The Great Barrier Reef is in “danger”, says the UN. But Australia disagrees

(CNN) – The Great Barrier Reef has deteriorated to such an extent that it should be listed as a world heritage site “in danger”, a United Nations committee said on Tuesday, prompting an immediate reaction from the Australian government.

The Unesco World Heritage Committee recommended listing, acknowledging that the climate crisis is the factor driving the destruction of the world’s largest coral reef. He called on Australia to address “urgently” the threats of climate change.

The listing will be voted on at the committee meeting in China next month.

Australia’s Environment Minister Sussan Ley said the government will “strongly oppose” the recommendation, arguing that the government was investing $ 3 billion in reef protection. Ley said officials in Canberra were “stunned” by the move and accused Uneco of turning its back on previous assurances that the reef would not be declared endangered.

“The Great Barrier Reef is the best managed reef in the world and this draft recommendation was made without examining the reef first hand and without the latest information,” Ley said in a statement.

In a call with Audrey Azoulay, Unesco’s director general, Ley said she “made it clear that we will challenge this flawed approach, which has been taken without proper consultation.”

This is the Great Barrier Reef

Spanning nearly 345,000 square kilometers and home to more than 1,500 species of fish and 411 species of hard coral, the Great Barrier Reef is a vital marine ecosystem. It also contributes $ 4.8 billion annually to the Australian economy and supports 64,000 jobs, according to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.

But the reef’s long-term survival has been questioned. It has suffered three devastating mass bleaching events since 2015, caused by above-average ocean temperatures as the burning of fossil fuels warms the planet.

In October, researchers from ARC Center of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies They found that the reef had lost 50% of its coral populations in the past three decades, and that climate change was a key factor in the alteration of the reefs.

In 2019, the Australian government’s Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report recess reef condition from “bad” to “very bad”.

The Unesco committee said it was crucial for Australia to implement the recommendations in that 2019 report, calling for “accelerated action to mitigate climate change and improve water quality.”

He said that the government’s “progress has been insufficient” in complying with its key reef policy, called Plan Arrecife 2050, and that it “requires stronger and clearer commitments, in particular to urgently counter the effects of climate change.”

Ley, the environment minister, agreed that climate change is the biggest threat to the world’s reefs, but said that “it is wrong, in our opinion, to designate the world’s best-managed reef for a list of ‘endangered ‘”.

Emission reduction

Scientists said the Unesco proposal was a wake-up call.

In its current course, global average temperatures will rise by more than 2 degrees Celsius, which scientists warn that no coral reef can survive, according to the Climate Council. It has recommended that Australia reduce its emissions by 75% by 2030 and reach net zero by 2035.

Australia has not committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050, making it at a global outlier. Australia’s current targets are to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 26-28% from 2005 levels by 2030, which have been widely criticized for not being ambitious enough.

“The Australian government has stewardship of one of the world’s most precious and iconic ecosystems, but its continued support for fossil fuels and its lack of an effective climate policy means that it is failing to fulfill that responsibility,” said the Climate spokesperson. Council and climate scientist Professor Lesley Hughes in a statement.

“The situation is dire and our response must match that.”

Greenpeace Australia Pacific CEO David Ritter said the reef cannot be protected “without rapidly reducing greenhouse gas emissions from burning coal, oil and gas.”

‘Just a week after Prime Minister (Scott) Morrison faced disapproval from world leaders for his poor climate performance at the G7 conference, we are seeing the dire consequences of Australia’s inability to cut emissions, and Reef is paying the price, “Ritter said in a statement.

Unesco recommendations

The report comes as Australia swore in a new deputy prime minister on Tuesday. Barnaby Joyce, a climate change skeptic, is leader of the Nationals, a party that represents rural Australia, which relies heavily on fossil fuel mining. Joyce’s position is expected to make it more difficult for the Morrison government to strengthen the climate goals adopted by most other major nations.

UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger has 53 entries, including natural wonders and man-made sites. The Old City of Jerusalem was added in 1982, while Aleppo, the Syrian city bombed by airstrikes, was included in the list in 2013.

Inclusion is supposed to prompt parties to take action to save endangered sites. According to the Unesco website, if an endangered site loses the characteristics that make it special, “the World Heritage Committee may decide to remove the property from both the List of World Heritage in Danger and the List of World Heritage.”

– CNN’s Hilary Whiteman contributed reporting.