Travelers on O.A.T.’s A South Pacific Odyssey: Australia, the Outback & New Zealand adventure will explore the Great Barrier Reef, where Grand Circle Foundation partnered with the Coral Nurture Program.
By Jan Byrnes, Vice President, Grand Circle Foundation
Grand Circle Foundation and the Lewis Family understand the importance of conservation. To achieve this in Australia, we supported the Coral Nurture Program—the largest coral propagation and out-planting program on the Great Barrier Reef. Due to the warming of the waters of the reef, parts of it have seen coral bleaching. The Coral Nurture Program works to maintain healthy reef sites in North Queensland by protecting sites where coral cover is good and rehabilitating other areas through reef coral propagation and planting techniques.
The result is a stronger and more sustainable tourism industry at this UNESCO World Heritage Site, where 90% of jobs in the area are related to the reef. This provides a huge economic incentive to protect the reef and provide training in techniques to expand upon existing sustainable reef management activities.
In its first 12 months, the Coral Nurture Program planted out 20,000 corals across nine sites on the reef. The goal was to plant 200,000 over the next two years. However, government funding only supported the project for its first 18 months. So, the program looked to the tour operators who own moorings on the reef—including our partner organization in Australia—all of which share a strong motivation to sustain healthy and beautiful reef sites. Once the skills and framework are developed within the industry, efforts can be increased or decreased each year depending on need, ensuring no funds or effort are wasted in areas where recovery is occurring naturally.
Together, the tour operators are funding the removal of coral predators, such as the Crown of Thorns starfish and Drupella snails; reef monitoring via the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority; and education and awareness around successful ecotourism management practices. Our funding specifically supported the propagation and out-planting of coral where coverage has fallen. It will help plant almost 200,000 corals over the next 2 years across 10 sites.
We are proud to have supported the Coral Nurture Program as they work toward protecting the Great Barrier Reef for generations to come.
Visit the Great Barrier Reef and learn about the importance of protecting this natural treasure during our A South Pacific Odyssey: Australia, the Outback & New Zealand adventure.
