Damaging Developments

By Author: Bonny Kominek
Total Articles: 96
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The Great Barrier Reef attracts over two million tourists every single year. The Reef is one of the most famous places on earth, and the remarkable water clarity (which means the Reef is visible from space) make it the most popular scuba diving location in the world.

The Great Barrier Reef is all the more remarkable because it is an enormous living organism. Billions of tiny coral polyps grow together to make the enormous structure that stretches over 133,000 square miles and has formed 900 islands.

As it draws so many visitors, it is no surprise that the Great Barrier Reef is one of the most valuable tourist destinations in the world. The Reef adds 7 billion Australian dollars to the Australian economy every year.

The biggest threat to the survival of the Reef, however, is nothing to do with tourism (or at least, not directly). Climate change has led to a rise in Ocean temperatures, which has in turn led to a phenomenon known as coral bleaching. Coral bleaching occurs when the coral is under stress, and can often be a forewarning of large areas of the coral dying.

Pollution of the water is also playing ...
... a part in coral bleaching, and threatening to unbalance the fragile ecosystem of the reef. The pollution comes, on the whole, from farm runoff and there are concerns that the fertiliser will lead to a growth of algae which will damage the reef.

Of direct activity on the Reef, by far the most damaging is fishing. Fishing the Reef is a billion dollar industry but the trawlers can damage the Reef. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park monitors fishing activity closely and has banned the fishing of 1/3rd of all species on the Reef.

Fishing has also led to an unbalancing of the ecosystem. The crown-of-thorns starfish can kill enormous quantities of coral (up to 66% of the reef in 2000) and the population of these starfish is rising because fishing has led to a scarcity of the starfishes natural predators.

The challenge for the Australian government is to protect the Reef without damaging the tourist trade, but with things like rising sea temperatures putting the Reef at risk, many things are beyond their control. Many airlines are offering cheap flights to Australia at the moment, so now is a good time to visit one of the natural wonders of the world, as it could disappear before you know it. Bonny Kominek is a travel writer with a love of the Australasia region. They recommend DialAFlight for your cheap flights to Australia.