Morrison Pledges $1 Billion In "Environmental" Funding As Sixth Bleaching Event In 24 Yrs Begins

[hatrack]

A re-elected Coalition would pour $1bn into Great Barrier Reef conservation projects over the next decade, the government says, just months after campaigning to prevent the reef being listed as “in danger” by the world heritage committee.

The announcement, to be made by the prime minister, Scott Morrison, in north Queensland on Friday, comes a fortnight after Labor pledged $163m to protect the natural wonder. It highlights the reef as a key election fight in the Cairns electorate of Leichhardt. The funding pledge arrives just days before Australia is due to send a report to Unesco about the state of the reef and its plans to protect it, before a critical meeting of the world heritage committee scheduled for July in Russia.

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Billed by the government as the “single largest investment” in the reef, the nine-year investment includes more than half a billion dollars for water quality, covering work on erosion, land condition, and reducing runoff of pesticides and nutrients. Another $253m will specifically address reef management and conservation, including work from the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority to combat crown-of-thorns starfish and prevent illegal fishing.

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The 2,300km reef has seen five mass bleaching events – in 1998, 2002, 2016, 2017 and 2020 – all caused by rising ocean temperatures driven by global heating.

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jan/28/morrison-government-announces-1bn-pledge-for-great-barrier-reef-over-the-next-decade

Meanwhile . . .

Coral on the Great Barrier Reef is showing early signs of bleaching, which has experts concerned as the Sunshine State is staring down the barrel of a long, hot summer. A team of research scientists have documented pale and fully-bleached coral — which occurs when symbiotic algae inside hard coral is expelled — off the coast of Magnetic Island in Far North Queensland on Sunday.

They're concerned, as this could be the first signs of a "widespread" die-off at the World Heritage site. If it proves true it would be the sixth mass bleaching event on the reef since 1998.

Augustine Crosbie, PhD candidate at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies told 9news.com.au he's worried, as the signs of stress are being seen relatively early in summer. "Currently there are only early signs of stress, however this is happening much earlier into summer than during past bleaching events," he said. "It's also too early to make predictions on how bad it will be.
"But we still have a predicted long, hot summer ahead."

Mr Crosbie explained coral can only tolerate a narrow temperature range, adding the ideal water temperature on the Great Barrier Reef should be between 22 - 30C. The water temperature off Magnetic Island on Sunday was 31C.

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https://www.9news.com.au/national/queensland-news-fears-for-the-great-barrier-reef-as-scientists-discover-first-signs-of-bleaching/3bc5e4ed-37e3-4bed-b572-90bbc48efd09

[c-rational]

1. Thanks for your posts. Unfortunately we humans have not been good stewards of our home -

planet earth.