The condition of the Great Barrier Reef has worsened to such an extent that it should be listed as "in danger," according to a United Nations committee on Tuesday. The Australian government immediately opposed this.
UNESCO's World Heritage Committee advised the distinction. It acknowledged the climate crisis as the driving factor behind the aggravation of the largest coral reef in the globe.
Ocean Warning
In 2020, researchers discovered the reef, found off the coast of Queensland in northeastern Australia, had lost more than half of its coral populations in the previous 30 years due to ocean warning. The UN report's advisory indicates that a sped-up action to bolster water quality and mitigate climate change was important to turn this decline around. It indicated that Australia should take action immediately, reported Axios.
Flawed Process
According to the Australian federal government, the listing was an erroneous process that ignored its effective management plans. The Australian government believes the listing was politically motivated.
Scientists supported the declaration overnight by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). They stated the government's lack of action to address climate change and its threat is to blame, reported The Sydney Morning Herald.
The most recent bout is part of an ongoing dispute between the Australian government and UNESCO over the status of the iconic site.
The reef stretches for 2,300km (1,400 miles) off Australia's northeast coast. It gained World Heritage ranking in 1981 for its large scientific and intrinsic vitality, reported BBC.
For years, Australia has been fighting to keep the reef, a significant tourist attraction that supports numerous jobs, off the "in danger" list. UNESCO noted in 2015 that the outlook for the reef was poor but maintained the status of the site.
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The inclusion will be voted on at the China committee meeting in July.
According to the Australian Minister for the Environment Sussan Ley, the government will vehemently oppose the listing. She contended the government was investing in reef protection. Ley remarked that officials in Canberra were appalled by the move. They accused UNESCO of backflipping on earlier affirmations that the reef would not be declared endangered.
She also implied to Australian news outlets that China's government could have influenced the report's advisory as the current UNESCO chair.
Relations Between Australia, China
The association between the governments of Australia and China has been aggravated in the past few years. Australian officials blamed the Chinese Communist Party for disrupting domestic politics while Beijing said Canberra has a "Cold War mentality."
The panel's draft "in danger" listing for the Great Barrier Reef's status could be the first move in a process that witnesses the multibillion-dollar tourism drawcard and generator of 60,000 jobs removed from the World Heritage sites list.
According to Ley, the federal and Queensland state governments were investing over $3 billion to improve water quality and protect the reef's fisheries.
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