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Zoe Richards</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But in this instance, it’s more likely the reef is being dominated by only few species, as the report states that branching and plating <em>Acropora</em> species have driven the recovery of coral cover.</p>
<p><em>Acropora</em> coral are renowned for a “boom and bust” life cycle. After disturbances such as a cyclone, <em>Acropora</em> species function as pioneers. They quickly recruit and colonise bare space, and the laterally growing plate-like species can rapidly cover large areas. </p>
<p>Fast-growing <em>Acropora</em> corals tend to dominate during the early phase of recovery after disturbances such as the recent series of mass bleaching events. However, these same corals are often susceptible to wave damage, disease or coral bleaching and tend to go bust within a few years.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477780/original/file-20220805-5528-11crg9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477780/original/file-20220805-5528-11crg9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477780/original/file-20220805-5528-11crg9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477780/original/file-20220805-5528-11crg9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477780/original/file-20220805-5528-11crg9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477780/original/file-20220805-5528-11crg9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477780/original/file-20220805-5528-11crg9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477780/original/file-20220805-5528-11crg9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Juvenile branching <strong>Acropora</strong> colonising bare space after a bleaching event.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Zoe Richards</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Inferring that a reef has recovered by a person being towed behind a boat to obtain a rapid visual estimate of coral cover is like flying in a helicopter and saying a bushfire-hit forest has recovered because the canopy has grown back. </p>
<p>It provides no information about diversity, or the abundance and health of other animals and plants that live in and among the trees, or coral. </p>
<h2>Cautious optimism</h2>
<p>My <a href="https://theconversation.com/almost-60-coral-species-around-lizard-island-are-missing-and-a-great-barrier-reef-extinction-crisis-could-be-next-163714">study</a>, published last year, examined 44 years of coral distribution records around Jiigurru, Lizard Island, at the northern end of the Great Barrier Reef. </p>
<p>It suggested that 28 of 368 species of hard coral recorded at that location haven’t been seen for at least a decade, and are at risk of local extinction.</p>
<p>Lizard Island is one location where coral cover has rapidly increased since the devastating 2016-17 bleaching event. Yet, there is still a real risk local extinctions of coral species have occurred. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/almost-60-coral-species-around-lizard-island-are-missing-and-a-great-barrier-reef-extinction-crisis-could-be-next-163714">Almost 60 coral species around Lizard Island are 'missing' – and a Great Barrier Reef extinction crisis could be next</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>While there’s no data to prove or disprove it, it’s also probable that extinctions or local declines of coral-affiliated marine life, such as coral-eating fishes, crustaceans and molluscs have also occurred.</p>
<p>Without more information at the level of individual species, it is impossible to understand how much of the Great Barrier Reef has been lost, or recovered, since the last mass bleaching event. </p>
<p>Based on the coral cover data, it’s tempting to be optimistic. But given more frequent and severe heatwaves and cyclones are predicted in the future, it’s wise to be cautious about the reef’s perceived recovery or resilience.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/188233/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Zoe Richards receives funding from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p>New data shows coral cover in the Great Barrier Reef is at a record high, despite a disturbing decade of marine heatwaves, cyclones and floods. While the data is robust, it can be deceptive.Zoe Richards, Senior Research Fellow, Curtin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1861312022-07-18T20:06:40Z2022-07-18T20:06:40ZThis is Australia’s most important report on the environment’s deteriorating health. We present its grim findings<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474055/original/file-20220714-8982-4uksg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=7%2C29%2C4913%2C3245&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jo Anne Mcarthur/Unsplash</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Climate change is exacerbating pressures on every Australian ecosystem and Australia now has more foreign plant species than native, according to the highly anticipated State of the Environment Report <a href="https://soe.dcceew.gov.au">released today</a>.</p>
<p>The report also found the number of listed threatened species rose 8% since 2016 and more extinctions are expected in the next decades. </p>
<p>The document represents thousands of hours of work over two years by more than 30 experts. It’s a sobering read, but there are some bright spots.</p>
<p>Australia has produced a national state of environment report every five years since 1995. They assess every aspect of Australia’s environment and heritage, covering rivers, oceans, air, ice, land and urban areas. The <a href="https://soe.environment.gov.au/">last report</a> was released <a href="https://theconversation.com/five-yearly-environmental-stocktake-highlights-the-conflict-between-economy-and-nature-73964">in 2017</a>.</p>
<p>This report goes further than its predecessors, by describing how our environment is affecting the health and well-being of Australians. It is also the first to include Indigenous co-authors. </p>
<p>As chief authors of the report, we present its key findings here. They include new chapters dedicated to extreme events and Indigenous voices.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474070/original/file-20220714-8982-jz1ctp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An eel sticks its head out of bleached coral" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474070/original/file-20220714-8982-jz1ctp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474070/original/file-20220714-8982-jz1ctp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474070/original/file-20220714-8982-jz1ctp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474070/original/file-20220714-8982-jz1ctp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474070/original/file-20220714-8982-jz1ctp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474070/original/file-20220714-8982-jz1ctp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474070/original/file-20220714-8982-jz1ctp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Great Barrier Reef suffered four mass bleaching events since 2016.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>1. Australia’s environment is generally deteriorating</h2>
<p>There have been continued declines in the amount and condition of our natural capital – native vegetation, soil, wetlands, reefs, rivers and biodiversity. Such resources benefit Australians by providing food, clean water, cultural connections and more. </p>
<p>The number of plant and animal species listed as threatened in June 2021 was 1,918, up from 1,774 in 2016. Gang-gang cockatoos and the Woorrentinta (northern hopping-mouse) are among those recently listed as endangered. </p>
<p>Australia’s coasts are also under threat from, for instance, extreme weather events and land-based invasive species. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/another-mass-bleaching-event-is-devastating-the-great-barrier-reef-what-will-it-take-for-coral-to-survive-180180">Another mass bleaching event is devastating the Great Barrier Reef. What will it take for coral to survive?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Our nearshore reefs are in overall <a href="https://theconversation.com/another-mass-bleaching-event-is-devastating-the-great-barrier-reef-what-will-it-take-for-coral-to-survive-180180">poor condition</a> due to poor water quality, invasive species and marine heatwaves. Inland water systems, including in the Murray Darling Basin, are under increasing pressure. </p>
<p>Nationally, land clearing remains high. Extensive areas were cleared in Queensland and New South Wales over the last five years. Clearing native vegetation is a major cause of habitat loss and fragmentation, and has been implicated in the national listing of most Australia’s threatened species. </p>
<h2>2. Climate change threatens every ecosystem</h2>
<p>Climate change is compounding ongoing and past damage from land clearing, invasive species, pollution and urban expansion. </p>
<p>The intensity and frequency of extreme weather events are changing. Over the last five years, extreme events such as floods, droughts, wildfires, storms, and heatwaves have affected every part of Australia. </p>
<p>Seasonal fire periods are becoming longer. In NSW, for example, the bushfire season now extends to almost eight months. Extreme events are also affecting ecosystems in ways never before documented. </p>
<p>For example, the downstream effects of the 2019-2020 bushfires introduced a range of contaminants to coastal estuaries, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749122007850">in the first global record</a> of bushfires impacting estuarine habitat quality.</p>
<h2>3. Indigenous knowledge and management are helping deliver on-ground change</h2>
<p>This includes traditional fire management, which is being recognised as vital knowledge by land management organisations and government departments. </p>
<p>For example, Indigenous rangers manage 44% of the national protected area estate, and more than 2,000 rangers are funded under the federal government’s <a href="https://www.niaa.gov.au/indigenous-affairs/environment/indigenous-ranger-programs">Indigenous rangers program</a>.</p>
<p>Work must still be done to empower Indigenous communities and enable Indigenous knowledge systems to improve environmental and social outcomes.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-worlds-best-fire-management-system-is-in-northern-australia-and-its-led-by-indigenous-land-managers-133071">The world's best fire management system is in northern Australia, and it's led by Indigenous land managers</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>4. Environmental management isn’t well coordinated</h2>
<p>Australia’s investment is not proportional to the grave environmental challenge. The area of land and sea under some form of conservation protection has increased, but the overall level of protection is declining within reserves.</p>
<p>We’re reducing the quantity and quality of native habitat outside protected areas through, for instance, urban expansion on land and over-harvesting in the sea. </p>
<p>The five urban areas with the most significant forest and woodland habitat loss were Brisbane, Gold Coast to Tweed Heads, Townsville, Sunshine Coast and Sydney. Between 2000 and 2017, at least <a href="https://www.acf.org.au/new_report_reveals_extinction_crisis_in_the_suburbs">20,212 hectares</a> were destroyed in these five areas combined, with 12,923 hectares destroyed in Queensland alone. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-finally-acknowledged-climate-change-is-a-national-security-threat-here-are-5-mistakes-to-avoid-186458">Australia's finally acknowledged climate change is a national security threat. Here are 5 mistakes to avoid</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Australia is also increasingly relying on costly ways to conserve biodiversity. This includes restoration of habitat, reintroducing threatened species, translocation (moving a species from a threatened habitat to a safer one), and ex situ conservation (protecting species in a zoo, botanical garden or by preserving genetic material). </p>
<h2>5. Environmental decline and destruction is harming our well-being</h2>
<p>In this report we document the direct effects of environmental damage on human health, for example from bushfire smoke. </p>
<p>The indirect benefits of a healthy environment to mental health and well-being are harder to quantify. But emerging evidence suggests people who manage their environment according to their values and culture have improved well-being, <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/1/125">such as for Indigenous rangers and communities</a>.</p>
<p>Environmental destruction also costs our economy billions of dollars, with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1787/55ea1cc9-en">climate change</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1787/1a1ae114-en">biodiversity loss</a> representing both national and global financial risks. </p>
<h2>Climate change is hitting ecosystems hard</h2>
<p>Previous reports mostly spoke of climate change impacts as happening in future. In this report, we document significant climate harms already evident from the tropics to the poles. </p>
<p>As Australia’s east coast emerges from another <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-causing-sydneys-monster-flood-crisis-and-3-ways-to-stop-it-from-happening-again-186285">“unusual” flood</a>, this report introduces a new chapter dedicated to extreme events. Many have been made more intense, widespread and likely due to climate change. </p>
<p>We document the national impacts of extreme floods, droughts, heatwaves, storms and wildfires over the past five years. And while we’ve reported on immediate impacts – millions of animals killed and habitats burnt, enormous areas of reef bleached, and people’s livelihoods and homes lost – many longer-term effects are still to play out. </p>
<p>Extreme conditions put immense stress on species already threatened by habitat loss and invasive species. We expect more species extinctions over the next decades.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474075/original/file-20220714-20-1146b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Flying fox hanging from tree branch" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474075/original/file-20220714-20-1146b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474075/original/file-20220714-20-1146b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474075/original/file-20220714-20-1146b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474075/original/file-20220714-20-1146b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474075/original/file-20220714-20-1146b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474075/original/file-20220714-20-1146b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474075/original/file-20220714-20-1146b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Some 23,000 spectacled flying foxes were killed in a 2018 heatwave.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>An extreme heatwave in 2018, for example, killed <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-12-19/heat-wipes-out-one-third-of-flying-fox-species/10632940">some 23,000</a> spectacled flying foxes. In 2019, the species was uplisted from vulnerable <a href="http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicspecies.pl?taxon_id=185">to endangered</a>.</p>
<p>Many Australian ecosystems have evolved to rebound from extreme “natural” events such as bushfires. But the frequency, intensity, and compounding nature of recent events are greater than they’ve experienced throughout their recent evolutionary history. </p>
<p>For example, marine heatwaves caused mass coral bleaching on the <a href="https://theconversation.com/adapt-move-or-die-repeated-coral-bleaching-leaves-wildlife-on-the-great-barrier-reef-with-few-options-179570">Great Barrier Reef</a> in 2016, 2017, 2020 and 2022. Such frequent disturbances leave little time for recovery. </p>
<p>Indeed, ecological theory suggests frequently disturbed ecosystems will shift to a “weedy” state, where only the species that live fast and reproduce quickly will thrive. </p>
<p>This trend will bring profound shifts in ecosystem structure and function. It also means we’ll <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666900522000089">have to shift</a> how we manage and rely on ecosystems – including how we harvest, hunt and otherwise benefit from them. </p>
<h2>Including Indigenous voices</h2>
<p>Indigenous people of Australia have cared for the lands and seas over countless generations and continue to do so today. </p>
<p>In Australia, a complex web of government laws and agreements relate to Indigenous people and the environment. Overall, they are not adequate to deliver the rights Indigenous people seek: responsibility for and stewardship of their Country including lands and seas, plants and animals, and heritage.</p>
<p>For the first time, this report has a separate Indigenous chapter, informed by Indigenous consultation meetings, which highlights the importance of <a href="https://theconversation.com/caring-for-country-means-tackling-the-climate-crisis-with-indigenous-leadership-3-things-the-new-government-must-do-183987">caring for Country</a>. </p>
<p>Including an Indigenous voice has required us to change the previous approach of reporting on the environment separately from people. Instead, we’ve emphasised how Country is connected to people’s well-being, and the interconnectedness of environment and culture.</p>
<h2>Failures of environmental management</h2>
<p>Australia needs better and entirely new approaches to environmental management. For example, the inclusion of climate change in environmental management and resilience strategies is increasing, but it’s not universal.</p>
<p>As well as climate stresses, habitat loss and degradation remain the main threats to land-based species in Australia, impacting nearly 70% of threatened species. </p>
<p>More than a third of Australia’s eucalypt woodlands have been extensively cleared, and the situation is worse for some other major vegetation groups.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/pc/pc18006#:%7E:text=While%20there%20were%20some%20differences,by%202038%20unless%20management%20improves.">Experts say</a> within 20 years, another seven Australian mammals and ten Australian birds – such as the King Island brown thornbill and the orange-bellied parrot – will be extinct unless management is greatly improved. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1rWSIpNN_qk?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Threatened Species Recovery Hub identified the 50 Australian species at greatest risk of extinction.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Of the 7.7 million hectares of land habitat cleared between 2000 and 2017, 7.1 million hectares (93%) was not referred to the federal government for assessment under the national environment law. </p>
<p>Only 16% (13 of 84) of Australia’s nationally listed threatened ecological communities meet a 30% minimum protection standard in the national reserve system. </p>
<p>Three critically endangered communities, all in NSW, have no habitat protection at all. These are the Hunter Valley weeping myall woodland, the Elderslie banksia scrub forest, and Warkworth sands woodland.</p>
<h2>The bright spots</h2>
<p>The report also highlights where investments and the hard work of many Australians made a difference. </p>
<p>Individuals, non-government organisations and businesses are increasingly purchasing and managing significant tracts of land for conservation. The Australian Wildlife Conservancy, for example, jointly manages some <a href="https://www.australianwildlife.org/landmark-partnership-to-enhance-conservation-across-six-million-hectares/">6.5 million hectares</a> actively conserving many threatened species.</p>
<p>By building on achievements such as these, we can encourage new partnerships and innovations, supported with crucial funding and commitment from government and industry.</p>
<p>We also need more collaboration across governments and non-government sectors, underpinned by greater national leadership. This includes listening and co-developing solutions with Indigenous and local communities, building on and learning from Indigenous and Western scientific knowledge.</p>
<p>And we need more effort and resources to measure progress. This includes consistent monitoring and reporting across all states and territories on the pressures, and the health of our natural and cultural assets.</p>
<p>Such efforts are crucial if we’re to reverse declines and forge a stronger, more resilient country.</p>
<p><em>Read the full 2022 State of the Environment report <a href="https://soe.dcceew.gov.au">here</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/existential-threat-to-our-survival-see-the-19-australian-ecosystems-already-collapsing-154077">'Existential threat to our survival': see the 19 Australian ecosystems already collapsing</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/CgK6cIGD889/?hl=en","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/186131/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Emma Johnston is contracted by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water as an independent Chief author of the 2021 Australian State of Environment Report. She is a Director on the board of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ian Cresswell is contracted by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water as an independent Chief author of the 2021 Australian State of Environment Report, and is a co-author on several chapters. He is affiliated with the Atlas of Living Australia, the Resilient Landscapes Hub of the National Environmental Science Program, the Western Australian Biodiversity Science Institute, the Tasmanian Land Conservancy, and the Western Australian Marine Science Institution.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Terri Janke is the sole director/shareholder of a multi-disciplinary law firm, Terri Janke and Company, who does work for clients in the environment and Indigenous sector, including Indigenous corporations, NGOs, Universities, Government Departments including the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.
Her company is contracted by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water as an independent author of the State of the Environment 2021.
</span></em></p>Three chief authors of the State of the Environment Report provide its key findings. While it’s a sobering read, there are a few bright spots.Emma Johnston, Professor and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), University of SydneyIan Cresswell, Adjunct professor, UNSW SydneyTerri Janke, Honorary Associate Professor, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1828612022-05-12T20:01:34Z2022-05-12T20:01:34ZWhat the next Australian government must do to save the Great Barrier Reef<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462631/original/file-20220512-16-qljf6d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4210%2C2791&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Widespread coral bleaching has <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/may/10/devastating-90-of-reefs-surveyed-on-great-barrier-reef-affected-by-coral-bleaching-in-2022">now occurred</a> on the Great Barrier Reef for the fourth time in seven years. As the world has heated up more and more, there’s less and less chance for corals to recover.</p>
<p>This year, the Morrison government announced a <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-1-billion-great-barrier-reef-funding-is-nonsensical-australians-and-their-natural-wonder-deserve-so-much-better-175924">A$1 billion plan</a> to help the reef. This plan tackles some of the problems the reef faces – like poor water quality from floods as well as agricultural and industrial runoff. But it makes no mention of the elephant in the room. The world’s largest living assemblage of organisms is facing collapse because of one major threat: climate change.</p>
<p>Our window of opportunity to act is narrowing. We and other scientists have warned about this for decades. Australia has doubled down on coal and gas exports with <a href="https://australiainstitute.org.au/post/australian-fossil-fuel-subsidies-surge-to-11-6-billion-in-2021-22/">subsidies of $20 billion</a> in the past two years. When these fossil fuels are burned, they produce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that trap more heat in the atmosphere that also warms the ocean.</p>
<p>If our next federal government wants to save the reef, it must tackle the main reason it is in trouble by phasing out fossil fuel use and exports as quickly as possible. Otherwise it’s like putting bandaids on an arterial wound. But to help the reef get through the next decades of warming we’ve already locked in, we will still need that $1 billion to help reduce other stressors.</p>
<h2>Why is this new bleaching event such bad news?</h2>
<p>Past bleaching events have been linked to El Niño events. Stable atmospheric conditions can bring calm, cloud-free periods that heat up the water around the reef. That can bring extreme summer temperatures – and that is when corals bleach.</p>
<p>This year is a La Niña, which can bring warmer-than-usual temperatures but also tends to bring more clouds, rain, and storms that mix up the waters. These usually spread the heat to the deeper parts of the ocean and mean lower temperature for corals. Not this time. </p>
<p>Global warming means corals are already close to their bleaching threshold, and it doesn’t take much heat to tip the balance. Water temperatures across the reef have been several degrees hotter than the long-term average. And the corals are feeling the heat.</p>
<p>Four times in seven years means that bleaching events are accelerating. Predictions have suggested that bleaching will become an annual event in a little over two decades. It may not be that long. </p>
<p>You always remember the first time you see bleaching in real life. For co-author Jodie, that was in 2016, off Lizard Island, a previously pristine part of the reef far from human impacts or water quality issues. The water was shockingly warm. Looking at our dive computers, we saw that the temperatures we had been simulating in our laboratories for 2050 were already here. </p>
<p>For a week, the marine heatwave pushed the corals to their limits. When corals experience heat stress, some initially turn fluorescent while others go stark white. Then the water goes murky – that’s death in the water. It’s heartbreaking to see. Grief is common among marine scientists right now. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-1-billion-great-barrier-reef-funding-is-nonsensical-australians-and-their-natural-wonder-deserve-so-much-better-175924">The $1 billion Great Barrier Reef funding is nonsensical. Australians, and their natural wonder, deserve so much better</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Corals can recover from bleaching if they get a recovery period. But annual bleaching means there is not enough time for proper recovery. Even the most robust corals can’t survive this year after year. </p>
<p>Some people hope the reef can adapt to hotter conditions – but there is little evidence it can happen fast enough to outpace warming. While some fish can move to cooler waters further south, corals face ocean acidification, yet another problem caused by carbon dioxide emissions. As CO₂ is absorbed by the ocean, the changed chemistry makes it harder for corals to build their skeleton (and for other marine organisms to form a shell). There’s no safe place for corals to go. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462633/original/file-20220512-24-gb6u6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Close up of coral" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462633/original/file-20220512-24-gb6u6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462633/original/file-20220512-24-gb6u6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462633/original/file-20220512-24-gb6u6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462633/original/file-20220512-24-gb6u6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462633/original/file-20220512-24-gb6u6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=534&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462633/original/file-20220512-24-gb6u6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=534&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/462633/original/file-20220512-24-gb6u6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=534&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">More acidic seawater makes it harder for coral polyps to build their skeletons.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What does the next government need to do?</h2>
<p>The evidence is clear. We see it with our own eyes. We’re barrelling towards catastrophic levels of warming, and there’s not enough action. </p>
<p>As it stands, policies on offer by our two major parties will not save the reef, according to <a href="https://climateanalytics.org/publications/2022/australian-election-2022-political-party-and-independent-climate-goals-analysis/">new research</a> by Climate Analytics. Current Coalition emissions reduction targets of 26-28% by 2030 would lead to a 3°C warmer world, which would be devastating for the Great Barrier Reef. </p>
<p>Labor’s policies of a 43% reduction by 2030 still lead to 2°C of warming. The teal independents and the Greens have policies compatible with keeping warming to 1.5°C, though how to achieve those goals is unclear. What is clear is that every tenth of a degree matters.</p>
<p>We need leaders who are serious about climate action. Who can acknowledge the truth that the problem is real, that we’re causing it, and that it’s hurting us right now. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-next-government-must-tackle-our-collapsing-ecosystems-and-extinction-crisis-182048">Australia's next government must tackle our collapsing ecosystems and extinction crisis</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>There are still a few people sceptical that humans can change the climate. But today the changes are apparent. </p>
<p>The words “unprecedented” and “record-breaking” are starting to lose relevance for natural disasters because they are used more and more. Australians faced the 2019/20 Black Summer of megafires. This year we’ve had major flooding. Marine heatwaves have killed off almost all of Tasmania’s giant kelp. </p>
<p>But climate impacts are also being seen around the world – extraordinary drought gripping California, fires in melting Siberia and events <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/09/climate/marine-heat-wave.html">scientists consider</a> to be “virtually impossible without the influence of human-caused climate change”. That includes the accelerating impacts on coral reefs worldwide.</p>
<p>We need government policies matching the scale and urgency of the threat. That means getting to net zero as soon as possible. It isn’t only about the reef – it’s about all land and sea natural systems vulnerable to climate change, and the people who rely on them. </p>
<p>No developed country has more to lose from inaction on climate than Australia. But no country has more to gain by shifting to clean energy, through new economic opportunities, new jobs, and better protection for our natural treasures.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/182861/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jodie L. Rummer has received funding from the Australian Research Council (ARC) and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies. She is also affiliated with the Australian Coral Reef Society. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Scott F. Heron has received funding from Australian Research Council and NASA ROSES Ecological Forecasting.</span></em></p>Efforts to save the reef aren’t tackling the main cause: climate change. What we need from our next federal government is strong leadership to avert the climate crisis.Jodie L. Rummer, Associate Professor & Principal Research Fellow, James Cook UniversityScott F. Heron, Associate Professor in Physics, James Cook UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1820482022-05-04T20:06:54Z2022-05-04T20:06:54ZAustralia’s next government must tackle our collapsing ecosystems and extinction crisis<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461160/original/file-20220504-12-l7zov7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5991%2C3988&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Australia’s remarkable animals, plants and ecosystems are world-renowned, and rightly so. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, our famous ecosystems are not OK. Many are hurtling towards <a href="https://theconversation.com/existential-threat-to-our-survival-see-the-19-australian-ecosystems-already-collapsing-154077">collapse</a>, threatening even iconic species like the koala, platypus and the numbat. More and more species are <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/mar/03/australia-confirms-extinction-of-13-more-species-including-first-reptile-since-colonisation">going extinct</a>, with over <a href="https://theconversation.com/fail-our-report-card-on-the-governments-handling-of-australias-extinction-crisis-181786">100</a> since British colonisation. That means Australia has one of the worst conservation records in the world. </p>
<p>This represents a monumental <a href="https://theconversation.com/fail-our-report-card-on-the-governments-handling-of-australias-extinction-crisis-181786">government failure</a>. Our leaders are failing in their <a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-environment-law-doesnt-protect-the-environment-an-alarming-message-from-the-recent-duty-quashing-climate-case-179964">duty of care</a> to the environment. Yet so far, the election campaign has been <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/apr/25/worst-its-ever-been-a-threatened-species-alarm-sounds-during-the-election-campaign-and-is-ignored">unsettlingly silent</a> on threatened species. </p>
<p>Here are five steps our next government should take. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461172/original/file-20220504-20-moe5im.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Numbat standing on log" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461172/original/file-20220504-20-moe5im.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461172/original/file-20220504-20-moe5im.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461172/original/file-20220504-20-moe5im.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461172/original/file-20220504-20-moe5im.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461172/original/file-20220504-20-moe5im.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461172/original/file-20220504-20-moe5im.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461172/original/file-20220504-20-moe5im.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Numbats - dubbed Australia’s meerkats - are endangered.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>1. Strengthen, enforce and align policy and laws</h2>
<p>Australia’s environmental laws and policies are failing to safeguard our unique biodiversity from extinction. This has been established by a series of <a href="https://www.awe.gov.au/environment/epbc/about/review/epbc-review-2008#final-report">independent</a> <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/resources/final-report">reviews</a>, <a href="https://www.anao.gov.au/work/performance-audit/management-threatened-species-and-ecological-communities-under-the-epbc-act">Auditor-General</a> <a href="https://www.anao.gov.au/work/performance-audit/referrals-assessments-and-approvals-controlled-actions-under-the-epbc-act">reports</a> and <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Environment_and_Communications/Faunalextinction/Interim_report">Senate</a> <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Environment_and_Communications/Environmental_Offsets/Report/index">inquiries</a> over the past decade. </p>
<p>The 2020 review of our main environmental protection laws offered <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/resources/final-report/recommendations">38 recommendations</a>. To date, no major party has clearly committed to introducing and funding these recommendations. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/existential-threat-to-our-survival-see-the-19-australian-ecosystems-already-collapsing-154077">'Existential threat to our survival': see the 19 Australian ecosystems already collapsing</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>To actually make a difference to the environment, it’s vital we achieve policy alignment. That means, for instance, ruling out new coal mines if we would like to keep the world’s largest coral reef system alive. Similarly, widespread land clearing in Queensland and New South Wales makes <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/may/29/land-clearing-wipes-out-1bn-taxpayer-funded-emissions-gains">tree planting initiatives</a> pointless on an emissions front. </p>
<p>Despite Australia’s wealth of species, our laws protecting biodiversity are much laxer than in other developed nations like the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. These nations have mandatory monitoring of all threatened species, which means they can <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2012.00239.x">detect species decline</a> early and step in before it’s too late. </p>
<h2>2. Invest in the environment</h2>
<p>How much do you think the federal government spends on helping our threatened species recover? The answer is shockingly low: <a href="https://invasives.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Averting-extinctions-The-case-for-strengthening-Australias-threat-abatement-system-April-2022.pdf">Around $50 million</a> per year across the entire country. That’s less than $2 a year per Australian. The government spent the <a href="https://www.businesseventscouncil.org.au/article/prime-minister-announces-50-million-injection-to-drive-confidence-for-australias-business-events">same amount</a> on supporting the business events industry through the pandemic. </p>
<p>Our overall environmental spending, too, is <a href="https://theconversation.com/fail-our-report-card-on-the-governments-handling-of-australias-extinction-crisis-181786">woefully inadequate</a>. In an age of mounting environmental threats, federal funding has fallen sharply over the past nine years. </p>
<p>For conservationists, this means distressing decisions. With a tiny amount of funding, you can’t save every species. That means ongoing neglect and <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abn5705">more extinctions looming</a>. </p>
<p>This investment is far less than what is needed to <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/conl.12682">recover threatened species</a> or to reduce the very real financial risks from <a href="https://www.fssustainability.com.au/biodiversity-risk-goes-to-heart-of-finance">biodiversity loss</a>. If the government doesn’t see the environment as a serious investment, why should the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jul/21/the-magic-of-the-market-wont-help-the-environment-unless-government-also-takes-responsibility">private sector</a>?</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/taking-care-of-business-the-private-sector-is-waking-up-to-natures-value-153786">Taking care of business: the private sector is waking up to nature's value</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The next government should fix this <a href="https://www.natureaustralia.org.au/what-we-do/our-insights/perspectives/closing-nature-funding-gap-global-biodiversity-finance/">nature finance gap</a>. It’s not as if there isn’t money. The estimated annual cost of recovering every one of Australia’s ~1,800 threatened species is roughly a mere 7% of the Coalition’s <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/coalition-has-promised-voters-833m-a-day-as-it-outspends-labor-in-campaign-mode-20220422-p5afd8.html">$23 billion of projects</a> promised in the month since the budget was released in late March. </p>
<h2>3. Tackle the threats</h2>
<p>We already have <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ece3.7920">detailed knowledge</a> of the major threats facing our species and ecosystems: the ongoing destruction or alteration of vital habitat, the damage done by invasive species like foxes, rabbits and cats, as well as pollution, disease and climate change. To protect our species from these threats requires laws and policies with teeth, as well as investment. </p>
<p>If we protect threatened species habitat by stopping clearing of native vegetation, mineral extraction, or changing fishing practices, we will not only get better outcomes for biodiversity but also save money in many cases. Why? Because it’s vastly cheaper to conserve ecosystems and species in good health than attempt recovery when they’re already in decline or flatlining. </p>
<p>Phasing out coal, oil and gas will also be vital to stem the damage done by climate change, as well as boosting support for green infrastructure and energy. </p>
<p>Any actions taken to protect our environment and recover species must be evidence-based and have <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/book/7720/">robust monitoring</a> in place, so we can figure out if these actions actually work in a cost-effective manner against specific objectives. This is done routinely in the US. </p>
<p>Salvaging our damaged environment is going to take time. That means in many cases, we’ll need firm, multi-partisan commitments to sustained actions, sometimes even across electoral cycles. Piecemeal, short-term or <a href="https://theconversation.com/feral-cat-cull-why-the-2-million-target-is-on-scientifically-shaky-ground-111824">politicised conservation</a> will not help Australia’s biodiversity long-term and do not represent best use of public money.</p>
<h2>4.: Look to Indigenous leadership to heal Country</h2>
<p>For millennia, First Nations people have cared for Australia’s species and <a href="https://theconversation.com/indigenous-knowledge-and-the-persistence-of-the-wilderness-myth-165164">shaped ecosystems</a>. </p>
<p>In many areas, their forced displacement and disconnection with longstanding cultural practices is linked to further damage to the environment, such as more <a href="https://theconversation.com/world-first-research-confirms-australias-forests-became-catastrophic-fire-risk-after-british-invasion-176563">severe fires</a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/indigenous-knowledge-and-the-persistence-of-the-wilderness-myth-165164">Indigenous knowledge and the persistence of the 'wilderness' myth</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Focusing on <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-big-ideas-how-australia-can-tackle-climate-change-while-restoring-nature-culture-and-communities-172156">Indigenous management of Country</a> can deliver environmental, cultural and social benefits. This means increasing representation of Indigenous people and communities in ecosystem policy and management decisions.</p>
<h2>5. Work with communities and across boundaries</h2>
<p>We must urgently engage and empower local communities and landowners to look after the species on their land. Almost half of Australia’s threatened species can be found on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.617">private land</a>, including farms and pastoral properties. We already have <a href="https://www.turtlesat.org.au/turtlesat">good examples</a> of what this can look like. </p>
<p>The next government should radically scale up investment in biodiversity on farms, through rebates and <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-environment-needs-billions-of-dollars-more-heres-how-to-raise-the-money-70401">tax incentives</a> for conservation covenants and sustainable agriculture. In many cases, caring for species can improve farming outcomes. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461182/original/file-20220504-18-13as0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Corroboree frog on moss" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461182/original/file-20220504-18-13as0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461182/original/file-20220504-18-13as0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461182/original/file-20220504-18-13as0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461182/original/file-20220504-18-13as0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461182/original/file-20220504-18-13as0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461182/original/file-20220504-18-13as0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461182/original/file-20220504-18-13as0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Corroboree frogs are critically endangered.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Conservation is good for humans and all other species</h2>
<p>To care for the environment and the other species we live alongside is good for us as people. Tending to nature in our cities makes people <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-daily-doses-of-nature-in-the-city-matter-for-people-and-the-planet-106918">happier and healthier</a>. </p>
<p>Protecting key plants and animals ensures key “services” like pollination and the cycling of <a href="https://theconversation.com/dig-this-a-tiny-echidna-moves-8-trailer-loads-of-soil-a-year-helping-tackle-climate-change-155947">soil nutrients</a> continues.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-lone-tree-makes-it-easier-for-birds-and-bees-to-navigate-farmland-like-a-stepping-stone-between-habitats-162083">A lone tree makes it easier for birds and bees to navigate farmland, like a stepping stone between habitats</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>We’re lucky to live in a land of such rich biodiversity, from the ancient Wollemi pine to remarkable Lord Howe island stick insects and striking corroboree frogs. But we are not looking after these species and their homes properly. The next government must take serious and swift action to save our species.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/182048/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Euan G. Ritchie is the Chair of the Media Working Group of the Ecological Society of Australia, Deputy Convenor (Communication and Outreach) for the Deakin Science and Society Network, and a member of the Australian Mammal Society.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ayesha Tulloch receives funding from the Australian Research Council. She is the Vice President of Public Policy and Outreach and co-convenes the Science Communication Chapter for the Ecological Society of Australia, and sits on Birdlife Australia's Research and Conservation Committee. She is a member of eBird Australia, the Society for Conservation Biology and the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre Citizen Science Node.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Megan C Evans receives funding from the Australian Research Council through a Discovery Early Career Research Award and has previously been funded by WWF Australia and the National Environmental Science Program's Threatened Species Recovery Hub.</span></em></p>We don’t have to passively sit back and watch Australia’s species and ecosystems die. Here are five concrete steps the next government should take.Euan Ritchie, Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin UniversityAyesha Tulloch, ARC Future Fellow, Queensland University of TechnologyMegan C Evans, Lecturer and ARC DECRA Fellow, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1817862022-04-28T20:02:29Z2022-04-28T20:02:29ZFail: our report card on the government’s handling of Australia’s extinction crisis<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460190/original/file-20220428-12-u5g9yu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C12%2C4139%2C2738&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Australia is <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature24295">losing</a> more biodiversity than any other developed nation. Already this year the charismatic and once abundant gang gang cockatoo has been added to our national threatened species list, the koala has been listed as endangered and the Great Barrier Reef suffered another mass bleaching event.</p>
<p>The Australian public consistently rates the loss of our unique plants and animals as a <a href="https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7257182/biodiversity-concerns-high-among-aussies">key concern</a>. Indeed, in a <a href="https://theconversation.com/settheagenda-what-the-conversations-readers-want-politicians-to-address-this-federal-election-181336">recent poll</a> of 10,000 readers of The Conversation, “the environment” was identified as the second-biggest issue affecting their lives, behind climate change at number one.</p>
<p>The Coalition has been in government since 2013. So what has it done about the biodiversity crisis? Unfortunately, the state of Australia’s plants, animals and ecological communities suggests the answer is - not nearly enough.</p>
<p>In fact, as the extinction crisis has escalated, protection and recovery for threatened species has declined. Poor decisions are contributing to the problem, rather than solving it. </p>
<h2>The sorry state of Australia’s biodiversity</h2>
<p>Australia has formally acknowledged the extinction of 104 native species since European colonisation, but the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/oct/20/overlooked-14000-invertebrate-species-lost-habitat-in-black-summer-bushfires-study-finds">true number is likely much higher</a>.</p>
<p>Threatened bird, mammal and plant populations have, on average, <a href="https://tsx.org.au/tsx/#/">halved or worse since 1985</a>. Species recently thought to be safe – such as the bogong moth, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/mar/01/gang-gang-cockatoo-to-become-threatened-species-after-large-drop-in-bird-numbers?s=08">gang gang cockatoos</a>, and even the iconic koala – are being added to the global and national threatened species lists following drought, catastrophic fires and habitat destruction.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460196/original/file-20220428-12-or1mmq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460196/original/file-20220428-12-or1mmq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460196/original/file-20220428-12-or1mmq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460196/original/file-20220428-12-or1mmq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460196/original/file-20220428-12-or1mmq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460196/original/file-20220428-12-or1mmq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460196/original/file-20220428-12-or1mmq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460196/original/file-20220428-12-or1mmq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The federal government listed the koala as an endangered species in February this year.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Today, <a href="https://theconversation.com/existential-threat-to-our-survival-see-the-19-australian-ecosystems-already-collapsing-154077">19 ecosystems</a> show clear signs of collapse. This includes the Great Barrier Reef, savannas, mangroves, tropical rainforests, and tall mountain ash forests. These losses have profound ramifications for clean air and water, productive agriculture, pollination, and well-being.</p>
<p>Biodiversity is a crucial part of Australia’s national identity and Aboriginal culture. It delivers billions of dollars in tourism revenue and underpins most sectors of our <a href="https://www.australiasnaturehub.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-11/Australia_s_Strategy_for_Nature_%20web.pdf">economy</a>. </p>
<p>It’s important for our health, too. COVID lockdowns recently brought the critical role of nature to our well-being into sharp focus, with thriving biodiversity <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1618866715000916">shown to</a> deliver avoided costs to the healthcare system.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/existential-threat-to-our-survival-see-the-19-australian-ecosystems-already-collapsing-154077">'Existential threat to our survival': see the 19 Australian ecosystems already collapsing</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Ignoring key recommendations</h2>
<p>A 2018 Senate inquiry into the <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Environment_and_Communications/Faunalextinction/Interim_report">extinction crisis</a> of Australian animals (fauna) concluded that native fauna was declining. It found biodiversity protection was under-resourced and failing, and Australia urgently needs an independent environmental regulator. </p>
<p>In 2022, the federal <a href="https://www.anao.gov.au/sites/default/files/Auditor-General_Report_2021-22_19.pdf">Auditor-General</a> reviewed the government’s implementation of Australia’s threatened species legislation, finding: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>limited evidence that desired outcomes are being achieved, due to the department’s lack of monitoring, reporting and support for the implementation of conservation advice, recovery plans. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>The national <a href="https://www.awe.gov.au/environment/biodiversity/threatened/publications/strategy-home">Threatened Species Strategy</a> focuses on 100 species and a few iconic places. But more than 1,800 species and ecosystems are threatened with extinction. </p>
<p>And economic analyses indicate we currently spend about around 7% of the targeted <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/conl.12682">A$1.6 billion per year</a> required to halt species loss and recover nationally listed threatened species. </p>
<p>These findings were reinforced in 2020 by a <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/">major independent review</a> of Australia’s environment law – Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.</p>
<p>The review by Professor Graeme Samuel made 38 recommendations, but almost none have been implemented. They include establishing an Environment Assurance Commissioner, rigorous national environmental standards and resourcing compliance and enforcement of environmental regulations. </p>
<h2>Failure to protect what we have</h2>
<p>Land clearing is a key threat to Australian wildlife, yet the government has not made meaningful progress to halt it.</p>
<p>The hectares cleared in New South Wales over the last decade have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/feb/17/land-clearing-in-nsw-triples-over-past-decade-state-of-the-environment-2021-report-reveals#:%7E:text=The%20New%20South%20Wales%20government,pressure%20from%20too%20much%20fire.">tripled</a>, and a staggering 2.5 million hectares have been cleared in <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2020-10-08/deforestation-land-clearing-australia-state-by-state/12535438">Queensland</a> between 2000 and 2018. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-victorian-logging-company-just-won-a-controversial-court-appeal-heres-what-it-means-for-forest-wildlife-160103">A Victorian logging company just won a controversial court appeal. Here’s what it means for forest wildlife</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Worryingly, more than <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/csp2.117">7.7 million hectares</a> of threatened species habitat have been cleared since the EPBC Act came into force (between 2000 and 2017), including 1 million hectares of koala habitat.</p>
<p><a href="https://invasives.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Averting-extinctions-The-case-for-strengthening-Australias-threat-abatement-system-April-2022.pdf">Invasive species</a> – such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/1-7-million-foxes-300-million-native-animals-killed-every-year-now-we-know-the-damage-foxes-wreak-177832">cats, foxes</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/dont-underestimate-rabbits-these-powerful-pests-threaten-more-native-wildlife-than-cats-or-foxes-168288">rabbits</a>, deer and <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-buffel-kerfuffle-how-one-species-quietly-destroys-native-wildlife-and-cultural-sites-in-arid-australia-149456">buffel grass</a> – continue to wreak havoc on many of our most endangered species. </p>
<p>Cats alone kill 1.7 billion native animals each year and threaten at least 120 species with extinction. While feral predator control has received <a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-must-control-its-killer-cat-problem-a-major-new-report-explains-how-but-doesnt-go-far-enough-154931">some focus</a>, the effort still falls well short of what’s required. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/334618/original/file-20200513-156641-17q6r13.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/334618/original/file-20200513-156641-17q6r13.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/334618/original/file-20200513-156641-17q6r13.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/334618/original/file-20200513-156641-17q6r13.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/334618/original/file-20200513-156641-17q6r13.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/334618/original/file-20200513-156641-17q6r13.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/334618/original/file-20200513-156641-17q6r13.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wes Mountain/The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Lack of transparency and accountability</h2>
<p><a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/">Official</a> <a href="https://www.anao.gov.au/sites/default/files/Auditor-General_Report_2021-22_19.pdf">reviews</a> have consistently found the federal government’s approach to protecting biodiversity lacks transparency and accountability. </p>
<p>Questions have also been raised about the federal government’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/apr/06/coalition-accused-of-sitting-on-environment-report-to-avoid-delivering-more-bad-news">delay</a> in releasing its five-yearly State of the Environment Report ahead of the election. </p>
<p>And investigations have raised serious concerns about how the government handled decisions regarding <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/23/company-part-owned-by-angus-taylor-seeks-ministerial-review-on-illegal-grassland-clearing">grasslands illegally destroyed</a> by a company part-owned by a government minister. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460193/original/file-20220428-16-ao8eqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="long-nosed potoroo" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460193/original/file-20220428-16-ao8eqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460193/original/file-20220428-16-ao8eqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460193/original/file-20220428-16-ao8eqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460193/original/file-20220428-16-ao8eqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460193/original/file-20220428-16-ao8eqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460193/original/file-20220428-16-ao8eqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460193/original/file-20220428-16-ao8eqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The long-nosed potoroo is extremely vulnerable to cats and foxes.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A key advisor to the government recently labelled a major scheme to promote forest restoration as carbon credits as environmental and taxpayer “<a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/whistleblower-s-fraud-claim-threatens-integrity-of-4-5-billion-carbon-offset-scheme-20220324-p5a7ma.html">fraud</a>”. </p>
<p>A <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r6787">federal integrity commission</a>, if it existed, could have explored these cases. </p>
<p>The government also continues to back activities that cause damage to biodiversity, including the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-morrison-governments-50-million-gas-handout-undermines-climate-targets-and-does-nothing-to-improve-energy-security-180247">fossil fuel</a> and <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/morrison-to-pledge-support-for-forestry-workers-in-tasmanian-campaign-stop-20220413-p5ad91.html">forestry</a> industries.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-morrison-government-wants-farmers-to-profit-from-looking-after-the-land-but-will-anyone-want-to-pay-180882">The Morrison government wants farmers to profit from looking after the land – but will anyone want to pay?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>On agriculture, the government is pursuing a “<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-morrison-government-wants-farmers-to-profit-from-looking-after-the-land-but-will-anyone-want-to-pay-180882">biodiversity stewardship</a>” policy, to financially reward farmers for protecting wildlife. </p>
<p>But ongoing approval of unsustainable land management practices, particularly land clearing (of which <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2020-10-08/deforestation-land-clearing-australia-state-by-state/12535438">agriculture</a> is responsible for the lion’s share) will likely overshadow any stewardship gains.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UDwU9JR1vM8?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The 26 Australian frogs at greatest risk of extinction | Threatened Species Recovery Hub.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>So what’s needed to prevent future extinctions?</h2>
<p>Labor has not yet revealed its full suite of environment policies. This week it <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/apr/25/worst-its-ever-been-a-threatened-species-alarm-sounds-during-the-election-campaign-and-is-ignored">told</a> Guardian Australia it will release more details before the election, and has called on the government to release the State of the Environment report.</p>
<p>So what policies are needed to reverse the biodiversity crisis? The answer is: spend more and destroy less. </p>
<p>Just two days of Coalition election promises (estimated at <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/coalition-has-promised-voters-833m-a-day-as-it-outspends-labor-in-campaign-mode-20220422-p5afd8.html">$833 million per day</a>) would <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/conl.12682">fund recovery</a> for Australia’s entire list of threatened species for a year. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/5-big-ideas-how-australia-can-tackle-climate-change-while-restoring-nature-culture-and-communities-172156">5 big ideas: how Australia can tackle climate change while restoring nature, culture and communities</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Systems for protecting biodiversity need stronger legal mandates and less <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/">discretion</a> for ministers to override decisions about project approvals, species listing and other matters.</p>
<p>Biodiversity should be integrated into key aspects of government practice. For example, it makes no sense to <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/record-50-million-koalas">invest</a> in protecting koalas while simultaneously <a href="https://www.acf.org.au/federal-govt-has-approved-clearing-25000ha-koala-habitat-10-yrs">approving koala habitat clearing</a>. </p>
<p>And we need investment in every threatened species, not just a <a href="https://www.awe.gov.au/environment/biodiversity/threatened/publications/strategy-home">hand-picked few</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460191/original/file-20220428-26-ytmgok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="bleached coral" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460191/original/file-20220428-26-ytmgok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460191/original/file-20220428-26-ytmgok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460191/original/file-20220428-26-ytmgok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460191/original/file-20220428-26-ytmgok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460191/original/file-20220428-26-ytmgok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460191/original/file-20220428-26-ytmgok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460191/original/file-20220428-26-ytmgok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Great Barrier Reef this year suffered the fourth mass bleaching event since 2016.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Finally, transformative policies are needed to support the substantial opportunities to enhance and restore biodiversity. This includes: </p>
<ul>
<li>using <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-big-ideas-how-australia-can-tackle-climate-change-while-restoring-nature-culture-and-communities-172156">nature to help mitigate climate change</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/en/themes/green-recovery">green recovery</a> of the economy post-COVID </li>
<li>finding ways to farm profitably while <a href="https://theconversation.com/biodiversity-and-farming-finding-ways-to-co-exist-6331">enhancing biodiversity</a></li>
<li><a href="https://theconversation.com/heres-how-to-design-cities-where-people-and-nature-can-both-flourish-102849">designing cities</a> where people and nature can both flourish. </li>
</ul>
<p>The fate of nature underpins our economy and health. Yet in the election campaign to date, there’s been a deafening silence about it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/181786/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sarah Bekessy receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the National Health and Medical Research Council, the Ian Potter Foundation and the European Commission. She is a Board Member of Bush Heritage Australia, a member of WWF's Eminent Scientists Group and a member of the Advisory Group for Wood for Good.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brendan Wintle has received funding from The Australian Research Council, the Victorian State Government, the NSW State Government, the Queensland State Government, the Commonwealth National Environmental Science Program, the Ian Potter Foundation, the Hermon Slade Foundation, and the Australian Conservation Foundation.</span></em></p>The fate of nature underpins our economy and health. Yet in the election campaign to date, there’s been a deafening silence about it.Sarah Bekessy, Professor in Sustainability and Urban Planning, Leader, Interdisciplinary Conservation Science Research Group (ICON Science), RMIT UniversityBrendan Wintle, Professor in Conservation Ecology, School of Ecosystem and Forest Science, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1804002022-03-31T02:47:29Z2022-03-31T02:47:29ZThe budget hands out $21 billion for ‘regional Australia’, but a quarter of it is going to a single project in Queensland<p>This years’s budget has offered up “unprecedented” funding for regional Australia, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/mar/29/australia-federal-budget-2022-infrastructure-regional-regions-barnaby-joyce-hunter-fitzgibbon-lingiari-durack">according to</a> the Morrison government’s budget sell. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://budget.gov.au/2022-23/content/download/glossy_regions.pdf">headline figure</a> is A$21 billion and is widely assumed to be <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/payback-for-net-zero-gas-coal-dam-and-green-funds-flow-for-nationals-20220330-p5a99m.html">part of the deal</a> Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce made with Prime Minister Scott Morrison in exchange for backing the Liberals’ net zero emissions plan late last year.</p>
<p>More than $20 billion of additional investment in Australia’s regions sounds like a lot of money. But at the same time, regional Australia is a big place. </p>
<p>What will this money do? How might it be received by voters?</p>
<h2>What’s the $21 billion for?</h2>
<p>The funding includes $3.7 billion for fast rail, $1 billion to protect the Great Barrier Reef, $678 million to seal roads on the Outback Way, and $1.3 billion on mobile and broadband coverage.</p>
<p>But instead of spreading the money thinly across the country, there is a heavy investment in a small number of big projects.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1508806196844974083"}"></div></p>
<p>The lion’s share of the funding is swallowed up by four major projects. About $7 billion is set aside “turbocharging” four regions the government says already create wealth for Australia. These are: the Pilbara in Western Australia, North and Central Queensland, the Northern Territory, and the Hunter region in New South Wales (perhaps surprisingly, these areas include very few key marginal seats). </p>
<p>In fact, just one project accounts for a quarter of all new expenditure.</p>
<p>This is the $5.4 billion for construction of the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2022-03-23/townsville-hells-gates-dam-north-queensland-morrison/100931270">Hells Gates Dam</a> near Townsville, and a further $1.7 billion for water and supply chain infrastructure to support agriculture in the surrounding region. </p>
<p>Once complete, Hells Gates is expected to deliver enough water to support 60,000 hectares of irrigation and $1.5 billion per year in increased agricultural output. A 2018 <a href="https://www.hellsgatesproject.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Feasibility-Executive-Summary_Web-Version.pdf">feasibility study</a> estimated it would create 12,647 construction jobs and 4,673 ongoing jobs, although concerns have been raised about the environmental impact on the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/mar/23/morrisons-green-light-for-queenslands-hells-gates-dam-threatens-great-barrier-reef-experts-warn">Great Barrier Reef</a>. </p>
<h2>The Hells Gates fine print</h2>
<p>The Hells Gates project is ambitious, but there’s a long way to go before construction is confirmed and money starts to flow. </p>
<p>With an election around the corner, the Coalition will be hoping regional voters see this commitment as a great example of government planning, rather than a distraction from more immediate needs. Whatever the business case, stumping up $7 billion plus for dam building and irrigation in the Burdekin is going to make the investments in other regions look positively anaemic. </p>
<p>Many regional voters may be left wondering how the government’s claim to be strengthening the regions with $21 billion to ensure they have the critical transport, water and communications infrastructure they need to grow adds up when so much of that investment is going into one region.</p>
<h2>What’s left out?</h2>
<p>We confront much the same issue in relation to the $1 billion to safeguard the Great Barrier Reef. Considering this investment is spread over ten years and addresses both marine and land-based management, as well as research, it’s arguably quite modest. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/poor-policy-and-short-sightedness-how-the-budget-treats-climate-change-and-energy-in-the-wake-of-disasters-180179">Poor policy and short-sightedness: how the budget treats climate change and energy in the wake of disasters</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>It also begs the question why similar investment isn’t flagged to safeguard the <a href="https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/management/managed-areas/world-heritage-areas/current/wet-tropics">Wet Tropics of Queensland</a> (located in the marginal seat of Leichhardt) and all the other Australian ecosystems threatened by global environmental change.</p>
<p>Part of the answer is there is already money allocated in the budget for a suite of environmental and natural resource management programs. There is $27 million flagged for agricultural biodiversity stewardship and an extra $27 million for Commonwealth National Parks. But is the right amount of funding going to the right places? </p>
<h2>Beyond the headline figures</h2>
<p>In principle, regional Australians benefit just like anyone else from <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-cost-of-living-budget-cuts-spends-and-everything-you-need-to-know-at-a-glance-180124">budget measures</a> designed to ease cost-of-living pressures and provide essential services. They will likely benefit more than most city-based Australians from the temporary <a href="https://theconversation.com/poor-policy-and-short-sightedness-how-the-budget-treats-climate-change-and-energy-in-the-wake-of-disasters-180179">reduction in fuel excise</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Prime Minister Scott Morrison visiting a farm, outside of Townsville in 2019." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/455411/original/file-20220331-14-thus03.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/455411/original/file-20220331-14-thus03.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455411/original/file-20220331-14-thus03.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455411/original/file-20220331-14-thus03.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455411/original/file-20220331-14-thus03.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455411/original/file-20220331-14-thus03.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455411/original/file-20220331-14-thus03.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Prime Minister Scott Morrison visiting a farm, outside of Townsville in 2019.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Cameron Laird/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The more time you spend in the budget documents, the more programs you find that are relevant to regional Australia but haven’t been labelled as such. </p>
<p>There is more than $600 million to expand the <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/indigenous-rangers-program-doubles-with-636-million-boost-20220323-p5a79w.html">Indigenous Ranger Program</a> over the next six years. This will support the employment of an additional 1,089 Indigenous Rangers and formation of 88 new ranger groups. These will overwhelmingly be located – and contribute to improved natural and cultural resource management – in regional areas.</p>
<p>The Home Guarantee Scheme will be expanded and modified to include a <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-30/regional-home-guarantee-and-new-builds-in-federal-budget/100950734">Regional Home Guarantee</a> intended to help 10,000 eligible applicants into new homes in regional locations.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/people-and-issues-outside-our-big-cities-are-diverse-but-these-priorities-stand-out-110971">People and issues outside our big cities are diverse, but these priorities stand out</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>If it is successful, the <a href="https://www.industry.gov.au/data-and-publications/2022-critical-minerals-strategy">Critical Minerals Strategy</a> ($200 million over five years) will help diversify the Australian mining sector. Whether this helps regional workers will depend on the extent of automation, where jobs are located, and how much reliance is placed on fly-in, fly-out workers. We can’t take it for granted that the mere fact of economic activity leads to good employment or regional development outcomes.</p>
<p>Look beyond the fanfare about large infrastructure projects like Hells Gates, and what we are left with is a largely business-as-usual budget for regional Australia. The overarching narratives of transformational investment and water security fail to capture this continuity while, at the same time, offering a vision that excludes most regions. </p>
<h2>What might this mean for voters?</h2>
<p>What might this mean come election time?</p>
<p>The Coalition may fancy its chances of picking up a marginal seat like Hunter (held by Labor on a <a href="https://antonygreen.com.au/2022-federal-electoral-pendulum/">margin of 3%</a>), but most seats in the regions targeted for “turbocharged” growth are considered safe. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Voters at polling booths on election day." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/455414/original/file-20220331-16-emva90.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/455414/original/file-20220331-16-emva90.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455414/original/file-20220331-16-emva90.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455414/original/file-20220331-16-emva90.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455414/original/file-20220331-16-emva90.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455414/original/file-20220331-16-emva90.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/455414/original/file-20220331-16-emva90.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The big regional spend does not appear to be about targeting key marginal seats.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Bianca De Marchi/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The main exceptions are Kennedy in North Queensland, held by the Katter Australia Party on 13.3%, and Herbert, centred on Townsville, which is held by the Liberal National Party on 8.4%. But travel north to Leichhardt, held by the LNP on a margin of 4.2%, and people are asking “what’s in the budget for us?”</p>
<p>Whatever the electoral strategy here, it’s not sandbagging marginal seats. In fact, it risks leaving voters in more marginal seats feeling ignored. </p>
<p>Big infrastructure spending is more likely to be about selling the Coalition’s credentials on economic recovery and nation-building. Whether this message cuts through may depend on whether voters believe the strategy will work, and whether they trust the Coalition to deliver it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/180400/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stewart Lockie receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the Australian Government's Future Drought Fund, and the Reef Trust Partnership/Great Barrier Reef Foundation.</span></em></p>Look beyond the fanfare about large infrastructure projects like Hells Gate and what we are left with is a largely business-as-usual budget for regional AustraliaStewart Lockie, Director, The Cairns Institute, James Cook UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.