Queensland Premier Campbell Newman has dismissed a warning by Unesco that the Great Barrier Reef is under serious threat from large-scale industrial development, declaring that the state's economy is reliant on it.
In a report released at the weekend, the UN body said that unless Australia improved its management of the World Heritage site, it risked being listed as "in danger" by next year.
Queensland is undertaking a vast port expansion to meet soaring demand for coal, particularly from Asia, and plans to triple coal exports by 2020. It is also building offshore processing plants for the rapidly growing coal-seam gas industry. Unesco cited the projects as among the main pressures on the reef, with coastal development, extreme weather, ship groundings and poor water quality.
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NZ Herald
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