AUSTRALIA’S PROGRESS ON GREAT BARRIER REEF PROTECTION RECOGNISED
The Australian Government has welcomed a draft decision from the World Heritage Committee which confirms the Reef 2050 Plan has been effective.
The draft decision points to the importance of the Reef’s resilience despite the challenges faced from coral bleaching.
The Government acknowledges in its draft decision the Committee’s desire for accelerating actions towards water quality targets and will work with the Queensland Government and the Independent Expert Panel on this matter.
As previously acknowledged by the World Heritage Committee, the Reef 2050 Plan is critical to boosting the Great Barrier Reef’s health and resilience in order for it to better deal with the effects of climate change and other pressures.
This is why Australian and Queensland governments are investing more than $2 billion over the coming decade in the Reef 2050 Plan. In addition, the Turnbull Government’s commitment of $1 billion through the Clean Energy Finance Corporation is for projects specifically tackling climate change and water quality.
It is critical for reefs worldwide, including the Great Barrier Reef, that international efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are effective. Australia is taking strong action to address the global threat of climate change having ratified the Paris Agreement which will see Australia reduce its emissions by 26 to 28 per cent on 2005.
The Committee will consider today’s draft decision at its meeting in Krakow, Poland, in early July
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