Slashdot Mirror
Australia's Great Barrier Reef Showing 'Signs of Recovery' (stuff.co.nz)
Australia's Great Barrier Reef appears to be showing signs of recovery after a massive coral bleaching event in 2016 and 2017. Stuff.co.nz reports: The nonprofit Reef & Rainforest Research Centre has reported signs of recovery due to a milder 2017-18 summer, as well as cooperation among science, industry, and government in supporting the reef's recovery, according to the report issued on Wednesday by the Queensland State Government. The RRRC, in cooperation with the Association of Marine Park Tourism Operators, conducted detailed surveys at key tourism dive sites around the city of Cairns in 2016 and 2017 and says certain reefs that were strongly affected in the bleaching event are showing significant signs of improvement.
Coral bleaching occurs in multiple stages, according to RRRC Managing Director Sheriden Morris, ranging from the equivalent of a mild sunburn to coral mortality. "When a reef is reported as 'bleached' in the media, that often leaves out a critical detail on how severe that bleaching is, at what depth the bleaching has occurred and if it's going to cause permanent damage to the coral at that site," Morris said in the statement, adding that the Barrier Reef "has significant capacity to recover from health impacts like bleaching events." Reports that the entire reef is dead due to severe bleaching are "blatantly untrue," Morris said. Still, he warns that the recovery is "contingent on environmental conditions" and that the reef "may suffer further bleaching events as the climate continues to warm."
Coral bleaching occurs in multiple stages, according to RRRC Managing Director Sheriden Morris, ranging from the equivalent of a mild sunburn to coral mortality. "When a reef is reported as 'bleached' in the media, that often leaves out a critical detail on how severe that bleaching is, at what depth the bleaching has occurred and if it's going to cause permanent damage to the coral at that site," Morris said in the statement, adding that the Barrier Reef "has significant capacity to recover from health impacts like bleaching events." Reports that the entire reef is dead due to severe bleaching are "blatantly untrue," Morris said. Still, he warns that the recovery is "contingent on environmental conditions" and that the reef "may suffer further bleaching events as the climate continues to warm."
The reefs are doing fine, and they always were.
https://wattsupwiththat.com/20...
Also in that article we find that the polar bears are doing well, CO2 emissions will not lead to a climate catastrophe, pesticides are not poisoning you from fresh fruits and veggies, GMOs are good for you, farmed fish are good for the environment and nutritious, nuclear power is our future, there is no floating plastic island the size of Texas (or of New Hampshire), CO2 is not turning the oceans to acid, and climate change is not killing the trees.
Has anyone noticed that there's no pictures of the plastic floating out at sea? Certainly something that big is visible from space. Or maybe there's some kind of tour one could take to see this plastic, kind of like people going out to see whales.
Getting back on topic, shouldn't there be pictures of the damage to the coral reef? They claim they've documented this. I assume they have before and after photos. I'd like to see those photos. I realize that a lot of this stuff is out at sea where it's difficult for people to see for themselves but someone certainly has taken photos by now. In the past such equipment might have been exceedingly expensive but now a waterproof cameras are sold as child's toys, are a feature of most every cell phone, and if someone wants to get real deep in the water then they might have to spend a few dollars more. For the most part the ability to document this in a way for all to see is quite inexpensive and should be available to even a hobbyist.
In other words, photos or it didn't happen.
I am armed because I am free. I am free because I am armed.