The Great Barrier Reef is apparently in grave danger. A record number of coral deaths has been logged this year. The apparent reason behind the death is global warming. According to scientists, warming oceans have caused the huge number of deaths.
The worst effect is on a 700-kilometer swath in the north of the 2,300-kilometer chain of reefs along Australia's northeast coast. The Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies came across the data while doing dive surveys in the last couple of months. The center found that 67% of the shallow-water corals in the swath north of Port Douglas in the last nine months. While the central part has lost 6% of bleached coral, the southern part lost just 1%.
According to CNN, two significant coral bleaching events took place in 2002 and 1998. ARR director Terry Hughes, however, said 2016 has seen the most overwhelming mortality. According to him, more severity will be caused if global warming increases by just two degrees.
The Queensland government, as well as the Australian government, is going to work on improving and protecting the Great Barrier Reef. Josh Frydenberg, the federal minister for the environment and energy, said that coral cover of the reef had increased by 19% in recent times. But, it has suffered major bleaching event in 2016 due to climate change and El Nino weather.
"The mortality we've measured along the length of the Great Barrier Reef is incredibly patchy," Bloomberg quoted Hughes as telling reporters. "There's very severe damage in the northern section of the reef."
Hughes also said that the south of Port Douglas had suffered a low number of deaths. The area includes prominent tourist areas around Whitsunday Islands and Cairns. The Great Barrier Reef apparently shows signs of resilience and strength. And, that leaves environmentalists with hope that the situation can still be restored.
