Improving water quality

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) is a partner in the Australian and Queensland government's commitment to a new Reef Water Quality Protection Plan (Reef Plan), a joint plan of action to halt and reverse the decline in the quality of water flowing into the Great Barrier Reef. The new Reef Plan updates the original 2003 Reef Plan to accelerate improvements in the quality of water leaving catchments and entering the Great Barrier Reef. It includes ambitious achievable targets supported by a suite of actions.

Through the measures identified in Reef Plan the governments will, by 2013, halve runoff of harmful nutrients and pesticides and ensure at least 80 per cent of agricultural enterprises and 50 per cent of grazing enterprises adopt land management practices that will reduce runoff.

A Reef Plan Monitoring and Evaluation Strategy has been developed and a Monitoring and Reporting Program designed for implementation in late 2009. The GBRMPA has a lead role in managing the marine part of the program which has been running since 2005. This combined reporting will enable the governments to measure the success of Reef Plan implementation and publicly report on progress towards the Reef Plan goals and objectives.

As progress is made the governments will evaluate what further measures may be required beyond 2013 to ensure that catchment runoff has no detrimental impact on the Great Barrier Reef by 2020 at the latest.

Water Quality Guidelines

Marine ecosystems require good quality water to remain healthy. The GBRMPA has prepared Water Quality Guidelines for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (2009) for maintaining the health and resilience of the Great Barrier Reef.

Good stories

Through a series of television commercials the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, in partnership with Natural Resource Management bodies, are highlighting local people and organisations who are 'Improving water quality to protect the Reef''.

The series highlights the excellent on-ground work individuals, industry, community groups and Natural Resource Management bodies are doing to help improve the quality of water entering the Great Barrier Reef.

Protecting waterways (3.8MB)
Restoring the mighty Barron River (3.2MB)
Reducing fertiliser use in dairy country (3.3MB)
Water Quality Improvement Plans - providing local solutions to local problems (3.1MB)
Restoring wetlands (3.6MB)
Improving ground cover to minimise erosion and soil loss (3.8MB)
Innovation improving farm management practices (3.2MB)
On-farm initiatives reducing sediment and nutrient run-off (3.6MB)
Smart fertiliser application principles reaping the benefits in the banana industry (3.4MB)
New technology for herbicide application (886KB)
Water Quality Improvement Plan for Mackay Whitsunday region (899KB)
School adopts local beach and mangrove area (888KB)
Innovative technology increases profits and helps the environment (899KB)
Best farm management practices in the grazing industry (884KB)
Canegrowers working towards a sustainable industry and sustainable environment (888KB)

Councils role

Local government has the capacity to promote the protection of the Great Barrier Reef to the local community through the many services and facilities that communities use every day. The role councils can play in protecting the Great Barrier Reef underpins a community project run by the GBRMPA.

The Reef Guardian Council Program was developed to support and encourage environmental outcomes for the Great Barrier Reef through local government actions. The program is centred on recognising what councils can do under five categories of best practice: waste, water, land management, climate change and community involvement. Improvements could include anything from upgrades to sewage treatment to community education litter campaigns.

Aquaculture

Aquaculture facilities located within and next to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park produce a range of marine and freshwater species including pearl and edible oysters, prawns and barramundi.

Conducting aquaculture activities in the Marine Park requires a permission from the GBRMPA, and is only allowable in some zones. The GBRMPA has prepared an Aquaculture Position Statement to guide people on the matters to be addressed in consideration of applications to conduct aquaculture.

Traditionally, land-based aquaculture farms have often discharged high concentrations of suspended solids and nutrients to nearby waterways. However, this situation is improving with the implementation of new techniques such as settlement and bio-filtration ponds that contain algae, bivalves or fish in new and some existing aquaculture farms. Today, discharges from aquaculture farms are regulated to ensure they protect the water quality of local waterways and the Great Barrier Reef.

Sewage

Land-based facilities discharging sewage effluent directly into the Marine Park are managed under the Sewage Discharge Policy 2005 and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Regulations 1983. Issues regarding vessel sewage are addressed in the Vessel Sewage Regulations for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

Ship-sourced

Ship-sourced Issues such as operational ship-sourced pollutants, discharge and disposal of waste, exchanges of ballast water, oil spills and potential anti-foulant paint effects are covered by various regulations, conventions and policies applied in the Great Barrier Reef.