Australia's Great Barrier Reef is videos of submissive women being trained as sex slavesunder serious threat as warming waters kill off large swaths of corals. But it's not "in danger" -- at least not according to UNESCO.
The United Nations cultural body this week voted to leave the 133,000-square-mile World Heritage Site off its list of endangered sites, which is the last stage before a site is delisted altogether. Perplexingly, the same body last month warned the Great Barrier Reef will be dead by the end of this century unless countries sharply reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
So, why the disconnect?
SEE ALSO: This adorable baby turtle blob is bringing hope to Southeast AsiaBecause the decision has less to do with the reef's imperiled condition and more to do with avoiding political embarrassment for Australia's government and lasting damage to Australia's tourism industry.
Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable The coral reef system represents around A$56 billion -- or $42.4 billion in U.S. dollars -- in economic, social, and brand value to the Australian economy, Deloitte Access Economics said in a recent report. The reef's status as a World Heritage Site is part of what makes it so iconic, recognizable, and inspiring to tourists around the world.
Australian officials breathed a sigh of relief after the World Heritage Committee voted on late Wednesday in Krakow, Poland.
"The announcement overnight was a big win for Australia and a big win for the [Malcolm] Turnbull government," Australia's Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg told Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable He said the vote was "a strong endorsement" of the government's Reef 2050 plan to improve water quality, reduce land clearing, and increase the reef's resilience to climate change by mid-century.
But coral reef experts and environmental groups said they were frustrated by the outcome.
Putting the Great Barrier Reef on the endangered list would create pressure on the Australian government to reduce planet-warming emissions and to take more aggressive steps to combat marine pollution, starfish invasions, and other local threats, critics said.
"An endangerment listing, as tragic as that would be, would be a more realistic representation of the state of reef and would at least force the federal government to act on climate change," Alix Foster Vander Elst, Greenpeace Australia Pacific campaigner, told Reuters.
Damaged corals of Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Credit: ED ROBERTS/ARC CENTRE CORAL REEF STUDIES HANDOUT/EPA/REX/Shutterstock Even with its 2050 plan, Australia's management of the expansive natural wonder is facing increasing criticism as sweeping sections of the reef turn bleach-white.
In 2015 and 2016, the Great Barrier Reef suffered its largest die-off ever recorded due to unusually warm waters, with 35 percent of corals on the northern and central reef declared dead, the ARC Center of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies said in late May.
Scientists blamed human-caused global warming and a strong 2015 to 2016 El Niño for the hotter water temperatures, which can cause coral bleaching. In this phenomenon, corals expel their symbiotic algae and become more vulnerable to disease and death.
Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable At the meeting in Poland, the World Heritage Committee did express "serious concern" about the health of the reef, which includes over 600 coral types and provides shelter and sustenance for thousands of marine species -- everything from algae, worms, and snails to fish, turtles, and sharks.
But the decision not to list the reef as "in danger" suggests the committee believes the Australian government is doing enough to keep the precious reef from disappearing.
Given how rapidly oceans are warming, however, those efforts will likely fall far short, experts say.
MANAA, American Indians in Film/TV Condemn Whitewashing in ‘Annihilation’
How to change your name on Facebook
NYT Strands hints, answers for June 18
'Elio's end
El Camino College to Celebrate Spring with Annual Cherry Blossom Festival
NVIDIA denies reports of splitting off China business into independent firm · TechNode
The History of the Microprocessor and the Personal Computer
Transsion's Q1 net profit plunges nearly 70% y
Pinkwashing the Timeline
James Chance, 1953-2024
Black Ops 6 & Warzone Season 4 Reloaded update patch notes
The Museum of Admirable Suffering
Wordle today: The answer and hints for June 18, 2025
Best headphones deal: Save $20 on Soundcore Anker Life Q20
Samurai Film Series at the Aero
Best Bluetooth speaker deal: Save 43% on the Soundcore Select 4 Go speaker
The Museum of Admirable Suffering
Atari 2600: The Atlantis of Game Consoles
‘Oni wa Soto! Fuku wa Uchi!’
Foreign tourist spending on Alipay surges in China over May Day Holiday · TechNode
'The Simpsons' 2020 commencement speech is as chaotic as you'd expectEncrypted Signal app downloads skyrocket amidst nationwide protestsAmazon reportedly facing antitrust probes in California, WashingtonWhere to stream Mindy Kaling’s biggest movies and TV showsOwn an Echo Look? It stops working on July 24.'I May Destroy You' is a defining moment for onControversial startup to continue supplying police with facialEight months later, Facebook fulfills promise to label stateTwitter is working on a way for people to request a blue checkmark, againGoogle Maps and YouTube Music just made some commutes a little better Google Assistant can now use your voice to verify purchases Hulu adds new group streaming option with Watch Party 'Minecraft Dungeons' aims to be more than 'baby's first Diablo' Taylor Swift fans suspect her brother is singing on mysterious new track How to use Hulu Watch Party New 'Avatar 2' set photo shows off some high How Twitter and Trump's toxic relationship came crashing down Vivo X50 Pro is the first smartphone with a gimbal camera system Realme Watch looks like Apple Watch, costs $50 Kellyanne Conway unleashes trolls on Twitter's head of site integrity
0.3561s , 14055.3359375 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【videos of submissive women being trained as sex slaves】The Great Barrier Reef is not 'in danger,' UNESCO says,Global Hot Topic Analysis
