A Major Boon For The Great Barrier Reef Foundation and Restoration Project! Australia's $443 Million Dollar Commitment.
For all you Great Barrier Reef lovers and nature conservationist out there, today we have a victory. It has been reported that the Australians have agree to fund the Great Barrier Reef Foundation with $443 million dollars. This funding was personally approved by Australia’s Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull recently. This is a great win for supporters of restoring The Great Barrier Reef. The details on the agreement is still not clear but it seems that the “investment will support delivery of key actions under the Reef 2050 Plan. Projects will be designed to be implemented from 2019.” So rest assured that things are getting serious and that the future of the Great Barrier Reef is now looking less grim.
What is the Great Barrier Reef?
As described on Wiki “The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,300 kilometers (1,400 mi) over an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometers (133,000 sq mi). The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. The Great Barrier Reef can be seen from outer space and is the world's biggest single structure made by living organisms. This reef structure is composed of and built by billions of tiny organisms, known as coral polyps. It supports a wide diversity of life and was selected as a World Heritage Site in 1981. CNN labelled it one of the seven natural wonders of the world.” If you are interested you can even take an underwater tour of the reef system via street view on google maps.
Coral Bleaching is real!
The Great Barrier Reef is currently undergoing a massive large scale coral bleaching event. Due to factors such as global warming and increased water pollution a rapid and major shift in Australia’s marine ecosystem is occurring. The bleaching of coral within The Great Barrier Reef is one of these shifts. Coral bleaching occurs when zooxanthellae (a microscopic algae) that lives with in corals are expelled resulting in coral to appear “bleached”. Corals are codependent on zooxanthellae for survival and bleaching often leads to the death of the coral. It is sad but this phenomenon is wide spread and affect almost every part of The Great Barrier Reef.
Here is an example of what bleached corals look like.
The Great Barrier Reef Foundation
The Great Barrier Reef Foundation exists to ensure a Great Barrier Reef for future generations. They are the lead charity dedicated to protecting the Great Barrier Reef to ensure their long-term conservation. The Foundation was established in 2000 in response to the United Nations World Heritage Convention encouraging countries with world heritage sites to establish a national foundation whose purpose is to invite donations for their protection. They lead a collaboration of business, science, government and philanthropy for the benefit of the Reef and harness advances in science, technology and industry to ensure a future survival of The Great Barrier Reef. Working closely with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, they fund priority projects that help protect and restore the Great Barrier Reef face major threats towards The Great Barrier Reef together. In addition with the landmark Reef 2050 Long-Term Sustainability Plan as the roadmap, they’re working to help deliver practical solutions and actions for the Reef more quickly, more efficiently and more effectively, using science and innovation.
Visit and support The Great Barrier Reef Foundation
The Reef 2050 Plan
Thanks everyone for reading. I am finally back after a very long break. This is my first post since I have been back so please share the love. I hope to continue posting content at lease a few times the week from now on so stay posted.
