It's not so bad! Science and tourism compete on the Great Barrier Reef

A row is raging on the Great Barrier Reef damaged by the warming of Australia, companies fearing that the apocalyptic warnings of scientists will scare visitors.

Each year, more than two million tourists using snorkeling travel to the world-renowned coral reef ecosystem, generating $ 4.3 billion in revenue ($ 5.9 billion) and supporting 64,000 local jobs.

But the damage caused by higher temperatures – which turn white at the reef plates – threatened to stop the number of tourists wishing to make their way in a wetsuit.

There was then a surprise when the Reef and Rainforest Research Center released a much more optimistic report, announcing "significant signs of recovery" on the major dive sites around Cairns and sparking a wave of optimistic coverage.

If the findings of the report seemed irrelevant with other studies on the reef, it was by design.

According to Col McKenzie of the AMPTO Tourism Industry Lobby, who helped conduct the research, this was part of an effort to show that the entire Great Barrier Reef was not an aquatic desert.

"Overall, do we see a drop in attendance because of the negative press, absolutely we are, there is no doubt," McKenzie told AFP.

He suggested that the number of visitors to the reef and nearby islands had dropped by 10% in 2017 and was about to dive 15% this year.

Although government data show that the number of visitors to the wider region has increased, these numbers are older and do not include coral viewing activities.

McKenzie said it was essential to convey the message that some areas of the massive ecosystem are still rich in color and alive.

"What people miss with our reef system is … it's a massive structure," he said.

His comments are the latest salvo in a battle between environmentalists and the tourism industry, as they struggle to cope with competing interests and new realities on the reef.

Professor Terry Hughes of James Cook University, who heads the bleached coral surveys, warned that some damaged corals will recover in a few months, but recovery of more severely damaged corals may take a decade.

"It's still too early," he told AFP, describing an uneven recovery that makes generalizations difficult.

"Basically, we are in the first year in the middle of the reef, or the second year in the northern reefs, during the recovery process that lasted a decade."

The Australian Institute of Marine Science Government says the coral cover "has continued to decline due to the cumulative impacts of multiple severe disturbances over the last four years".

The same institute has shown that besides the risk of extreme temperatures on the sea surface, some areas being more affected, the reef is also facing the impacts of agricultural runoff, development and severe tropical cyclones.

– Conflicts of interest –

Even within the government, there are competing interests at stake, as well as debates about the best way to respond.

Canberra has, so far, managed to convince UNESCO not to consider the reef as a World Heritage site in danger, fearing that this would have a negative economic impact and lead to more severe restrictions on the reef. Local industry.

It has allocated some $ 1.4 billion to protect the site, while supporting a massive coal production project near the Indian mining giant Adani.

A parliamentary inquiry was recently opened to investigate the reasons why former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull gave nearly half a billion dollars to a small charity without a call for tenders.

Australians also appear divided over reef damage.

According to an annual Ipsos poll on environmental issues, only half of the country thinks that climate change is already causing the destruction of the reefs.

No matter the political wind, scientists like Hughes are determined to document changes in one of the world's most biodiverse regions.

But this remains a moving target. "It's a period of critical recovery," Hughes said.

"The unknown, of course, is whether we will have another case of bleaching, which could potentially happen early next year if we have a heat wave."

Each year, more than two million tourists using snorkeling head for Australia's famous coral reef ecosystem.

Map and file on the Great Barrier Reef.

Tourists look through a glass bottom boat at the marine life of Australia's Great Barrier Reef

Tourists at the Great Barrier Reef generate revenues of $ 4.3 billion ($ 5.9 billion) and support 64,000 local jobs