The Sustainable Development Goals[1] are a call for action by all countries – poor, rich and middle-income – to promote prosperity while protecting the planet. They recognize that ending poverty must go hand-in-hand with strategies that build economic growth and address a range of social needs including education, health, social protection, and job opportunities, while tackling climate change and environmental protection.

Marine biodiversity is critical to the health of people and our planet. Marine protected areas need to be effectively managed and well-resourced and regulations need to be put in place to reduce overfishing, marine pollution and ocean acidification.

That’s why the issue of saving ocean is included into 17 Goals. Goal 14 states: “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources” [2].

The ocean drives global systems that make the Earth habitable for humankind. Our rainwater, drinking water, weather, climate, coastlines, much of our food, and even the oxygen in the air we breathe, are all ultimately provided and regulated by the sea. However, currently, there is a continuous deterioration of coastal waters owing to pollution, and ocean acidification is having an adversarial effect on the functioning of ecosystems and biodiversity. This is also negatively impacting small scale fisheries. [3] 

Coral reefs are critical marine habitat on which many ocean species depend. Additionally, coral reefs provide an estimated $30 billion annually in direct economic benefit to people worldwide though food, fisheries and tourism, according to the. Coral reefs are large underwater structures composed of the skeletons of colonial marine invertebrates called coral. Each individual coral is referred to as a polyp. Coral polyps live on the calcium carbonate exoskeletons of their ancestors, adding their own exoskeleton to the existing coral structure. As the centuries pass, the coral reef gradually grows, one tiny exoskeleton at a time, until they become massive features of the marine environment. Corals are found all over the world's oceans, from the Aleutian islands off the coast of Alaska to the warm tropical waters of the Caribbean sea. The largest of these coral reef systems is the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and one of the world’s most remarkable natural gifts. [4]

The reef contains an abundance of marine life and comprises of over 3000 individual reef systems and coral cays and literally hundreds of picturesque tropical islands with some of the world’s most beautiful sun-soaked, golden beaches.

The reef actually consists of some 2,100 individual reefs and some 800 fringing reefs (formed around islands or bordering coastlines). Many are dry or barely awash at low tide; some have islands of coral sand, or cays; and others fringe high islands or the mainland coast. In spite of this variety, the reefs share a common origin: each has been formed, over millions of years, from the skeletons and skeletal waste of a mass of living marine organisms. 

Forms of life include at least 450 species of hard coral as well as anemones, sponges, worms, gastropods, lobsters, crayfish, prawns, and crabs. More than 1,500 species of fishes and other vertebrates inhabit the reef. Some of the most common fishes include wrasses, damselfish, triggerfish, and angelfish, and larger species include rays and sharks (e.g., tiger sharks and whale sharks, the largest living fish). The reef is also home to six of the seven known species of sea turtles, more than a dozen sea snakes, and nearly two dozen species of birds.

In addition to its scientific interest, the reef has become increasingly important as a tourist attraction.

To focus the efforts to preserve this natural gift for the future of our planet and generations to come it’s necessary to understand the true conditions of the Reef and challenges it faces.

The 2009 Outlook Report [5] identified the long-term challenges facing the GBR. These are dominated by climate change over the next few decades. Temperatures are rising on our land and in our oceans, caused primarily by an increase of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases. CO2 levels have been rising steadily for more than 100 years due mainly to the burning of fossil fuels, trapping more heat in our atmosphere and contributing to climate change.

The other threatening factor is ocean acidification. The ocean absorbs carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere, making it more acidic. A more acidic ocean means corals are less able to build skeletons and form coral reefs, which help protect coastlines from storms and provide habitats for thousands of species of marine life. [6]

The coral bleaching occurs when corals are under stress. A primary cause of coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef during summer is heat stress from raised water temperatures and increased UV radiation. A temperature increase of just one degree Celsius for only four weeks can trigger bleaching.

For the Great Barrier Reef, the main water quality issues are:

Increasing sediment, nutrients and contaminants entering coastal waters in run-off from agricultural, industrial and urban land uses.

Rising seawater temperatures and increasing seawater acidity associated with climate change.

Increased sedimentation and nutrients can cause higher algal growth, build-up of pollutants in sediments and marine species, and reduced light and smothered corals.

As water temperatures rise, many marine species are being forced to move south to cooler habitats. This shift creates increased competition for food and shelter in cooler waters, threatening the entire ecosystem.

Species that live in the Reef can also cause damage. One major pest species is the crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci). A starfish may sound harmless, but these venomous creatures voraciously eat coral. Every so often, their numbers spike. Some scientists think these starfish caused over half of the reef damage from 1985 to 2012. On the Great Barrier Reef, outbreaks are reduced through the use of a targeted crown-of-thorns starfish control program, with trained divers injecting the starfish with bile salt (made in the liver of oxen) or vinegar. This kills the starfish but doesn’t harm the surrounding ecosystem.

Growing concern over the preservation of its natural heritage has led to increased control on such potentially threatening activities as drilling for petroleum resources.

 

Great Barrier Reef rescue activities are realized in the frames of specific programs:

1. The project «Resilient Reefs»

​Reef resilience is the capacity of Reef ecosystems and the individuals, businesses and communities that depend upon them to survive, adapt and recover from the stresses and shocks that they experience. By building resilience, the ability of Reef communities to prepare for and recover from disturbances, adapt to changing circumstances and plan for an uncertain future is being strengthened.​ [7]

Pioneered by the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, the Resilient Reefs Initiative is a global partnership bringing together local communities, Reef managers, and resilience experts to develop new solutions for adapting to the effects of climate change and local threats.

Resilient Reefs has 4 key pathways to create deep, lasting change:

Build capacity of Reef managers to be agents of change and institutionalize resilience planning.

Empower and equip local communities to take action and create sustainable jobs and income (the task set in the 17 SDGs [1]).

Implement solutions that have a significant impact on Reefs and Reef communities.

Foster a global network of Reef resilience leaders and inspiring others to build Reef resilience.

Islands and their connected reefs play a crucial role as habitat refuges for the thousands of species that live and thrive on the Great Barrier Reef.

Pioneered by the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, the Reef Islands Initiative [8] was launched in 2018 as the largest reef habitat rehabilitation project of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere – bringing together Traditional Owners, scientists, local tourism leaders, governments and the community to protect and restore critical habitats.
Right now, in the early stages of the 10-year program, it’s already possible to see critical turtle nesting habitat increased by 125% at Lady Elliot Island – the first location for the Initiative.

The Coral Nurture Program uses the skills of tourism operators to help coral recovery. [6] Just as they did in the bid to have the World Heritage area declared, science and tourism have joined forces for the next wave of reef management in the form of the Coral Nurture Program.

While some conservation efforts are by scientists for science, the Coral Nurture Program uses the skills of tourism personnel who work on the reef to collect broken coral fragments, attach them to underwater frames where they will grow faster and then out-plant them on the reef. 

The words of Dr. Erika Woolsey, marine biologist, National Geographic explorer & designer, explain why it is so important to protect reefs: “Coral reefs provide food and livelihoods for hundreds of millions of people around the world, they protect shorelines from erosion, and they contain compounds that are used to treat human ailments. Even though they cover less than one percent of the sea floor, they harbor about a quarter of all marine biodiversity” [3].

It’s important to prevent this natural wonder from fading away. And for anyone who has gazed upon that turquoise water and its rich array of wildlife, even if only in pictures, there's no doubt this essential global resource is worth fighting for as an a key feature of a sustainable future of our civilization.

References

1. United Nations. Department of Economic and Social Affairs. SustainableDevelopmen[Электронный ресурс] – : thttps://sdgs.un.org/goals / (дата обращения - 10.12.2021). – Текст: электронный.

2. United Nations. Department of Economic and Social Affairs. SustainableDevelopmen[Электронный ресурс] – : https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal14 / (дата обращения - 10.12.2021). – Текст: электронный.

3. Great Barrier Reef | National Geographic Society [Электронный ресурс] – : https://www.nationalgeographic.org/article/great-barrier-reef/ (дата обращения - 15.12.2021). – Текст: электронный.

4. What Are Coral Reefs? | Live Science [Электронный ресурс] – : https://www.livescience.com/40276-coral-reefs.html (дата обращения - 15.12.2021). – Текст: электронный.

5. Great Barrier Reef - UNESCO World Heritage Centre: https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/154/ (датаобращения - 15.12.2021). – Текст: электронный.

6. Great Barrier Reef Foundation [Электронный ресурс] – : https://www.barrierreef.org/ (дата обращения - 05.01.2022). – Текст: электронный.

7. Resilient Reefs [Электронный ресурс] – : https://www.bhp.com/-/media/documents/community/bhpfoundation/190606_bhpfoundation_resilientreefs.pdf?la=en / (дата обращения - 05.01.2022). – Текст: электронный.

8. The Reef Islands Initiative. Great Barrier Reef Foundation / https://www.barrierreef.org/what-we-do/projects/reef-islands (датаобращения - 05.01.2022). – Текст: электронный.

9. Coral Nature Program [Электронныйресурс] – : https://www.coralnurtureprogram.org/ Ways You Can Help Protect The Reef | Cairns & Great Barrier Reef [Электронныйресурс] – : https://www.tropicalnorthqueensland.org.au/articles/ways-help-great-barrier-reef/(датаобращения - 05.01.2022). – Текст: электронный.

10. Why the Great Barrier Reef Is in Danger [Электронныйресурс] -:https://www.treehugger.com/great-barrier-reef-threats-4868728 (датаобращения - 05.01.2022). – Текст: электронный.

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