Reef Task Force Head: "We're Stuffed With A Capital S" w/o Cuts In Ag Runoff To Great Barrier Reef
A cap on pollution from farms close to the Great Barrier Reef has been proposed by advisers to the Queensland government. The Great Barrier Reef water science taskforce, which advises the Queensland government on how to meet pollution targets on the reef, said sugar cane, grazing and other sectors should be given pollution load limits for their industries in each catchment. It also called for incentives such as auctions for pollution reduction, greater monitoring and regulation, along with “significantly more investment” in the problem.
The Labor state government said it would adopt some of the recommendations immediately, and use the recommendations to guide $90m the government committed to spend on reef water quality before being elected.
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Among them, the government would spend $33.5m on two projects to limit fertiliser and pesticide runoff from the northern wet tropics, and to limit sediment from the southern Burdekin region. They would also spend $20m to support changes in land management, which would limit pollution, and $11m on greater water quality monitoring, which could provide information to farmers.
The majority of water pollution hitting the Great Barrier Reef comes from farms along the rivers that feed into the Queensland coast. Land clearing also increases the amount of sediment pollution. Minimising water pollution would make coral and seagrass more resilient to the biggest problems the reef faces, as a result of climate change.
At a press conference, Queensland’s chief scientist Geoff Garrett, who led the taskforce, reportedly said “we’re stuffed with a capital S” if water quality isn’t improved.
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http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/may/25/great-barrier-reef-advisers-call-for-cap-on-farm-pollution
