The Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is located off the coast of Queensland and is one of
the most popular tourist destinations in the world. The Great Barrier Reef is
the worlds largest reef system with over 2900 individual reefs and 900
islands stretching over 344,000 square kilometres and is the
largest natural forming single structure in the world and can even be seen
from space.
Located in the Coral sea off the coast of Qeensland in north – east Australia it is
an amazing place to see and to visit, the Reef includes snorkelling, sight
seeing and is of significant interest to scientists and environment groups.
The natural beauty and importance to marine life as one of the richest and
complex ecosystems on the planet is well known. While there are other
coral reefs in the world, the great barrier reef is unique in it’s size and for
this reason is an important global resource.
UNESCO listed the site as a natural World Heritage in 1981 because it was a
significant landmark and attraction to Queensland and Australia and needs to
be preserved. The Reef is the largest natural forming coral reef in the world
and is home to millions of organisms and sea creatures, including many rare
and endangered species.
The forms of life include over 300 species, including, hard coral, anemones
sponges, worms, lobster, crayfish, crabs and prawns and a large number of
birds and fishes. As well as the many beautiful creatures that inhabit the
waters there are other more destructive reef animals such as the crown-ofthorns starfish. This has been responsible for much destruction of the reef
and causes much concern for scientists. This is one of the main reasons
UNESCO have taken action to protect the welfare of the Reef from all the
current dangers that are threatening the survival. In addition to the
destructive reef animals listed above, other natural causes such as global
warming and human caused dangers such as oil spills are of concern.
This has lead to increased management and control of the reef, especially in
regard to tourist crafts. Many people from all over the world visit
Queensland every year and the Great Barrier Reef is one of the top five
destinations. The Reef earns over one billion dollars each year in tourism,
making it one of the top destinations worldwide. Although this brings good
things for the economy, it is important to find a balance between protecting
the reef and enjoying it as a tourist attraction.
The Great Barrier reef is extremely beautiful, very large and colourful with
lots of unique marine life. The coral reefs expand over a large space of area
and from the air looks transparent and very blue. The coral is pink and the
water is crystal clear and warm all year around, making it very exciting to
snorkel.
According to Wikipedia, the criteria for a natural world heritage listing must
include the following.

(vii) "contains superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty
and aesthetic importance"

(viii) "is an outstanding example representing major stages of Earth's history,
including the record of life, significant on-going geological processes in the
development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features"

(ix) "is an outstanding example representing significant on-going ecological and
biological processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial, fresh water,
coastal and marine ecosystems, and communities of plants and animals"

(x) "contains the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ
conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of
outstanding universal value from the point of view of science or conservation"
The Great Barrier Reef meets all of these requirements and this is why it was
listed in 1981.
The Great Barrier Reefs ecosystem supports the greatest concentration
of marine life on this planet and is very important for its natural and
ecological importance..
As well as its natural and ecological
importance, the Great Barrier Reef
has cultural and historical relevance
with human involvement dating back
to the 17th century.
In conclusion, not only does the
Great Barrier Reef provide us with a thriving tourist attraction, it also
represents the foundations for local and recreation fishing. More
important, it reminds us of the importance of nature and how
dependant we are as humans on this balance The Reef does deserve to
be a world heritage site based on all the evidence given above.