Commit to immediately ending the public funding and subsidies of coal, oil and gas,.

Commit to an emissions reduction target of 75% by 2030,.

If we take climate leadership then our coral reefs, and the thousands of species that rely on them (which includes us), can rebuild and thrive for generations to come. But to do this, we must quit dirty coal, and transition to renewable energy today. With real leadership we can stop carbon pollution and allow our coral reefs to recover and rebuild. We can solve the coral bleaching crisis – if we choose to If we don’t act to halt this pollution, we risk the future of our precious Reef. In just seven years, our Reef has suffered four severe mass coral bleaching events, faster and more severe than scientists predicted. If we don’t keep 1.5C of global warming within reach this decade, the harsh reality is we will see more mass bleaching events and the rapid decline of our global icon. Scientists tell us that once we hit 1.5C of warming coral reefs will struggle to survive. The Coral reef expert answers audience questions about the 2020 coral bleaching event.Ī before and after photo of coral bleaching on Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Queensland. If you’re interested in diving deeper, watch our YouTube video with Professor Morgan Pratchett from ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University. We need to urgently reduce our carbon pollution and limit the global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees, or the world’s reefs will face a bleak future. This would be devastating for coral reefs as they would have no chance to recover. If we continue burning fossil fuels at our current rate then severe bleaching events are likely to hit reefs annually by the middle of the century. It can take decades for coral reefs to fully recover from a bleaching event, so it is vital that these events do not occur frequently. It can struggle to regrow, reproduce and resist disease – so is very vulnerable to coral diseases and mortality. However prolonged warmer temperatures and other stressors, like poor water quality, can leave the living coral in a weakened state. If conditions return to normal, and stay that way, corals can regain their algae, return to their bright colours and survive. In some instances corals can recover from bleaching. Coral reefs take around a decade to fully recover. A healthy Reef can recover from coral bleaching, but it needs time and the right conditions. Some corals can feed themselves, but without the zooxanthellae, most corals starve. When corals get stressed, from things such as heat or pollution, they react by expelling this algae, leaving a white skeleton behind. Zooxanthellae provide the coral with food and energy from the sun (due to a process called photosynthesis), allowing them to grow and reproduce. When the Reef’s waters stay too hot for too long, the coral becomes stressed and expel the colourful marine algae living inside their tissues, called zooxanthellae. In March 2022 91% of the Reef was impacted by bleaching, and it was the first time the Reef bleached during a La Nina weather event, which typically creates cooler, cloudier conditions. Since 2016 the Great Barrier Reef has suffered four mass bleaching events. Record-breaking marine heatwaves are causing mass coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef and coral reefs globally. Water pollution, overfishing and coastal development are taking their toll on coral reefs at the local level, while carbon pollution threatens reefs worldwide and remains their biggest threat. At least a quarter of the world’s marine life needs coral reefs for some part of their life cycle.ĭespite their beauty and importance coral reefs around the world are disappearing fast. Other impacts for our ocean include an increase in intensity of cyclones, ocean acidification, and extreme weather events.Ĭoral reefs are not just beautiful, brightly coloured backgrounds for serene snorkelling experiences - they are vital to life on earth.One of the many impacts of climate change is global warming, or global heating.Marine heatwaves cause coral bleaching.The Reef supports thousands of unique marine animals and plants and our way of life.Ĭlimate change is the biggest threat to the Reef, and is making marine heatwaves hotter, longer and more frequent. The Great Barrier Reef is immense, beautiful, diverse, and vibrant.

Barrier reef