Attempts to fix Great Barier Reef water quality could cost $8.2bn

A satellite view of tidal channels cut through
 the Great Barrier Reef. Dredging for shipping,
agricultural run-off and urban stormwater
all contribute to poor water quality that can
damage coral.

Attempting to fix the water quality for the Great Barrier Reef will cost $8.2bn in the next decade but even then some of the targets will be impossible to meet, according to a landmark report commissioned by the Queensland government.

The targets are part of the federal government’s Reef 2050 Plan, the implementation of which is required by Unesco in order for the reef to avoid being included on the world heritage in danger list. Currently, state and federal governments are spending less than a tenth of what the report finds is required.

The conclusions are part of the government’s final Water Science Taskforce report, and associated costings study. It only addresses water quality issues and not warming, which was responsible for killing almost a quarter of the coral on the Great Barrier Reef this year. Improving water quality is expected to give the coral a better chance of recovering from bleaching.

The final costings amount to about half that of a draft version of the report leaked to the ABC, but are roughly in line with independent analysis published in a scientific journal in May.

Read The Guardian story - “Fixing water quality for Great Barrier Reef will cost $8.2bn, report finds.”