Why UN scientists singled out the Great Barrier Reef for criticism
By Mike Foley
There are three good reasons why Australia has been singled out by UNESCO with its threat to list the Great Barrier Reef as in danger of losing its World Heritage site status.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) said on Tuesday that it had given Australia a one-year reprieve from an in-danger rating for the reef, but will force Australia to come back next year and demonstrate what else it is doing to protect the reef.
The Paris Agreement states that developed nations such as Australia must take the lead on climate action.Credit: Justin Maire and Ashley Dungan / Supplied
UNESCO has not made the same threat against any of the other 29 World Heritage-listed coral reefs, which are all suffering damage from coral bleaching due to the effects of climate change.
But of the 30 reefs listed as World Heritage sites, the Great Barrier Reef has experienced the worst damage from repeated coral bleaching, driven by climate change. Other threats to its health include pollution and sediment runoff from agricultural, urban areas and mining within its catchment; commercial fishing; shipping; and increased cyclone activity.
A second reason is Australia’s climate change policy.
Two other developed countries have World Heritage-listed coral reefs – France and the US – but Australia’s climate target is significantly weaker. In their finding on the reef’s status, UNESCO scientists urged Australia to toughen up its climate targets to bring them into line with the international efforts needed to meet the Paris Agreement goal of holding warming to 1.5 degrees.
Rapid greenhouse emissions cuts are needed in the next decade or so to offer any chance of meeting the 1.5 degree goal. France, as a member of the EU, has pledged to cut emissions by at least 55 per cent by 2030, and the US is committed to a 50 per cent cut by the end of the decade.
The Albanese government significantly upgraded Australia’s target to cut emissions 43 per cent by 2030, up from the Morrison government’s pledge of 26 per cent by the end of the decade.
But it’s still off the mark according to analyst Climate Action Tracker – which found Australia must set a target to cut emissions by at least 57 per cent by the end of the decade.
Climate Action Tracker found that if all other countries adopted goals similar to Australia’s current policy then the world would warm by more than 3 degrees, spelling doom for coral reefs the world over.
The third reason Australia was singled out was the Paris Agreement’s requirement for developed nations to take the lead on climate action.
Most of the countries with World Heritage-listed coral reefs have not made commitments that are sufficient to halt global warming at 1.5 degrees. But the Paris Agreement, which was signed by 196 countries, states that developed nations like Australia must take the lead on climate action and assist poorer countries to cut their greenhouse pollution, with funding and practical assistance.
Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said on Monday that Australia deserved its reprieve from UNESCO, but the Albanese government did not need World Heritage threats as motivation to protect the reef.
“There are some people that think we need an in-danger listing to make this government take the reef seriously. That’s just simply not the case,” Plibersek said.
Of the 30 reefs with World Heritage listing, the Great Barrier Reef has experienced the worst coral bleaching damage.Credit: Illustration by Matt Golding
However, World Heritage status is a major marketing tool for the $6 billion a year tourism drawcard, and Plibersek confirmed she lobbied the UN not to downgrade the reef.
“I made Australia’s position very clear to UNESCO. I spoke with the Director-General personally on several occasions. I spoke to UNESCO ambassadors of other nations. I’ve done that at international conferences, I’ve done that by correspondence. I make no apology for that.”
UNESCO is holding Australia to the highest standards, in an obvious effort to push one of the world’s wealthiest nations to raise its climate targets to the standards required by the Paris Agreement.
It has given the Albanese government 12 months to announce an upgraded, and politically risky, emissions reduction goal or the Great Barrier Reef will once again be in danger of losing its World Heritage status.
Labor’s climate policies were carefully calibrated before the last election. The real question is whether it is prepared to go further before UNESCO meets again in 2024.
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