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[The Australian Government] shortly after approving the largest coal mine in its history, successfully pressured the United Nations to remove a chapter about th
by theGimp 10y ago
[The Australian Government] shortly after approving the largest coal mine in its history, successfully pressured the United Nations to remove a chapter about the reef from a report on the impact of climate change on World Heritage sites. Australia’s Department of the Environment explained the move by saying, “experience had shown that negative comments about the status of World Heritage-listed properties impacted on tourism.” In other words, if you tell people the reef is dying, they might stop coming.
It's the other way around. If you tell people the reef is dying, they go en masse, which contributes to the bleaching greatly.
- niftich 10y agoThe true answer is likely more complex. Australia is one of the top coal producers in the world, has one of the largest reserves of coal in the world, and coal's share in electricity generation and exports is very high. Ranking high on various quality-of-life indices, Australia's government is wise to protect coal's continued role in the economic system of the country. Sadly, drawing too much attention to the association between climate change, the Great Barrier Reef, and Australia's role in perpetuating climate change in its own (front)yard hurts its economic outlook and energy independence, which are valuable attributes in a world with dwindling resources. It's a shame that this maneuvering has to occur at the expense of the Reef.