Great Barrier Reef getting covered by sand?

[JLight]

I was on Facebook tonight and was scrolling down my feed like I usually do before I go to bed, and ran into a article that caught my eye.
Is Australia Going to Kill the Great Barrier Reef on Friday? | VICE United States

Seems like Australians are more worried about finding more coal than protecting the reef. Article says the sand should settle in 7-10 days but that is enough time to effect corals isnt it? Thought this was something to bring up.

 

[mjr]

sad, but true

 

[JLight]

Thats just crazy! Do they not realize how sensitive it is? Its crazy to me that they can just throw tons of sand on the reef and not think there will be any negatives from it.

 

[KoleTang]

Thats just crazy! Do they not realize how sensitive it is? Its crazy to me that they can just throw tons of sand on the reef and not think there will be any negatives from it.

Yet they restrict coral and live rock collection in the most strict ways.

 

[JLight]

It's just crazy to me that this is the best option. Is there no other place that would be able to accept tons of sand other then a sensitive reef?

 

[Eienna]

Good grief. ..dump it over open ocean somewhere, not right on top of the corals!

 

[TJ's Reef]

Well that certainly soured my stomach reading all of those comments, JUST ABSOLUTELY HATE the saying '"If we don't/won't someone else will" as an excuse for doing something horribly and knowingly WRONG just to make a $

Cheers, Todd

 

[ifarmer]

only people in the hobby like us feel sad. people that are not in the hobby, they do not feel sad. they wouldn't care less

 

[JLight]

Good grief. ..dump it over open ocean somewhere, not right on top of the corals!

That's what I was thinking! Why pick the only place where it could do damage? Isn't there some sort of agency that protects the barrier reef?

 

[solar]

Wow. Just WOW. Why can't they take the crap and dump it on open sea. Or better yet on land? We get imprisoned for taking corals/rock/fish/criters out the reef but its OK for these smuks to kill it all... Shows you what really matters in goverments eyes $$ There is nothing quite like it in size, rarity, complexity and beauty and it is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. That is why it has been declared a World Heritage Site and a Marine National Park, under the governing body of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority <--- so why are they allowing them to dump stuff there. Isn't there laws against it?

This just in. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-01-31/decision-expected-on-abbot-point-coal-port-dredge-dumping/5229358




Also fill this out if you truly care.
https://act.wwf.org.au/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1775&ea.campaign.id=23238

 

[JLight]

https://act.wwf.org.au/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1775&ea.campaign.id=23238[/url]

Thanks for sharing that! I signed it and more people should. I pretty sure it only needed 5000 more people.

 

[mfinn]

When I see a article that is posted here or other places that is shocking like that article, I will usually look around that website.
So I did just that. I went to that websites home page and saw the very first story they had there, which leaves me wondering about the truthfulness of the reef story.
Has anyone found another source for the same story?

 

[Mike J.]

Yes, this story has been in the news. They are dumping the sand in deep water away from the reef. Also did you read where the Environmental Minister has approved it. If you read other stories about him he is absolutely anal about global warming and environmental protection and protecting the reef. Another thing, the opposition knows they are dumping it away from the reef in deep water, so they come up with the idea that the cloud is going to drift over the reef and block out the sun that's vital to corals. The dredgers are also limited when they dump the silt according to the tide. Another thing have you ever seen volumes of sand expressed in cubic feet? Read further into the article and you'll see it listed in cubic yards like it always is - another scare tactic - saw that one a mile away.

Do you really believe this garbage? Do you really think that anyone could get away with dumping dredge silt on the Great Barrier Reef? Come on.

There are reasons why this port was picked over much larger ports. Because it is near deep water and there's a lot less dredging to be done.

The opposition is a bunch of fanatics.

 

[Mike J.]

Another side to this story. President Obama has declared a war on coal in the United States. How much of an impact do you think that will have on the world as a whole? Read this article. President Obama can't stop the rest of the world from increasing the use of coal exponentially.

A$9 Billion Coal Port Expansion Approved in Australia - Bloomberg