General News
6 February, 2022
Funding commitment to tackle Great Barrier Reef water pollution
The Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) has welcomed the Morrison Government’s announcement that it will invest in a range of projects that will help tackle local issues threatening our Great Barrier Reef.
The Government will dedicate most of the funding to addressing water pollution flowing from agricultural lands into the inshore areas of our Reef.
AMCS water quality expert Jaimi Webster said it was encouraging to receive this investment since water pollution was one of the biggest threats to the Reef.
“The boosting of funding to address water pollution is essential to build our Reef’s resilience to climate change,” she said.
“The intention to target money towards tackling legacy issues like erosion and land condition is a gap that needed to be addressed.” Ms Webster said that extending this project further into the future was essential to ensure its success.
“Given the health crisis the Reef is facing and the slow progress in addressing water pollution to date, it’s important this investment in water quality is front-loaded over the next three years,” she said.
“This is especially critical given commitments by both the Queensland and Australian Governments still fall short of the estimated $4bn needed to meet the 2025 water quality targets.
“To get the most out of this investment, projects should be outcome-focussed and coordinated with the Queensland Government to fully meet the Reef 2050 water quality targets.
Although more funding will be allocated to tackle illegal fishing and protect threatened species, Ms Webster said that the most critical issue was not being addressed.
“While this funding commitment will tackle some of the local threats our Reef faces, it does not address climate change - the greatest threat to our Reef,” she said.
“Investment in both local threats and the climate crisis is essential if we are to ensure the Reef remains for many generations to come.
“Currently, areas of the Great Barrier Reef are on high alert for a significant bleaching event, which is unprecedented during the La Nina weather pattern.
“Tackling the climate crisis across the next decade could create incredible economic opportunities for regional Queensland with new wind, solar and battery projects, as well as helping the Reef and the 60,000 tourism jobs that rely on it.”
Ms Webster addressed the Government, asking for their commitment to actual climate change targets.
“We urge the Government and opposition to commit to emission reduction targets that are compatible with no more than 1.5°C of warming - a critical threshold for our Reef,” she said.
“Their current 2030 targets will ensure 1.5°C is overshot. For the sake of the Reef, the tourism and fishing industries that rely on it being healthy, it is imperative the Coalition and Labor accelerate their plans to cut emissions in this crucial decade.”
