Occurrence of Attributes in Original Text
The text related to the cultural heritage 'Great Barrier Reef' has mentioned 'Reef' in the following places:
| Occurrence Sentence | Text Source |
|---|---|
| Great Barrier ReefUNESCO World Heritage SiteSatellite image of part of the Great Barrier Reef adjacent to the Queensland coastal areas of Airlie Beach and MackayLocationOff the east coast of the Queensland mainland, AustraliaCriteriaNatural: vii, viii, ix, xReference154Inscription1981 (5th session)Area34,870,000 haWebsitewww.gbrmpa.gov.auCoordinates18xc2xb017xe2x80xb2S 147xc2xb042xe2x80xb2Exefxbbxbf / xefxbbxbf18.283xc2xb0S 147.700xc2xb0Exefxbbxbf / -18.283; 147.700Coordinates: 18xc2xb017xe2x80xb2S 147xc2xb042xe2x80xb2Exefxbbxbf / xefxbbxbf18.283xc2xb0S 147.700xc2xb0Exefxbbxbf / -18.283; 147.700Centre of the Great Barrier ReefShow map of QueenslandGreat Barrier Reef (Australia)Show map of Australia | WIKI |
| [4][5] The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. | WIKI |
| [6] This reef structure is composed of and built by billions of tiny organisms, known as coral polyps. | WIKI |
| A large part of the reef is protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, which helps to limit the impact of human use, such as fishing and tourism. | WIKI |
| Other environmental pressures on the reef and its ecosystem include runoff, climate change accompanied by mass coral bleaching, dumping of dredging sludge and cyclic population outbreaks of the crown-of-thorns starfish. | WIKI |
| [11] According to a study published in October 2012 by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the reef has lost more than half its coral cover since 1985, a finding reaffirmed by a 2020 study which found over half of the reef's coral cover to have been lost between 1995 and 2017, with the effects of a widespread 2020 bleaching event not yet quantified. | WIKI |
| The reef is a very popular destination for tourists, especially in the Whitsunday Islands and Cairns regions. | WIKI |
| A March 2016 report stated that coral bleaching was more widespread than previously thought, seriously affecting the northern parts of the reef as a result of warming ocean temperatures. | WIKI |
| [16] In October 2016, Outside published an obituary for the reef;[17] the article was criticized for being premature and hindering efforts to bolster the resilience of the reef. | WIKI |
| [18] In March 2017, the journal Nature published a paper showing that huge sections of an 800-kilometre (500xc2xa0mi) stretch in the northern part of the reef had died in the course of 2016 due to high water temperatures, an event that the authors put down to the effects of global climate change. | WIKI |
| The types of corals that reproduced also changed, leading to a "long-term reorganisation of the reef ecosystem if the trend continues. | WIKI |
| The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (section 54) demands every five years an Outlook Report on the Reef's health, pressures, and future. | WIKI |
| Contents 1 Geology and geography 2 Ecology 3 Environmental threats 3.1 Climate change 3.2 Pollution 3.2.1 Loss of coastal wetland 3.2.2 Eutrophication 3.2.3 Sediment runoff 3.2.4 Pesticides 3.2.5 Pollution from mining 3.3 Crown of thorns 3.4 Overfishing 3.5 Shipping 3.6 Shark culling 4 Protection and preservation: Reef 2050 plan 5 Human use 5.1 Management 5.1.1 Abbot Point coal port dredge dumping controversy 5.2 Tourism 5.3 Fishing 5.4 Dugong hunting 6 See also 7 References 8 Further reading 9 External links | WIKI |
| [25]:27 The Great Barrier Reef's development history is complex; after Queensland drifted into tropical waters, it was largely influenced by reef growth and decline as sea level changed. | WIKI |
| The reef's substrate may have needed to build up from the sediment until its edge was too far away for suspended sediments to inhibit coral growth. | WIKI |
| [25]:18 The Reef Research Centre, a Cooperative Research Centre, has found coral 'skeleton' deposits that date back half a million years. | WIKI |
| [28] The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) considers the earliest evidence of complete reef structures to have been 600,000 years ago. | WIKI |
| [29] According to the GBRMPA, the current, living reef structure is believed to have begun growing on the older platform about 20,000 years ago. | WIKI |
| [29] The Australian Institute of Marine Science agrees, placing the beginning of the growth of the current reef at the time of the Last Glacial Maximum. | WIKI |
| Aerial view of Arlington Reef | WIKI |
| [27] The CRC Reef Research Centre estimates the age of the present, living reef structure at 6,000 to 8,000 years old. | WIKI |
| [28] The shallow water reefs that can be seen in air-photographs and satellite images cover an area of 20,679xc2xa0km2, most (about 80%) of which[30] has grown on top of limestone platforms that are relics of past (Pleistocene) phases of reef growth. | WIKI |
| The remains of an ancient barrier reef similar to the Great Barrier Reef can be found in The Kimberley, Western Australia. | WIKI |
| The Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area has been divided into 70 bioregions,[32] of which 30 are reef bioregions. | WIKI |
| [33][34] In the northern part of the Great Barrier Reef, ribbon reefs and deltaic reefs have formed; these structures are not found in the rest of the reef system. | WIKI |
| [28] A previously undiscovered reef, 500 meters tall and 1.5xc2xa0km wide at the base, was found in the northern area in 2020. | WIKI |
| Crescentic reefs are the most common shape of reef in the middle of the system, for example the reefs surrounding Lizard Island. | WIKI |
| Crescentic reefs are also found in the far north of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, and in the Swain Reefs (20xe2x80x9322 degrees south). | WIKI |
| Most of the islands on the reef are found on planar reefs. | WIKI |
| Wonky holes can have localised impact on the reef, providing upwellings of fresh water, sometimes rich in nutrients contributing to eutrophication. | WIKI |
| A variety of colourful corals on Flynn Reef near Cairns | WIKI |
| Moore Reef | WIKI |
| The Great Barrier Reef supports an extraordinary diversity of life, including many vulnerable or endangered species, some of which may be endemic to the reef system. | WIKI |
| [39][40][41] More than 1,500 fish species live on the reef, including the clownfish, red bass, red-throat emperor, and several species of snapper and coral trout. | WIKI |
| Six species of sea turtles come to the reef to breed: the green sea turtle, leatherback sea turtle, hawksbill turtle, loggerhead sea turtle, flatback turtle, and the olive ridley. | WIKI |
| The green sea turtles on the Great Barrier Reef have two genetically distinct populations, one in the northern part of the reef and the other in the southern part. | WIKI |
| Saltwater crocodiles live in mangrove and salt marshes on the coast near the reef. | WIKI |
| [43] Around 125 species of shark, stingray, skates or chimaera live on the reef. | WIKI |
| [47][48] Close to 5,000 species of mollusc have been recorded on the reef, including the giant clam and various nudibranchs and cone snails. | WIKI |
| 215 species of birds (including 22 species of seabirds and 32 species of shorebirds) visit the reef or nest or roost on the islands,[25]:450xe2x80x93451 including the white-bellied sea eagle and roseate tern. | WIKI |
| A striped surgeonfish amongst the coral on Flynn Reef | WIKI |
| There are at least 330 species of ascidians on the reef system with the diameter of 1xe2x80x9310xc2xa0cm (0.4xe2x80x934xc2xa0in). | WIKI |
| Between 300xe2x80x93500 species of bryozoans live on the reef. | WIKI |
| [48] Four hundred coral species, both hard corals and soft corals inhabit the reef. | WIKI |
| [53] Five hundred species of marine algae or seaweed live on the reef,[40] including thirteen species of genus Halimeda, which deposit calcareous mounds up to 100 metres (110xc2xa0yd) wide, creating mini-ecosystems on their surface which have been compared to rainforest cover. | WIKI |
| Climate change, pollution, crown-of-thorns starfish and fishing are the primary threats to the health of this reef system. | WIKI |
| The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority considers the greatest threat to the Great Barrier Reef to be climate change, causing ocean warming which increases coral bleaching. | WIKI |
| Coral bleaching events lead to increased disease susceptibility, which causes detrimental ecological effects for reef communities. | WIKI |
| The draft decision also warned Australia that it will not meet the targets of the Reef 2050 report without considerable work to improve water quality. | WIKI |
| Climate change has implications for other forms of reef lifexe2x80x94some fish's preferred temperature range leads them to seek new habitat, thus increasing chick mortality in predatory seabirds. | WIKI |
| The rivers of north eastern Australia pollute the Reef during tropical flood events. | WIKI |
| Farming practices damage the reef due to overgrazing, increased run-off of agricultural sediments, nutrients and chemicals including fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides representing a major health risk for the coral and biodiversity of the reefs. | WIKI |
| Some 67% of corals died in the reef's worst-hit northern section, the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies report said. | WIKI |
| Sediment runoff from farming carries chemicals into the reef environment also reduces the amount of light available to the corals decreasing their ability to extract energy from their environment. | WIKI |
| The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) stated "We have strongly encouraged the company to investigate options that do not entail releasing the material to the environment and to develop a management plan to eliminate this potential hazard; however, GBRMPA does not have legislative control over how the Yabulu tailings dam is managed". | WIKI |
| In 2000, an outbreak contributed to a loss of 66% of live coral cover on sampled reefs in a study by the Reef Research Centre (RRC). | WIKI |
| The unsustainable overfishing of keystone species, such as the giant Triton, can disrupt food chains vital to reef life. | WIKI |
| Fishing also impacts the reef through increased water pollution from boats, by-catch of unwanted species (such as dolphins and turtles) and habitat destruction from trawling, anchors and nets. | WIKI |
| [77] As of the middle of 2004, approximately one-third of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park is protected from species removal of any kind, including fishing, without written permission. | WIKI |
| [79] Although the route through the Great Barrier Reef is not easy, reef pilots consider it safer than outside the reef in the event of mechanical failure, since a ship can sit safely while being repaired. | WIKI |
| [81] On 3 April 2010, the bulk coal carrier Shen Nengxc2xa01 ran aground on Douglas Shoals,[82] spilling up to four tonnes of oil into the water and causing extensive damage to the reef. | WIKI |
| Protection and preservation: Reef 2050 plan | WIKI |
| In March 2015, the Australian and Queensland's governments formed a plan for the protection and preservation of the reef's universal heritage until 2050. | WIKI |
| This 35 years plan, titled "Reef 2050 Plan" is a document proposing possible measures for the long-term management of the pollution, climate change and other issues that threaten the life span and value of this global heritage. | WIKI |
| The plan contains all the elements for measurement and improvements, including; long-term sustainability plan, water quality improvement plan and the investment plan for the protection and preservation of The Reef until 2050. | WIKI |
| However, whereas the 2050 plan aims to incorporate protective measures such as improving water quality, reef restoration, killing of predatory starfish, it does not incorporate additional measures to address the root cause the problem namely climate change (which is caused by greenhouse gas emissions). | WIKI |
| As part of the Reef 2050 plan, an AUD$443xc2xa0million grant was given to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation in 2018. | WIKI |
| [96] For these 70 or so clan groups, the reef is also an important cultural feature. | WIKI |
| In 1768 Louis de Bougainville found the reef during an exploratory mission, but did not claim the area for the French. | WIKI |
| [100] Because the reef had no atolls, it was largely unstudied in the 19th century. | WIKI |
| [25]:7 During this time, some of the reef's islands were mined for deposits of guano, and lighthouses were built as beacons throughout the system. | WIKI |
| [101] In 1922, the Great Barrier Reef Committee began carrying out much of the early research on the reef. | WIKI |
| Main article: Great Barrier Reef Marine Park | WIKI |
| Royal Commissions disallowed oil drilling in the Great Barrier Reef, in 1975 the Government of Australia created the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and prohibited various activities. | WIKI |
| [102] The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park does not include the entire Great Barrier Reef Province. | WIKI |
| [22] The park is managed, in partnership with the Government of Queensland, through the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority to ensure that it is used in a sustainable manner. | WIKI |
| A combination of zoning, management plans, permits, education and incentives (such as eco-tourism certification) are employed in the effort to conserve the reef. | WIKI |
| These forms of pollution have made the reef less resilient to climate change. | WIKI |
| Their immediate goal was to halt and reverse the decline in water quality entering the reef by 2013. | WIKI |
| By 2020, they hope that the quality of the water entering in the reef improves enough so that it doesn't have a detrimental impact on the health of the Great Barrier Reef. | WIKI |
| To achieve these goals they decided to reduce pollutants in the water entering the reef and to rehabilitate and conserve areas of the reef that naturally help reduce water pollutants. | WIKI |
| The plan specifically targets nutrients, pesticides and sediment that make their way into the reef as a result of agricultural activities. | WIKI |
| The updated version states that to date, none of the efforts undertaken to improve the quality of water entering the reef has been successful. | WIKI |
| The new plan attempts to address this issue by "targeting priority outcomes, integrating industry and community initiatives and incorporating new policy and regulatory frameworks (Reef Planxc2xa05)". | WIKI |
| Some key achievements made since the plan's initial passing in 2003 were the establishment of the Reef Quality Partnership to set targets, report findings and monitor progress towards targets, improved land condition by landowners was rewarded with extended leases, Water Quality Improvement Plans were created to identify regional targets and identified management changes that needed to be made to reach those targets, Nutrient Management Zones have been created to combat sediment loss in particular areas, education programs have been started to help gather support for sustainable agriculture, changes to land management practices have taken place through the implementation of the Farm Management Systems and codes of practice, the creation of the Queensland Wetland program and other achievements were made to help improve the water quality flowing into the coral reefs. | WIKI |
| After this, a stakeholder working group was formed that worked between several groups as well as the Australian and Queensland governments to update reef goals and objectives. | WIKI |
| In 2006, a review of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act of 1975 recommended that there should be no further zoning plan changes until 2013, and that every five years, a peer-reviewed outlook report should be published, examining the reef's health, management, and environmental pressures. | WIKI |
| Only readily available information goes into the report so little of what is known about the Reef is actually featured in each outlook report. | WIKI |
| According to corresponding approval documents, the process will create around 3xc2xa0million cubic metres of dredged seabed that will be dumped within the Great Barrier Reef marine park area. | WIKI |
| On 31 January 2014, the GBRMPA issued a dumping permit that will allow three million cubic metres of sea bed from Abbot Point, north of Bowen, to be transported and unloaded in the waters of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. | WIKI |
| Furthermore, dredge spoil can literally smother reef or sea grass to death, while storms can repeatedly resuspend these particles so that the harm caused is ongoing; secondly, disturbed sea floor can release toxic substances into the surrounding environment. | WIKI |
| The Australian Federal Government announced on 13 November that there would now be a ban on the dumping of dredge spoil in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. | WIKI |
| Helicopter view of the reef and boats | WIKI |
| Due to its vast biodiversity, warm clear waters and accessibility from the tourist boats called "live aboards", the reef is a very popular destination, especially for scuba divers. | WIKI |
| [117] A Deloitte report published by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority in March 2013 states that the Reef's 2,000 kilometres of coastline attracts tourism worth A$6.4xc2xa0billion annually and employs more than 64,000 people. | WIKI |
| The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority has also placed many permanent anchorage points around the general use areas. | WIKI |
| These act to reduce damage to the reef due to anchoring destroying soft coral, chipping hard coral, and disturbing sediment as it is dragged across the bottom. | WIKI |
| Tourism operators also must comply with speed limits when travelling to or from tourist destinations, to prevent excessive wake from the boats disturbing the reef ecosystem. | WIKI |
| Beneath the ocean surface, there is an abundance and diversity of shapes, sizes and colours; for example, spectacular coral assemblages of hard and soft corals, and thousands of species of reef fish provide a myriad of brilliant colours, shapes and sizes. | UNESCO |
| Today the GBR forms the worldxe2x80x99s largest coral reef ecosystem, ranging from inshore fringing reefs to mid-shelf reefs, and exposed outer reefs, including examples of all stages of reef development. | UNESCO |
| Criterion (ix): The globally significant diversity of reef and island morphologies reflects ongoing geomorphic, oceanographic and environmental processes. | UNESCO |
| The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, an independent Australian Government agency, is responsible for protection and management of the GBR Marine Park. | UNESCO |
| The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 was amended in 2007 and 2008, and now provides for xe2x80x9cthe long term protection and conservation ... of the Great Barrier Reef Regionxe2x80x9d with specific mention of meeting "... Australia's responsibilities under the World Heritage Convention". | UNESCO |
| the temporal closures that are legislated across the GBR prohibit all reef fishing during specific moon phases when reef fish are spawning). | UNESCO |
| Other key initiatives providing increased protection for the GBR include thecomprehensive Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report (and its resulting 5-yearly reporting process); the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan; the GBR Climate Change Action Plan; and the Reef Guardians Stewardship Programs which involve building relationships and working closely with those who use and rely on the GBR or its catchment for their recreation or their business. | UNESCO |