Australia Approves Great Barrier Reef Dredge Dumping

CRIMES AGAINST NATURE
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Australian company to dump 3 million tons of sand and mud in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park

Australian authorities approved a project on Friday to dump dredged sediment in the Great Barrier Reef marine park to create world’s biggest coal [dirty] port.

The decision which was made by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) follows the government approval last year for the coal terminal at Abbot Point port to be expanded.

The primary role of GBRMPA, believe it or not, is to protect the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef Marine Park!

Some 233 scientists and conservationists had earlier signed a letter urging GBRMPA to reject the dumping plan.

“The permit allows North Queensland Bulk Ports Corp to dump [3 million tons of] dredged material in the reef marine park to deepen Abbot Point for two terminals planned by Adani Enterprises and GVK-Hancock, which have long term plans to export 120 million tonnes a year of coal all together,” reported Reuters.

Abbot Point is Australia’s most northerly deepwater coal port located south of Townsville about 25km north of Bowen on the Queensland coast.

The approved disposal site is located approximately 25 km  ENE of Abbot Point port, said GBRMPA.

The port hosts some 200 vessels with maximum cargo tonnage of about 16 million tons
each year, as of 2012.

The Great Barrier Reef – World Heritage Area

The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef structure composed of nearly 3,000 individual reefs extending over 2,600 km (1,680 miles). The GBR spreads over an area of about 345,000 km (133,000 sq mi) in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, Australia.

The Great Barrier Reef received world heritage status in 1981, the first coral reef ecosystem in the world to achieve the distinction.