On the large barrier, Beaver Reef is the area that has been protected since the longest. Marine life is fantastic, but we still feel that it continues to suffer.
30 kilometers off the Beach mission, the Beaver reef wakes up under the palms. This reef is not just a spectacular diving site; It is also the symbol of collective awareness. In the 1970s, faced with oil drilling projects threatening the reef, Australians mobilized massively to protect this unique ecosystem. This mobilization led to the creation of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority in 1975, marking the start of concerted management of the reef. “On the big barrier, Beaver Reef is the area that has been protected since the longest, confirms Toby, a diver accustomed to the place. Marine life is fantastic, but we still feel that she continues to suffer.”
Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1981, this gigantic biological structure, the largest in the world, covers more than 2,300 kilometers along the Côte du Queensland, in the northeast of Australia. It houses nearly 400 species of corals, 1,500 species of fish, turtles, rays, dugongs … A ecosystem as rich as threatened.
These are real lungs of our oceans. Coral reefs are the ecosystem that houses the most biodiversity on earth.
Coral reefs are indeed essential elements of the life of our oceans. “These are aquatic forests, recently explained Titouan Bernicot, founder of Coral Gardeners, on the occasion of the UN conference. These are real lungs of our oceans. Coral reefs are the ecosystem that houses the most biodiversity on earth.”
For several decades, the large barrier has received the blows: warming water has caused repeated episodes of whitening of corals, too frequent cyclones mulled it, and agricultural pollution from the continent weakens its resilience. The color loss of coral is a sign that the latter suffers, worse, is dying. “It is not a unique event that kills it, it is accumulation. It suffers from chronic stress,” explains a marine biologist.
Faced with this observation, the scientific community and many organizations are mobilizing. Among the most innovative projects: the Forever Reef Project, carried by the Great Barrier Reef Legacy team. Their ambition? Constitute a real “biobank” of the corals of the reef.
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By collecting and keeping alive fragments of hundreds of different species, the objective is to create a genetic reserve which will serve to restore the most affected areas. A bit like what is done in Norway with the World Svalbard seed reserve which currently brings together more than 1.3 million seed samples from nearly 6,300 land varieties. “What we do in Port Douglas is to protect the DNA of the reef, says Isaac, chief aquariologist of the project. If a species disappears locally, we can reintroduce it. It is a form of life insurance.”
What we do in Port Douglas is protecting DNA from the reef. If a species disappears locally, we can reintroduce it. It is a form of life insurance.
In a discreet center located in Port Douglas, each fragment is carefully identified, maintained, documented. Nearly 200 species are already preserved, and regular shipments aim to enrich this living collection. “We will then explore other regions of Australia, then the rest of the world,” added the scientist.
The work does not stop there. Other initiatives test the assisted reproduction of corals, the selection of more resistant heat strains, or the planting of corals cultivated in nursery. The task is colossal. But hope is there, in the commitment of scientists, citizens, and even tourists increasingly aware of the need to visit without damaging.
Supervised tourism activities
Aware of the potential impacts of mass tourism, Australia has implemented measures to supervise tourism activities on the large coral barrier. They are thousands to put on a mask and snorkel every day to go and observe this heritage with invaluable value. Strategies have been defined to manage tourism while protecting reef. This plan aims to support sustainable tourism and minimize environmental impacts related to tourism activities. “We look with the eyes. We don’t touch anything and above all we do not take anything,” insists our instructor before authorizing the launch.
In addition, the Tourism Reef Protection initiative mobilizes tourist operators to monitor and protect the sites they visit regularly. These operators contractually undertake to carry out reef protection services, thus ensuring the preservation of world heritage values, now and in the future.
Back on the surface, while the sun pierces the clouds above the sea of coral, an observation is essential: the large barrier is not yet lost, but the fight to be waged is pus that never important.
A hospital for turtles
A stone’s throw from Cairns, Fitzroy Island rests on turquoise waters, between coral beaches and wooded hills. A postcard decor. But behind this quiet beauty, a small structure works discreetly for nature: the Turtle rehabilitation center.
Under a few tarpaulins, out of sight, some large pools, filled with seawater constantly renewed. In one of them, a green turtle turns slowly, its movements measured as a tired choreography. Her name is Raine.
It was found failed, floating, incapable of diving. She had swallowed plastic.
“It has been here for over a year,” explains Maëlis, who shows the center to tourists. “We found her failed, floating, unable to dive. She had swallowed plastic.” Here, we treat with patience. And sometimes, often even, we wait. “The idea is to be able to release them as quickly as possible, but for some, it takes much more time, sometimes several years,” explains Maëlis, making us visit the center.
Raine is immense. Its shell has the color of the algae, marbled by scars. When she goes back to breathe, a short breath finds silence. Then she descends, slowly, almost with caution. In the neighboring basin, other convalescence turtles. All damaged by the same invisible evil: that of nets, engines, waste.
For 25 years, the center, modest, has lived thanks to donations and volunteers. We come in flip flops, between two dives, to observe. “It is not a zoo, however, recalls the guide. Turtles leave as soon as they can.” And when one is released, the team accompanies him to the sea. “170 turtles have passed through this center over the last 25 years, takes up Maëlis. For the moment, there are three turtles in the center.”
Including Raine, she who is not yet ready and continues her slow back and forth in her small basin. “She’s going better. She dresses. She feeds on it. But we are waiting for the right time. She will tell us when.”
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Going back, the gaze remains hung on the basin. Raine floats in clear, peaceful water. She doesn’t know it yet, but the ocean is waiting for her.
