Australia announces record investment in Great Barrier Reef protection

The Australian government this week announced its largest-ever single investment in Great Barrier Reef protection.

Canberra will invest most of the 500 million Australian dollars (about $377 million), in the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, and use part of it to fund federal and park agencies.

“It is an investment not only in the future of the Great Barrier Reef, but also in Australian jobs and our economy through the tourists the Reef attracts every year,” the government said in a release.

{mosads}The money will primarily go to helping address the reef’s deterioration due to coral-eating species, climate change and pollution.

Climate change was determined several years ago to be the most significant threat to the Reef.

“We want to ensure the Reef’s future for the benefit of all Australians, particularly those whose livelihood depends on the Reef,” the release reads.

The government said in the release that the reef provides 6.4 billion Australian dollars per year to the economy, supporting 64,000 jobs.