Australia plans to dump a million tons of sludge on the Great Barrier Reef. Despite strict waste disposal laws, the administration of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMPA) approved this. It was found a loophole: the ban does not apply to materials obtained during port works. Industrial waste raises from the seabed near the port of Hay Point, one of the country’s main sources of income and the world’s largest exporter of coal.
Due to environmental concerns, in 2015, the federal government banned waste disposal near the reef. But the ban concerned only dredging. Maintenance work in ports intended to clear shipping lanes is not prohibited.
Larisa Waters, a Queensland senator and deputy leader of the Green Party, called on the marine park administration to revoke the license to work. “The last thing the reef needs is more sludge dumped on it, after being slammed by the floods recently,” said The Guardian. The senator added that dumping one million tons of sludge into the waters of a World Heritage site will turn the reef into a garbage dump.
According to Dr. Simon Boksoll from the National Oceanographic Center of Southampton, this is “another nail in the coffin” for the Great Barrier Reef listed as a World Heritage Site. Climate change affects this reef. The doctor thinks: “If they are dumping it over the coral reef itself, it will have quite a devastating effect.”
The sediment is dangerous because it envelops the corals. Coral lives in symbiosis with algae. Thanks to algae, the corals normally feed and retain their color. Without this symbiosis, coral can die.
The North Queensland Bulk Harbor Corporation said the release of sludge would have a negligible impact on the environment. In a statement published on the Internet, the corporation claims that a catastrophe will not happen. The company’s reports show that risks will be predominantly low with some temporary short-term consequences.
Dr. Boxall explains that exposure can be reduced by throwing sludge far from shore. But despite this, the sediment will still contain a large amount of harmful substances. “If it is thrown into shallow water, the sludge will strangle marine life,” he said. According to Boxall, it is important that the procedure is correct. “It will cost more money, but this is not an environmental problem, it is a problem of the port authorities.”
Last year, Australia pledged $ 500 million to protect the Great Barrier Reef, which has already lost 30% of its coral. Corals began to discolor. One of the reasons is the global rise in ocean temperature.
By author Milena Moskvich