UN alert on Great Barrier Reef status irks Australia

CANBERRA, Australia－The Great Barrier Reef should be added to a list of World Heritage Sites that are "in danger", a United Nations panel said, drawing an angry response from Australia.

Environmentalists though applauded the UN World Heritage Committee's proposal.

The UN committee said in a draft report on Monday "there is no possible doubt" that the network of corals off Australia's northeast coast was "facing ascertained danger".

The report recommends the world's most extensive coral reef ecosystem be added to UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger, which includes 53 sites, when the World Heritage Committee considers the question in July.

Australia has lobbied for years to stay off the endangered list as it could lead to the world's biggest coral reef ecosystem losing its World Heritage Site status, potentially reducing its attraction for tourists.

The UNESCO committee said action was needed to counter the effects of climate change as the prospects of the reef retaining that status had deteriorated.

Reef cruise operators said the report was wrong and tourists continued to be awed by dazzling coral and multicolored fish. But some tourists said the reef had seemed more colorful during visits decades ago.

Environment Minister Sussan Ley said she and Foreign Minister Marise Payne had called UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay to express the government's "strong disappointment" at the proposal.

Australia, which is one of 21 countries on the committee, will oppose the listing, Ley said.

Environmental campaigners said the decision highlighted Australia's lack of action to curb the carbon emissions which contribute to global warming.

The network of 2,500 reefs covering 348,000 square kilometers has been World Heritage-listed since 1981. But its health is under increasing threat from climate change and rising ocean temperatures.

The report found the site had suffered significantly from coral bleaching events caused by unusually warm ocean temperatures in 2016, 2017 and last year.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature said in December climate change had pushed the reef into critical condition.

Protection not enough

"The recommendation from UNESCO is clear and unequivocal that the Australian government is not doing enough to protect our greatest natural asset, especially on climate change," said WWF head of oceans Richard Leck.

Australian Marine Conservation Society environmental consultant Imogen Zethoven said the UNESCO report made clear that limiting global temperature rises to 1.5 C above preindustrial levels was critical for the Great Barrier Reef.

"Australia's climate record is more consistent with a 2.5-3.0 C rise in global average temperature, a level that would destroy the Great Barrier Reef and all the world's coral reefs," she said.

Apart from the Great Barrier Reef, there are questions whether Venice and Budapest should be put on the list of World Heritage in Danger. UNESCO has recommended removing Liverpool's waterfront from its list of world heritage sites over concerns about overdevelopment.

Agencies Via Xinhua