File:Great-barrier-reef-2011 image credit, mike mccoy.jpg

http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/blogs/on-this-day/2011/06/on-this-day-great-barrier-reef-protected/

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act of 1975 ... marked a world first, because never before had there been a move to protect such a large marine habitat. Even today, the 344,000sq.km park remains the largest of its kind in the world.

A doomed ecosystem

Thanks to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975, potentially damaging activities, such as trawler fishing and shipping, are prohibited around the reefs, however this ecosystem still faces serious environmental threats.

"There have been reports of mass coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef since the early 1980s," Ove says. "The backdrop to this is the steadily and rapidly increasing water temperatures throughout the Coral Sea."

Unfortunately, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority has very little control over rising sea temperatures. They face a difficult situation whereby the ecosystem they're working so hard to protect is being affected by wider climate issues.

But there is still time, Ove says. "I think that it is important to realise that we still have time to make the changes to stop this happening, but what that requires is a massive effort from industry and our political leadership."