Overview

• The Australian Institute for Marine Science found the reef lost about 25% of corals in the north, up to 33% in the south and 14% in the central region over the past year.
• This represents the largest single-year coral decline since the 1980s and follows five major bleaching events since 2016.
• Scientists attribute the bleaching to record ocean temperatures driven by climate change.
• Hefty storms and outbreaks of crown-of-thorns starfish have further damaged coral and slowed recovery.
• The reef supports 60,000 jobs and contributes about 6 billion AUD annually to Australia’s tourism and fishing industries.