THREAT

DESCRIPTION OF THREAT

POSSIBLE EFFECTS ON REEF

Shipping
Accidents

Shipping accidents are threats

to the Great Barrier Reef,
especially the traffic of several
commercial shipping routes that
pass the reef system every
year. Between 1985-2001, 20
groundings and 11 collisions
were reported, leaving behind
debris and other foreign objects
in the water. Boats have also
been threats to the Great
Barrier Reef, disposing their
wastes and other foreign
objects within the water.

Oil Spills

Great Barrier Reef is the entry

point for extensive oil and gas
deposit. Though oil drilling is
banned from the Reef, oil spills
are often occurrences. About
282 oil spills have occurred
between the years 1987-2002.
2
Agencies have also increased
allowable fines to a maximum
to those shipping companies
who have contributed to the
rising problem of oil spills in the
Great Barrier Reef.

Ship wrecks left behind in shipping

accidents destroy the habitats of
marine wildlife and ecosystems within
the waters in the Great Barrier Reef.
These wrecks leave behind debris and
other foreign material that remain
within the waters for a long period of
time, immediately affecting and
destroying the surroundings within the
ecosystem and habitats of many
marine wildlife.
1

Furthermore, when large sea vessels

such as ships pass the reef they release
toxic TBT compounds (Tributyltin) within
the waters. This toxic released within
the seawater is a threat and
endangerment to not only the marine
organisms within the reef ecosystems
but to humans also.
Oil spills have direct effect on the coral
and marine life of the Reef. Though oil
drilling is banned, oil spills are common
such as that recorded in 2010 by the
Chinese bulk coal carrier, travelling 10
km outside the regulation-shipping
lane. It struck the reef, damaging native
marine life while creating a massive
grounding scar of over 3 km in length.
Events such as theses have damaged
the reef and make it inhabitable for
marine life to survive. Recovery time,
as experts understand may take
between 10 to even 20 years.
3

Longer exposure to the lower levels of

oil within the waters when deposited by
ships may kill coral. Oil is usually toxic
for the corals in the waters and higher
concentrations of the oil can result in
death. Many marine animals such as
butterfly fishes are also reliant upon
such corals and the end to the coral can
further lead to extinction of such rare
species.

1 http://www.workincairns.com/great-barrier-reef/environmental-threats.asp
2 http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/information/great-barrier-reef-threats/
3 http://coralreef.noaa.gov/aboutcorals/facts/coral_oilspill.html

Water
Quality and
Temperatur
e

The rising temperatures of the

waters and the quality of the
water within the Reef itself
immensely affect the Great
Barrier Reef. Both these factors
play a large role in the
contamination and polluting of
water, affecting both the native
marine wildlife and human
recreational activities. Human
wastes and chemicals are
released into the air from
nearby cities of Townsville and
Cairns (near the Great Barrier
Reef). Through the releasing
and polluting of the atmosphere
through such industrialisation
actions, the quality of the
waters is degrading.
4

Temperature is the key factor

in the controlling and spread of
diversity within the marine
wildlife at the Great Barrier
Reef. It is vital in the controlling
of the rate of coral reef growth
and the maintaining of mutual
relationship development
among some marine wildlife.
5
The excess burning of fossil
fuels and other industrialising
human activities are major
contributors to the thinning of
the ozone layer. This thinning is
a contributor to global warming,
and hence this warming impacts
the daily temperature of the
water temperatures at the
Great Barrier Reef.
The Crown
of Thorns
Starfish

The Crown of Thorns Starfish is

the greatest threat on the Great
Barrier Reef. It inhabits on the
reef itself and gains its energy
from feasting on the polyps
(small growth or outgrowth) of
the coral. While feasting it
releases neurotoxins that
absorb the tissue of the coral
and literally suck out the
reefs backbone. The starfish is
native to coral reefs in the IndoPacific region, playing an

Rising water temperatures will affect

every aspect of the Great Barrier Reefs
and its interconnected ecosystems
within the water. Because of prolonged
warm temperatures, coral reefs release
colouring agents and leaving behind
their white skeletons of calcium
carbonate. This process is known as
coral bleaching and is simply just one of
the ways in which higher temperatures
affect the Reef. Predictions by biologists
suggest that if temperatures continue
to rise then by the year 2030, coral
reefs will have practically extinct.
Statistics also suggest that a 2-3
degree Celsius temperature rise could
put about 97% of the reef in danger
zone of bleaching each year.
In the process of the water
contamination at the reef, the reef
water is degrading and the water
quality because a major issue of threat
for the marine wildlife. Out of the 3000
coral reefs in the Great Barrier Reef it is
estimated that approximately 400 are
in danger of contamination because of
the degrading quality of water. This
degrading quality of the water is
because of the chemical and
agricultural wastes. However, many
also believe that the degrading of the
water quality is also caused by the
increasing number of algae that pose
competition in oxygen and light with
the coral reefs.

12 Corals have declined by over 50

percent over the last 30 years and
according to the research by the
Australian Institute of Marine
Science, Crown of thorns starfish are
responsible for almost half of this
decline. Outbreaks of the starfish occur
cyclically over every 17 years. Just
within the Great Barrier Reef there have
been four documented outbreaks since
the 1960s. Furthermore, these starfish
spawn (releasing eggs) in the warmers
months between October to February

4 http://www.workincairns.com/great-barrier-reef/environmental-threats.asp
5 ibid
6

important role when feeding on

the fast growing corals such as
the stag horns and plate corals.
This fast growing coral that got
eaten away by the starfish
would allow for the slower
growing coral species to spread
and form colonies, while helping
to increase coral diversity.

with the production of about 65 million

eggs from large females over spawning
season.

Overfishing/
Illegal
fishing

10 Besides tourism, the Great

Barrier Reefs fishing industry
alone accounts for the gaining
of a profit of 1 billion Australian
dollars yearly. 12 The Great
Barrier Reef supports the
commercial, recreational,
Indigenous and charter fishing,
ranging from species including
fish, sharks, crabs and even
prawns. The Australian and
Queensland Governments share
the responsibility and
management of fishing and its
environmental impact of the
Reef itself. 11 However through
the protection of the Reef by
the Marine Park Authority, areas
of the reef are protected and
catching dolphins, green turtles,
whales and dugongs are
prohibited.

10 Fishing becomes a threat to the

Great Barrier Reef ecosystem when
there is no limit to how many fish
people actually catch and species are
actually being endangered within the
actual process. If people start catching
rare and important species such as the
Giant Triton, food chains can be
disrupted and greater threats may arise
to the Reef. For example, the fishing of
creatures such as the Giant Triton can
disrupt food chains and the Giant
Tritons preys such as the Crowns-ofthorns starfishes can increase in
number, posing to be invasive species
and threats to the Reef. Fishing also has
a negative effect when boats, nets and
anchors are signs of added pollution
and destruction of coral reef habitat
when them come to fish in the reef. 12
Even recreational fishing as it is
promoted, in the year 2007, accounted
for the six million fishes in the reef.
Altogether the impacts of fishing are
not so positive and pose to be a great
threat for the Great Barrier Reef and its
ecosystem.

Marine
Debris

12 Marine Debris is rubbish that

finds its way in the marine
environment. It comes from
both land and sea-based
sources through which plastic is
the most common within the
Great Barrier Reef (50-90% of
all debris item recorded). Most
of the recorded debris consist of
plastic bags, discarded fishing
gear, plastic and glass bottles,
rubber things, aerosols and

12 Marine debris can pose a navigation

hazard for not only marine wildlife but
to tourists and regular citizens within
the waters of the Reef as well. This
debris has the potential to transport
chemical contaminants and transport
invasive species. They can smother
coral, entangling or even ingesting the
wildlife. Not only can it cause deaths
and injuries to the wildlife it can
negatively affect financial gain earned
from tourism and eventually threaten

11 Water quality is also have said to

impact the Crown-thorns conditions to
thrive within an area. The water quality
reduction caused by agriculture has
promoted and allowed the starfish to
thrive within its environment.
Furthermore, the overfishing of the
starfishs predator, the Giant Triton,
also contributes to the abundance of
the crown-of-thorns starfishes and their
impacts on the Great Barrier Reef.

drinking cans.
Extreme
Weather
Conditions

human health.