Please sign and spread the word!!!

3 min read

Deviation Actions

SavingMotherNature's avatar
Published:
621 Views
Conservative estimates say that up to a third of the Great Barrier Reef has been affected by coral bleaching. More recent surveys have shown that it is closer to 50%. Never has this icon of Australia been more under threat - yet when the environment minister, Greg Hunt, approved the Carmichael coal mine, he chose a coal mine over the Great Barrier Reef.
Sign this petition to join an already growing resistance to the threats faced by Great Barrier Reef

Carbon emissions are the biggest threat to the Great Barrier Reef. The Carmichael coal mine will emit 79 million metric tons of carbon dioxide a year, which is more than some countries, and equal to Malaysia and Austria put together. Yet, even without Carmichael, Australia is not only the world’s largest exporter of coal, but at 28 billion tonnes of CO2 per year creates the highest per capita greenhouse gas emissions in the world.

Carbon emissions affect the reef in multiple ways, and unless something is done now, the spiral of destruction to the Great Barrier Reef will be irreversible.

Under the World Heritage Convention, Australia is obliged to do “all it can to the utmost of its resources” to protect the outstanding universal value of the Great Barrier Reef. The first step in doing this would be to say no to the Carmichael Coal Mine, and to say yes to renewable energy.
Australia has immense potential for generating renewable energy; it is sunny, with large areas of open land and surrounded by water. A report by the University of Melbourne and the collaborative Zero Carbon Australia Project has shown that the country could be powered by solar and wind energy alone within 10 years—if the political will existed.

Right now there seems to be no political will to save the Great Barrier Reef. The scale of the bleaching is unprecedented. The speed and scale of coral bleaching is taking even the most conservative scientists by surprise. Malcolm Turnbull and Greg Hunt need to start thinking about Australia's long-term environmental health, which includes protecting the reef from further harm, trying to minimize further damage to the reef and promote a more healthy environment for the reef to heal and regrow. A healthy reef and the money it brings in from tourism will outlast the Carmichael coal mine. A healthy reef that sustains an entire eco-system is more important to Australia than any coal mine will ever be. A dead reef will not attract any tourists; a dead reef means the death of more than just tourism. An entire eco-system is at stake.  www.thepetitionsite.com/838/93…
© 2016 - 2024 SavingMotherNature
Comments0
Join the community to add your comment. Already a deviant? Log In