A new assessment from the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority warns that the World Heritage property is near collapse. Unchecked greenhouse gas emissions are the main cause of the reef’s fast decline. The research warns that the reef’s future is slipping away.
Mass coral bleaching and death on the southern reef turned lively ecosystems into ghostly white graveyards earlier this year. The report also lists unsustainable fishing, pollution, sediment runoff, and crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks as chronic climate concerns.
Marine turtle numbers are dropping, while seabirds, sharks, rays, and dugongs are plateauing or declining in various places. Many estuarine crocodile species are threatened or protected despite their modest comeback.
We need strong leadership as the reef degrades. Australia, a major fossil fuel exporter, must address global warming to maintain this ecosystem. The analysis concludes that humanity failed the Great Barrier Reef despite having all the data.
Take action now. Without action to reduce global warming, the Great Barrier Reef and coral reefs globally face a dangerous future.
Image Credit: https://www.intellinews.com/four-century-record-heat-is-existential-threat-to-great-barrier-reef-338239/
