Climate change has emerged as the most significant long-term threat to the Great Barrier Reef. In response, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, in partnership with the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, is implementing the Great Barrier Reef Climate Change Action Plan (the Action Plan) The Action Plan is funded with an $8.9 million 5-year allocation under the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) National Climate Change Adaptation Framework.

The Action Plan outlines a five-year program designed to develop and test strategies that will give the Reef, and those who depend upon it, the best chance of coping with climate change. It is built on the comprehensive knowledge base compiled in  Climate Change and the Great Barrier Reef: A Vulnerability Assessment.

The Action Plan identifies strategies for direct actions and partnerships that will increase the resilience of the Great Barrier Reef (the Reef) to climate change. The focus is on actions that can be taken to help minimise impacts on the Great Barrier Reef ecosystem, on Reef industries such as tourism, commercial and recreational fishing and on regional communities.

The four core objectives of the Action Plan are:

1. targeted science
2. a resilient Great Barrier Reef ecosystem
3. adaptation of industries and regional communities
4. reduced climate footprints.
   

What's being done?

The major focus of the Action Plan is to fill key information gaps identified in the Vulnerability Assessment, implement adaptive management of the Reef and support the adaptation of Reef industries and communities. Approaches used include testing adaptation actions, inspiring adaptation measures through awareness-raising and partnerships, and policy analysis and review.

Information on some of the projects and knowledge delivered under the Action Plan is available on this website, and can be viewed in relation to the four core objectives of the Action Plan or by interest area.

View activities grouped by Action Plan objective or

View activities grouped by area of interest e.g. tourism, fisheries, education, councils, science, adaptation planning etc.

The Action Plan is being implemented in collaboration with the help of stakeholders and other partners. It complements climate change response strategies of the Queensland government and the Great Barrier Reef marine tourism industry and is designed to coordinate with other relevant science and adaptation initiatives, including the National Climate Change Adaptation Framework and research programs funded by the Australian Research Council and Marine and Tropical Sciences Research Science Facility.

In 2010, a mid-term review evaluated progress towards achieving the Great Barrier Reef Climate Change Action Plan 2007-2012 objectives and management of the GBRMPA's delivery program.