The Great Barrier Reef risks being officially listed as “in danger” unless Australia provides greater funding to reduce pollution and widens a ban on dumping sediment into the reef’s waters, environment groups have told the UN.

 

In a joint submission to UNESCO’s world heritage committee, the World Wildlife Fund and the Australian Marine Conservation Society claim that key concerns over the fading health of the reef are still not being addressed.

 

The groups call for an additional $500m to prevent chemicals from farmed land flowing on to the reef and better resourcing of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority so it can become a “true champion of the reef”.

 

The submission also urges the Australian government to ban dumping of dredged seabed material into the reef’s world heritage area. The federal government has committed to banning dumping, but only in the reef’s marine park, which does not include the port areas adjacent to the coral ecosystem.

 

The world heritage committee will meet in Germany in June to decide whether the reef, which has lost half its coral cover in the past 30 years, should be listed as “in danger”.

 

UNESCO has previously raised concern over port development alongside the reef, as well as dumped dredged spoil, which can smother and damage corals and sea grasses.

 

The latest government outlook for the reef, published last year, warns the condition of the world heritage-listed site is “poor, has worsened since 2009 and is expected to further deteriorate in the future”.

 

The reef is facing a range of threats, with climate change posing the greatest long-term risk. Pollution, cyclones and a plague of coral-eating starfish are also placing strain on the reef.

 

The federal government has a number of programs to aid the reef, such as the $40m Reef Trust, but WWF warned that without much greater funding, the ecosystem was at risk of being listed as in danger.

 

The Australian government has deployed a “whole of government” approach to lobbying the 21 countries that provide members to the world heritage committee, to help avoid the embarrassment of an in-danger listing.

 

A taskforce has been set up to coordinate the lobbying effort, and journalists from world heritage committee member countries have been invited on an all-expenses paid trip to the reef to report conservation efforts.

 

 

PHOTO: A red slime algae on the Great Barrier Reef: the reef’s condition is ‘poor, has worsened and is expected to further deteriorate’.

CREDIT: Alamy.