GBRMPA deploy divers near Port Douglas to survey Great Barrier Reef coral bleaching
Published Tuesday 5 April 2016
The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) has begun its own in-water surveys into the full extent of coral bleaching on reefs near Port Douglas.
In light of media coverage surrounding the severity of coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef, the GBRMPA is currently undertaking extensive reporting on the central and southern central areas where most Port Douglas operators take tourists daily.
As of Friday the conditions of these reefs are listed as having minor to severe levels of coral bleaching.
GBRMPA Tourism and Stewardship Director Dr Roger Beeden said diving teams had been deployed to popular tourism reefs off Cairns and Port Douglas, but it could take ‘months’ to fully assess the impact of bleaching. He admitted the major areas of concern were north towards Cape York but said bleaching had intensified in recent weeks.
“Survey work is now at our maximum level,” Dr Beeden said.
“The underwater surveys allow us to assess the extent and severity of the bleaching in detail, including the types of coral being affected, the rate of coral disease and level of mortality, and the depth to which coral reefs are being bleached.
“These surveys complement aerial surveys conducted by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, which enable bleaching levels to be assessed in a shorter space of time than in-water surveys.
“The in-water surveys effectively ‘ground truth’ the extent of bleaching impacts on corals, both in shallow and deep water. As further surveys are conducted, we will be in a better position to provide a full assessment of the impact of bleaching on each region.”
Local reef companies Quicksilver and Calypsos Reef Cruises have been left frustrated that areas of the reef near Cairns and Port Douglas are continually spoken about in the same breath as the more damaged northern tip.
Although acknowledging coral bleaching is a threat, they’ve been moved to disarm fears that insurmountable damage is being done to the entire organism.
“The Great Barrier Reef is a massive reef system, 2,500 km long, it’s obviously warmer up the northern end,” Glenn Baird, Quicksilver Group Environment and Compliance Manager, said.
“The media reports recently highlighted 95 per cent coral bleaching, those were focused predominantly on the far northern section of the Great Barrier Reef. We’re seeing bleaching but it’s a lot patchier than what you would see up there.”
Marine Biologist Dr Glen Burns was confident cooling water temperatures and the existing health of the reef heading into this bleaching event meant a strong recovery was possible.
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He said the ‘very healthy’ coral spawning in November meant larvae should be growing and would assist in its recovery.
“This reef has been very robust and very healthy for a long time,” Dr Burns said.
“Because this reef was so healthy going into this bleaching event, there is a very good chance that if the water continues to cool off - as it is now in the beginning of April - hopefully those water temperatures will continue to drop and this reef will come back to as beautiful as it was last year.
“And if it does we can breath a great sigh of relief, the corals will go back to photosynthesizing and hopefully we’ll get through this bleaching event with very little mortality. That’s what we’re hoping for.”
The last major bleaching event on the Great Barrier Reef occurred in 1998, and although severe, only a small mortality rate was reported for coral.
“Bleaching is not necessarily a death sentence for the coral,” Baird said.
“The reef definitely can recover, we need a nice cool spell of weather now because we’re getting to a more critical period where we need a change in weather. So nice south easterly (winds) with a bit of cloud cover would be nice.”
