The Great Barrier Reef is located off the north eastern coast of Australia. It is the largest coral reef ecosystem in the world and was declared a World Heritage area in 1981. The area concerned is approximately 2,600 kilometers, contains 900 islands and comprises of nearly 3,000 individual reefs. It can be seen from outer space and is often referred to as the single largest organism in the world. It is made up of tiny organisms known as coral polyps, millions of them!
This reef is undoubtedly unique and has been of much interest to scientists the world over. Interest stems from many different scientific arena’s too, birds, fish, weather, sea life, archaeology, environment and so on. There is still much to be learned from this place hence, the heritage status that it has been granted. This reef is home to 4000 types of mollusc and 1500 different types of fish. There are also over 200 different species of birds. Aside from all this, it is a very beautiful place and the temperature and climate is fantastic. It has definitely got tourist appeal and attracts two million visitors each year simply because of the many activities that are available to do. It is estimated that the economy can expect to grow by a whopping $4000 million dollars from this region.
There is much concern over the effects that global warming is having on this district. Already there is speculation about the ‘coral bleaching’ that has occurred in recent years – namely 1998, 2002 and 2005/2006. During these years there has been more loss and coral dying than ever before. With a marked increase in water temperatures there is a grave concern about the future of the reef and the cause of the bleaching. The coral is living at the upper reaches of the temperatures that they can survive in. When the water stays warm for too long the coral expels the photosynthesising zooxanthellae and become colourless which results in the calcium carbonate skeletons. This became very apparent in the Keppel Islands group when a massive amount of coral died due to the unusually high sea temperatures. A reef scientist, Terry Done, has predicted a 1 degree rise in global temperature would cause an 82% of the reef bleached, 2 degrees resulting in 97% bleaching and 3% would mean total devastation.
I don’t presume to know or understand the full effects that global warming is having on our world but having been to the Great Barrier Reef and seen its beauty, I feel that it would be a great loss to the world. I am willing to believe the scientists who study the planet and the world in which we live in rather than people who have economic gains to make from it.
