The coalition’s pledge for additional funding for management of the GBR is a cynical token action that does nothing to address the major underlying problem, which is the global climate crisis. This pledge is an election promise to the Queensland tourism industry, and a cynical effort to win over the UNECSO investigation into the GBR.

While management funding to develop resilience in coral reefs is welcome, it can be argued that this comes too late for the GBR, which is already managed at a high standard. There is no funding for other Australian reefs, which are also subject to the same stresses. The main underlying issue is the global climate crisis, which the coalition steadfastly refuses to adequately address.

The world’s coral reefs have already been permanently damaged by the climate crisis; the only thing now that will stop the ongoing decay of our reefs is urgent attention to climate change, and in particular, greenhouse gas emissions. For perspective, the federal government subsidises the fossil fuel industries by 10x the amount pledged to the GBR each year … a better gift to Australia’s coral reefs and the tourism industry would be to stop subsidising the fossil fuel industry.

The new investment is welcome, however climate change is the most urgent threat to the Reef, and the wellbeing of communities who depend on it. Climate change is not only an environmental problem, but increasingly we know that it affects people's wellbeing and mental health, and at times this is so severe it can be characterised as 'climate grief'. Without mitigating climate change, communities along the reef will continue to experience these impacts, and they are likely to accelerate as the climate changes further.

The announcement of an extra $1 billion in funding for the Great Barrier Reef is fantastic news. As one of the most diverse marine environments on the planet, Australia has a global responsibility to nurture and protect this precious ecosystem. 

Unfortunately, the reef is facing a wide range of human impacts. However, there are a wide range of proactive research projects, led by Australian scientists, that are attempting to increase the resilience of the Great Barrier Reef with the scope covering everything from reducing runoff to increase water quality through to protecting sea turtle nesting sites from erosion. 

This additional funding will help to protect locations such as Lady Elliot Island reef, which is not only a popular ecotourism location, but has been identified as an important sanctuary for coral reef species as climate change impacts are increasingly felt. The Leaf to Reef research team is investigating the resilience of the island and its surrounding reefs to the impacts of climate change. The findings have shown that there is a direct link between changes to island vegetation and the marine species that surround it. Through this new funding, Australian scientists and managers will further understand and develop actions to future proof the Great Barrier Reef.

There is no doubt that the Great Barrier Reef is under threat and will greatly benefit from additional funding to enhance water quality and support scientific research. However, this unique ecosystem is unfortunately not the only one that is suffering from climate change and other human stressors. 

Australia has several other unique and extremely valuable marine ecosystems that are also declining rapidly but which receive a minuscule proportion of the funding destined for the Great Barrier Reef. 

We have already lost over 90 per cent of the giant kelp forests off Tasmania due to warming waters, as well as hundreds of kilometres of golden kelp habitat across mainland Australia. These underwater kelp forests are carbon-capturing ecosystems that act as the biological engine of an extremely large ecosystem, the Great Southern Reef, which is over 8,000 km long. 

This ecosystem is right next to where 70 per cent of Australians live and contributes well over $10 billion to the Australian economy each year just from fisheries and tourism. 

Despite all of this, research on our southern marine environments remains chronically under-funded in comparison to the Great Barrier Reef. Three quarters of the fish and invertebrates from the Great Southern Reef are found nowhere else on Earth. If we lose them from here, they are truly gone.

Recent marine heatwaves that resulted in damage to the coral cover in the shallow waters of the Great Barrier Reef highlight some of the consequences of a warming planet on this national icon. 

While coral is important, it comprises about seven per cent of the Marine Park and the World Heritage Area. The rest is comprised of an extraordinary variety of habitats and species all of which are susceptible to global warming. 

Support for projects that enhance resilience are welcome and necessary, but the only way to reduce the risk of unpredictable and dangerous outcomes for the Reef is to limit global warming as well as preventing environmental damage.

To sustain a functioning reef, there must be substantial action globally to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and it is in Australia’s national interest to lead this change with real action.

The number one threat to the Great Barrier Reef is climate change. Under climate change, the oceans are rapidly heating up, making the outlook for coral reefs worldwide, including the Great Barrier Reef, grim.

Already at 1.2 degrees C of global warming, the Great Barrier Reef has suffered three marine heatwaves within five years that resulted in mass coral bleaching and mortality across 98 per cent of the 2300km stretch of the largest coral reef on the planet. Yet, we are barrelling toward warming of more than 2 degrees C, which will be fatal for coral reefs and the organisms, including the humans, that depend on them.

We need to do more, faster, to cut emissions this decade, or the reef will face more severe marine heatwaves, more often, and without time to recover. Climate change is a clear and present danger to Australians and the rest of the planet, threatening our health, safety, livelihoods, infrastructure, economy, and beloved natural spaces. A clean economy is win-win for Australia and for the world.

To give the Great Barrier Reef its best chance at survival, we must emphasise rapidly cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 75 per cent this decade and aim for net zero by 2035.

With an area as vast as the combined size of Victoria plus Tasmania, it’s no surprise that we need a lot of resources to support and protect it [the Great Barrier Reef]. This also means that we need to consider not just the Great Barrier Reef itself, but the land, air, and sea surrounding it, as all play a part in the Reef’s health and long term sustainability. This injection of Federal Government funding is crucial in ensuring that we still have iconic Great Barrier Reef ecosystems for future generations to enjoy and sustainably build their livelihoods upon.

I’m pleased to see that the funding considers the land and sea connection, and will be delivered at the grassroots level through local communities, industries, and Traditional Owners, however, it also needs to be situated within a greater strategy for addressing our response to climate change. With increasing sea surface temperatures arguably one of the greatest stressors for the Reef, we must not lose sight of this challenge.

For the Great Barrier Reef to have a good future we need the duality of greater investment in managing the reef – and local impacts – as well as a clear plan to reduce emissions. This new funding is welcome to assist with achieving the first of the two requirements.