What makes great barrier reef unique

The Belize Reef off the Caribbean coast of Belize is the second longest barrier reef in the world at km, while Ningaloo Reef off the West Australian coast is km long. Home The Reef Reef facts. Size and area The Great Barrier Reef is unique as it extends over 14 degrees of latitude, from shallow estuarine areas to deep oceanic waters. Coral and habitats While coral reefs initially made the Great Barrier Reef famous, they only comprise about seven per cent of the Marine Park and the World Heritage Area.

Marine Park size compared to other areas Covering ,km 2 , the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park is: bigger than Victoria and Tasmania combined bigger than the United Kingdom, Switzerland and Holland combined roughly the same area as Japan, Germany, Malaysia or Italy approximately half the size of Texas slightly smaller than the entire Baltic Sea.

Related content Reef health Biodiversity Animals Heritage. If no button appears, you cannot download or save the media. Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service. Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. You cannot download interactives. Biodiversity refers to the variety of organisms found in a particular habitat.

It is important to maintain biodiversity because we rely on it for ecosystem services, which fall into four main categories: provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting. The earth provides these to us for free and they are critical to achieving a planet in balance.

Use these resources to explore the diverse species that exist across the globe, and encourage your students to become good stewards of life on earth. A reef is a ridge of material at or near the surface of the ocean. There are natural and artificial reefs. Corals are fascinating animals that form reefs. Learn the risks our world's coral reefs are facing and what they mean for our future and the future of the ocean. Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students.

Skip to content. Image barrier reef Coral reefs like the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Queensland, Australia, support diverse marine populations in unique underwater ecosystems. Photograph by vlad Twitter Facebook Pinterest Google Classroom. Article Vocabulary. Friday, April 19, The Great Barrier Reef , which extends for over 2, kilometers miles along the northeastern coast of Australia, is home to over 9, known species.

Great Barrier Reef. Media Credits The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. Media If a media asset is downloadable, a download button appears in the corner of the media viewer. Text Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service.

Interactives Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. Related Resources. View Collection. View Article. Coral Reefs. Some of the key ecological, physical and chemical processes that are essential for the long-term conservation of the marine and island ecosystems and their associated biodiversity occur outside the boundaries of the property and thus effective conservation programs are essential across the adjoining catchments, marine and coastal zones.

The GBR covers approximately , square kilometres. The GBR Marine Park's legal jurisdiction ends at low water mark along the mainland with the exception of port areas and around islands with the exception of 70 Commonwealth managed islands which are part of the Marine Park.

In addition the GBR also includes over islands within the jurisdiction of Queensland, about half of which are declared as 'national parks', and the internal waters of Queensland that occur within the World Heritage boundary including a number of long-established port areas.

The World Heritage property is and has always been managed as a multiple-use area. Uses include a range of commercial and recreational activities. The management of such a large and iconic world heritage property is made more complex due to the overlapping State and Federal jurisdictions. Australia's responsibilities under the World Heritage Convention".

This is contiguous with the GBR Marine Park and covers the area between low and high water marks and many of the waters within the jurisdictional limits of Queensland.

Queensland is also responsible for management of most of the islands. The overlapping jurisdictional arrangements mean that the importance of complementary legislation and complementary management of islands and the surrounding waters is well recognised by both governments. Strong cooperative partnerships and formal agreements exist between the Australian Government and the Queensland Government.

In addition, strong relationships have been built between governments and commercial and recreational industries, research institutions and universities. Collectively this provides a comprehensive management influence over a much wider context than just the marine areas and islands. Development and land use activities in coastal and water catchments adjacent to the property also have a fundamental and critical influence on the values within the property.

The Queensland Government is responsible for natural resource management and land use planning for the islands, coast and hinterland adjacent to the GBR. The Federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act EPBC Act provides an overarching mechanism for protecting the World Heritage values from inappropriate development, including actions taken inside or outside which could impact on its heritage values.

This requires any development proposals to undergo rigorous environmental impact assessment processes, often including public consultation, after which the Federal Minister may decide, to approve, reject or approve under conditions designed to mitigate any significant impacts.

While the Zoning Plan is the 'cornerstone' of management and provides a spatial basis for determining where many activities can occur, zoning is only one of many spatial management tools and policies applied to collectively protect the GBR.

Some activities are better managed using other spatial and temporal management tools like Plans of Management, Special Management Areas, Agreements with Traditional Owners and permits often tied to specific zones or smaller areas within zones, but providing a detailed level of management not possible by zoning alone.

These statutory instruments also protect the Outstanding Universal Value of the property. Many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island peoples undertake traditional use of marine resource activities to provide traditional food, practice their living maritime culture, and to educate younger generations about traditional and cultural rules and protocols. These currently cover some 30 per cent of the GBR inshore area, and support Traditional Owners to maintain cultural connections with their sea country.

Similarly non-statutory tools like site management and Industry Codes of Practice contribute to the protection of World Heritage values. Some spatial management tools are not permanently in place nor appear as part of the zoning, yet achieve effective protection for elements of biodiversity e. The Outlook Report identified the long-term challenges facing the GBR; these are dominated by climate change over the next few decades.

This report also identified continued declining water quality from land-based sources, loss of coastal habitats from coastal development, and some impacts from fishing, illegal fishing and poaching as the other priority issues requiring management attention for the long-term protection of the GBR.

Emerging issues since the Outlook Report include proposed port expansions, increases in shipping activity, coastal development and intensification and changes in land use within the GBR catchment; population growth; the impacts from marine debris; illegal activities; and extreme weather events including floods and cyclones.

Further building the resilience of the GBR by improving water quality, reducing the loss of coastal habitats and increasing knowledge about fishing and its effects and encouraging modified practices, will give the GBR its best chance of adapting to and recovering from the threats ahead, including the impacts of a changing climate.

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