AUSTRALIAN officials once again breathed a sigh of relief after the world’s largest reef system, under its care, managed to avoid being placed on a list of world heritage sites categorized as “in danger.”
In a report, UNESCO acknowledged the positive steps taken by the Australian government to protect the reef since representatives sent by the agency visited Queensland in March last year.
The agency’s scientific advisors however warned that the planet’s biggest coral reef remains under “serious threat” due to global warming and water pollution.
In November of last year, UN experts recommended that the world’s largest coral reef system be added to the list of world heritage in danger due to threats including rising ocean temperatures.
But UNESCO issued an updated report in Paris on Monday which asked to re-evaluate whether the famed tourist attraction in Queensland fitted the world heritage in-danger criteria.
Due to heat stress, the Great Barrier Reef has suffered series of mass bleaching events since 2017.
Australia’s draft recommendation on how to improve the situation of the world’s largest coral reef system will be discussed at a meeting in Saudi Arabia in September which will be attended by 21 countries.
