'Summer of hard knocks' hits Great Barrier Reef

Louis Andrews, Canberra Times 17 Mar 09;

The Great Barrier Reef is reeling from shocking weather damage that might take two decades to heal.

Sunburn in a hot December, flooding rains in January and February and a tropical cyclone combined in what the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority is calling a "summer of hard knocks".

The authority's chairman, Russell Reichelt, said the "triple whammy" raised serious concerns given the ramifications of climate change.

"The forecasts are [predicting] an increased frequency of extreme events," he said.

Flood damage, cyclones and sun bleaching were nothing new, but all three at once was unusual or unrecorded, Dr Reichelt said.

"The worry ... isn't the sudden demise of the Great Barrier Reef, it'll be a steady degradation of the reef's capacity to bounce back."

The reef avoided the full impact of the bleaching December sun because of the onslaught of the wettest year in 100 years.

"It's slowed down the warming but then it went on to cause fresh water damage," Dr Reichelt said.

The resulting freshwater flood plumes were stressful to corals and were followed by yet another destructive weather event Cyclone Hamish.

Dr Reichelt said Hamish's route, straight down the outer edge of the Great Barrier Reef, was remarkable.

"The people I'm speaking to haven't experienced that in 30 years on the reef.

"What we want to do now is shore up its ability to bounce back," he said.

The first step will be clearing up the run-off water from the floods.

"There is much work still to be done, and with extreme weather events becoming more frequent, now more than ever we need to remain vigilant."