Not all of the world’s coral reefs are in dire straits. Reef fisheries tend to do better in areas with strong ownership rights, and where people are closely involved in managing their local reefs.
The Bramble Cay Melomys is arguably the first mammal driven extinct by climate change, rather than direct human interaction.
Ian Bell/EHP/State of Queensland
Australia’s conservation laws presume that we can preserve everything in its natural state. But in a changing world, we’ll have to be more flexible than that.
Coal dust can harm marine environments.
AAP Image/Dan Peled
Coal dust and oil can spread toxic chemicals hundreds of kilometres out to sea. But Australia’s monitoring guidelines do not meet the standards used in countries such as the United States.
Microbes living on corals are instrumental in keeping coral reefs healthy.
Reuters/David Gray
A new study provides insight into coral-dwelling microbial communities and how they react to pollution, overfishing, and climate change. What does it mean for the Great Barrier Reef?
It’s quiet out there, too quiet.
Outback image from wwww.shutterstock.com
There’s been a deafening silence in recent Australian elections over the environment. But it hasn’t always been the case.
Malcolm Turnbull and his colleagues have pointed $1 billion of the government’s existing green energy funding towards the Great Barrier Reef.
AAP/Lukas Coch
The Coalition has ramped up the race to fund the Great Barrier Reef’s protection. All three major parties have promised hundreds of millions of dollars, but where from, and what will they be spent on?
A market that lets sugar cane farmers trade ‘nitrogen permits’ could help keep a cap on fertiliser use.
iStock
You’ve heard of cap-and-trade schemes for greenhouse gases. Perhaps we also need one to limit the amount of fertiliser runoff onto the Great Barrier Reef.
Flanked by local MP Ewen Jones and Greg Hunt, Malcolm Turnbull announced funding for a new stadium in Townsville and the Great Barrier Reef.
Lukas Coch/AAP
To win government, Labor needs a net gain of 19 seats nationally – and that’s the exact number of marginal seats being fought over in Queensland this election.
GetUp! has claimed a win for its five year campaign to stop dredging and new coal mines near the Reef.
Maleika Halpin/AAP
Political engagement in Australia has changed enormously over the past decade. New organisations such as GetUp! have taken the lead in channelling citizen voice into politics.
Visits to Belize’s reefs have been climbing, despite them being listed as World Heritage in Danger since 2009.
Elizabeth Albert/Wikimedia Commons
Australia’s government has lobbied hard to avoid the Great Barrier Reef being described internationally as being in danger. But that publicity wouldn’t necessarily hit tourism that hard anyway.
While politicians like Malcolm Turnbull and Barnaby Joyce do the traditional photo-ops, fewer people than ever are taking on farming, which can no longer support vibrant rural and regional communities on its own.
AAP/Tracey Nearmy
What are the issues facing rural and regional Australia? The challenges are many and varied – and only some have made the national political agenda – but these areas deserve better than neglect.
Australia could capitalise on its sun-drenched landscape to innovate in renewable energy.
Shutterstock
Peter C. Doherty, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity
There are several areas where Australia could be a world leader in innovation. If we can identify them and focus our efforts there, we could generate some genuine benefits here and abroad.
Nemo is actually a ‘false clownfish’.
Motoya Kawasaki/Flickr
An estimated one-third of corals have now died in the parts of the Great Barrier Reef hit hardest by bleaching, meaning recovery could take years or even decades.
Perception is everything when it comes to Great Barrier Reef tourism.
Reef image from www.shutterstock.com
All mention of Australia has been removed from an international report on climate change on the grounds that it would damage tourism. Here’s the evidence.
Fixing water pollution on the Great Barrier Reef will take a huge effort.
Reef image from www.shutterstock.com