What Can Be Done

              In an attempt to remediate the damage that has already been done, the government and environmental programs are working to regulate pollution and unsafe farming and fishing practices. Approximately 344,400 square kilometers, 99 percent, of The Great Barrier Reef is a Federal Marine Park (UNESCO, 2012). Half of the 900 islands that are part of the Great Barrier Reef have been declared national parks (UNESCO, 2012). The Great Barrier Reef is also managed as a world heritage property but their power is complicated before there is an overlap between State and Federal jurisdiction (UNESCO, 2012). While most of the park can be used for commercial and recreational activity, there are “no-take” and “no-entry” zones throughout 115,000 square kilometers of the Marine Park (UNESCO, 2012). Although there is a lot of governmental power over The Great Barrier Reef, the reef is still in poor condition from many other issues that originate from people on land, such as sediment runoff and burning of fossil fuels adding to global warming. The Australian and Queensland governments’ Reef Water Quality Protection Act has been set into place to improve the water quality by a 50 percent reduction in chemical pollution and 20 percent reduction of mud pollution by 2020 (WWF, 2012). In addition, The Commonwealth Government invested $200 million in 2008 towards the improvement of farming practices such as improving ground cover to reduce erosion and reducing pesticide and fertilizer use (WWF, 2012). 

An image of a field being sprayed with pesticides. Credit: Michel Gunther
http://www.wwf.org.au/our_work/saving_the_natural_world/oceans_and_marine/
priority_ocean_places/great_barrier_reef/threats/pesticides/

            Another act known as the Queen Island’s Great Barrier Reef Protection Amendment Act 2009 was passed to outlaw excessive fertilizer and pesticide use (WWF, 2012) The decrease in pesticide use is crucial to saving marine life such as endangered dugongs and ancient turtles that live in the Great Barrier Reef (UNESCO, 2012). 

Image of a dugong grazing on sea grass. Credit: Doug Perrine
http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Dugong

          While governmental involvement in restricting unsafe agricultural and fishing practices significantly improves the depletion and damage of coral reef population, individual awareness is necessary to minimize global warming and pollution for long-term solutions. It is important for people to understand the impact of their actions so they take the initiative to make greener choices everyday, such as walking to school or buying sustainably caught fish.  

Sources:

1. "Great Barrier Reef." WWF Australia. WWF, 2012. Web. 30 Nov 2012. <http://www.wwf.org.au/our_work/saving_the_natural_world/oceans_and_marine/priority_ocean_places/great_barrier_reef/>.

2. "Great Barrier Reef." UNESCO. UNESCO World Heritage Centre, 2012. Web. 30 Nov 2012. <http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/154/>.

Data Table

ACTIVITY	DESCRIPTION	ASSESSMENT
Coastal Development	The increase of human development in areas surrounding the coral reef causes sediment runoff into the ocean. The removal of vegetation and change in flow patterns also facilitates this runoff.	Coastal development stimulates algal overgrowth which can result in setting off outbreaks of potential coral predators.
Overexploitation	Local fishers and fishing industries in Australia accumulate large stocks of fish off the coral reefs.	The large removal of fish leads to loss of groups in the food chain in coral reefs that can cause widespread ecological changes.
Agricultural Run-off	Sediment, nutrients, pesticides, and herbicides enter the ocean due to increase in agriculture by the coast.	This run-off can create algal overgrowth and potentially kill coral from the toxins of the pesticides and herbicides.
Marine-based Pollution	Shipping and coastal developments dump chemicals into the ocean that can poison the coral. As well, the trash dumped can affect the marine life and harm them or block the sunlight needed for photosynthesis.	The marine-based pollution can change the ecological system of the GBR and change the marine life that inhabits the area or lead them to extinction.
Climate Change	The rise in temperature in the ocean and decrease of calcium carbonate are affecting the conditions under which coral reefs have prospered for the last millennia.	The climate change in 1998 caused 16% of the world’s coral to die, and has increased since then with the steadily incline of temperatures. Climate change is the number one threat to the Great Barrier Reef.

Source:

1. Hoegh-Guldberg, Hans, and Ove Hoegh-Guldberg. "Implications of Climate Change for the Australia’s Great Barrier Reef." WWF Australia. (2004): 32. Web. 30 Nov. 2012. <http://awsassets.wwf.org.au/downloads/cl029_great_barrier_reef_2050_the_implications_of_climate_change_1fev04.pdf>.

Bibliography

1. Australian Government Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. GBRMPA, 2011. Web. 30 Nov 2012. <http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/about-the-reef>.

2. "Corals." NOAA National Ocean Service Education. NOAA, 25 2008. Web. 30 Nov 2012. <http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/education/kits/corals/coral05_distribution.html>.

3. "Great Barrier Reef." The Seven Natural Wonders. Web. 30 Nov 2012. <http://sevennaturalwonders.org/the-original/great-barrier-reef/>.

4. "Great Barrier Reef." UNESCO. UNESCO World Heritage Centre, 2012. Web. 30 Nov 2012. <http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/154/>.

5. "Great Barrier Reef." WWF Australia. WWF, 2012. Web. 30 Nov 2012. <http://www.wwf.org.au/our_work/saving_the_natural_world/oceans_and_marine/priority_ocean_places/great_barrier_reef/>.

6. Hoegh-Guldberg, Hans, and Ove Hoegh-Guldberg. "Implications of Climate Change for the Australia’s Great Barrier Reef." WWF Australia. (2004): 32. Web. 30 Nov. 2012. <http://awsassets.wwf.org.au/downloads/cl029_great_barrier_reef_2050_the_implications_of_climate_change_1fev04.pdf>.

7. "Human Impact on the Great Barrier Reef." University of Michigan. Web. 30 Nov 2012. <http://sitemaker.umich.edu/gc2sec7labgroup3/introduction>.

8. Phillips, Nicky. "Great reef catastrophe." Age [Melbourne, Australia] 2 10 2012, Web. 30 Nov. 2012. <http://www.theage.com.au/environment/conservation/great-reef-catastrophe-20121002-26vzq.html>.