Great Barrier Reef Environmental Impacts

The most obvious pollutant comes in the form of garbage. Garbage is a visible source that we can see floating on the water’s surface. Among the garbage, plastic appears to be the most harmful to marine life. There is an average of 13,000 pieces of plastic litter scattered around every square kilometer of the ocean. An average of 6.4 million tons of marine litter reaches the oceans every year according to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). At this rate scientists predict a bleak future for the oceans which are a vital to our planet 's existence.

Human use and tourism is one of the main reasons the Great Barrier Reef is such an astounding place. The reef consists of more than 400 different kinds of corals, over 1,500 species of fish, and over 200 types of birds (2011). The tourism industry is a major contributor to the local and Australian economy. The range of activities for tourists include day tours, overnight and extended tours, snorkeling, scuba diving, fishing, whale watching, helicopter tours, and other services that capitalizes on the world’s fascination with it. (2011). The earliest occurance of tourism was in the late 1890’s, when this area became a

Because the GBR is such a highly visited tourist attraction for snorkeling and diving, there has been a large number of human structures that have been built in natural areas. Every five years, the Australian government publishes an Outlook Report that examines the Great Barrier Reef’s health, pressures, and likely future. “The report is required under Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (section 54) and aims to provide a regular and reliable means of assessing reef health and management in an accountable and transparent way.” The report shows the actions that have been taken since 2009, including the focus on improving the quality of water that runs off the land. The increased freshwater run-off is in direct relation to the coastal development that has occurred since the major bleaching events have begun. The report released in 2009, states that the greatest risks to the Reef are still climate change, land-based runoff, coastal development, and some remaining impacts of fishing and illegal fishing and poaching. The report points out climate change as being the main cause of the destruction or bleaching of the reef (Department of Environment and Energy 2017). Most observers conclude that the climate change is a direct result of human

The Great Barrier Reef is under threat due to many human impacts and natural impacts. These impacts lead to other consequences that may harm our society as well. For example, if the Great Barrier Reef was to be damaged by pollution, tourism levels would decrease, which can lead to a drop in the economic stance of Australia. For these reasons, it is important to keep our ecosystems safe and protected. Some of the human impacts towards the Great Barrier Reef include:

One environmental issues posted on the Facebook group on Ecologically Conscious Social is climate change’s effect impacts on the Great Barrier Reef where is one of the UNESCO world heritage sites. The Great Barrier Reef is located in Queensland, state of Australia.

Economic development is mostly compatible with maintaining the long-term biodiversity and ecosystem functions of the Great Barrier Reef as shown by its economic contribution. In north-east Queensland

Does the impact of anthropogenic processes, such as dredging, and the environmental degradation it has caused in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park outweigh the exigency for shipping channels?

Commercial marine tourism extends throughout the Great Barrier Reef,and tourism makes a significant contribution to the presentation, management and economic value of the Great Barrier Reef, contributing to sustainable development of GBR. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) and the Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) are in charge of the management of GBR and manage and regulate tourism industry to ensure minimal impact on the marine environment by implementing the following policies

While traveling through the spectacular continent of Australia you will find yourself discovering many local beauties.The Great Barrier Reef is the largest and most known coral reef ecosystem in all of the world. This massive reef covers over 1800 miles or approximately 2000 kilometers and thrives in the untouched and undeveloped waters of the pacific ocean. This incredible reef contains thousands of different species including coral, fish, birds, reptiles and so much more. Among many of Australia's flourishing tourist attractions the Great Barrier reef tops all others. Not only is this location a beautiful spot to look at it offers many attractions above and below the water. Snorkeling, scuba diving, fishing,

In this research project I am going to analyse (talk about the issues that you are going to look at) reef conservation, global warming and recreational fishing in Australia. I am going to look at three major political parties; Australian greens, labour party, liberal party.

The carelessness of humans has horribly affected the oceanic ecosystem. Bodies of water such as oceans, lakes, rivers, and seas cover nearly 70% of the earth, which makes them a very valuable asset to the human population (Mambra 2017). Oceanic pollution has been an ongoing problem for years, but it is increasingly getting worse. Main causes of ocean pollution are ocean dumping, land runoff, oil spills, littering, ocean mining, and noise pollution. The dumping of waste into the ocean is the most common cause of ocean pollution because this has been known as the cheapest and easiest way to dispose of trash. Non-point pollution typically comes from land runoff. Land runoff brings many materials, such as automobile parts, into the oceans every day. Birds and mammals being the main victims, oil spills are a leading cause of ocean pollution. The feathers of these animals get covered in oil making it impossible for them to fly. Mining underwater is another outlet for pollution. Many miners leave their waste in the ocean which often increases the toxicity of the water, killing its inhabitants. Noise pollution, although it is

Around 100 countries benefit from tourism associated with coral-reefs, and 23 of these, reef-related tourism accounts for 15% of GDP (Burke, 2011). The Great-Barrier Reef Marine attracts 1.9 million visits each year, generating AUD $5.4 billion in tourist revenues and 60,000 jobs (Deloitte-Access-Economics, 2013). However, the GB Reef has experienced a loss of 50.7% of coral cover since 1985, and a 21% decrease in the calcification rate (De’ath, 2012). Such loss of coral is likely to make reef-orientated destinations less attractive to tourism, leading to reductions in profits for businesses, and employment for people in the sector (Hoegh-Guldberg,

We 're treating the oceans like a trash bin: around 80 percent of marine litter originates on land, and most of that is plastic. Plastic that pollutes our oceans and waterways has severe impacts on our environment and our economy. Seabirds, whales, sea turtles and other marine life are eating marine plastic pollution and dying from choking, intestinal blockage and starvation. Scientists are investigating the long-term impacts of toxic pollutants absorbed, transported, and consumed by fish and other marine life, including the potential effects on human health.

The human impact of tourism on reefs, while having its economic and social benefits, also has detrimental impacts on the surrounding environment of the reefs, globally. A study, conducted by the ARC Centre of Excellence: Coral Reef Studies has stated that more than half of Latin America’s coral reefs are potentially going to be tainted and disintegrated within the next 5-10 years and that 70% of the world’s coral reefs are likely to vanish by 2030, as a result of tourism related activities (ARC Centre of Excellence, 2011). An example of this coral loss can be seen below, in Image 1.1, which demonstrates the estimated coral loss along the North-East coast of Queensland, in the next 15 years.

Moreover, one of the main issues that sustainable tourism tries to embrace is having a low impact on tourism but many countries who undertake in mass tourism have failed to properly take this into account. For example, tourism around the Great Barrier Reef in Australia is the largest commercial activity there and accounts for 87% of the reefs economic output. However, this tourism has created pollution through waste disposal, pollution from boats etc. This easily damages the Coral reef which thus affects the species dependent on them. In addition, tourists disturb the wildlife as many seabirds nest on the ground and when disturbed leave the nest which thus exposes young or eggs to predators and developments for tourism damage coastal ecosystems such as the mangrove forests and estuaries