Visitors to the Great Barrier Reef can now take part in “citizen science” initiatives to assist coral recovery programs. Reef Unlimited and its marine science division, GBR Biology is inviting day-trippers to Reef Magic Pontoon to lend a helping hand with new Reef Recovery days.
As climate change and human activity continue to threaten coral reefs, destinations such as the Great Barrier Reef are turning to coral reef assisted recovery initiatives to boost resilience and spread awareness of the condition of and challenges to coral reefs.
According to the 2023 Sustainable Travel Report, two-thirds of its 33,000 survey respondents said they ‘want to leave the places they visit better than when they arrived’, with more than three quarters of respondents looking to travel in a more sustainable manner.*
“Travel can be a force for good, with today’s travellers seeking more sustainable and responsible travel experiences. Our guests have told us that they not only want to swim and snorkel in the reef, but they also want to help conserve it for future visitors,” says John O’Sullivan, CEO of Experience Co, parent company of Reef Unlimited and GBR Biology.
With guidance from resident Marine Biologists and Cultural Guides, guests will be able to attach coral fragments to ‘Reef Stars’, hexagonal sand-coated steel frames that provide a stable base for coral to grow.
The ‘Reef Stars’ are then installed on areas of coral rubble, damaged by extreme weather systems. Through their modular structure and the addition of live coral fragments, these ‘Reef Stars’ stabilise loose coral rubble beds. The Reef Star technique transforms coral rubble beds to a live diverse hard coral dominated habitat in a shorter time frame than would occur naturally, providing greater resilience to combat future disturbances.
Reef Recovery days will be run on an ongoing basis with dates available until June 2025 on Reef Magic and until the end of April 2025 with Dreamtime Dive & Snorkel. There are limited spots available for the Reef Recovery days so pre-booking is essential. Suitable for ages eight and above.
Reef Unlimited has been involved with the installation of more than 1500 ‘Reef Stars’ at a variety of reef sites across the Great Barrier Reef since 2020.
‘Reef Stars’ were developed by Mars Sustainable Solutions and The Reef Cooperative Reef Star Project is a collaboration between Citizens of the Reef, GBR Biology, Mars Australia, Gunggandji Aboriginal Corporation, Dawul Wuru Aboriginal Corporation and supported by founding funder, The Cotton On Foundation.
