9.3.1 Community views

Climate change is perceived by many in the community as the greatest threat to the Great Barrier Reef. This perception aligns with expert consensus that climate change is the most significant threat to the Reef. Catchment residents consistently perceive climate change, illegal fishing and land-based runoff as among the greatest threats to the Reef and Catchment waterways, although the results differ slightly between different catchments (Table 9.2). 

The community views climate change as a serious threat to the Reef

Figure 9.1
Reef residents’ perception of threats to the Great Barrier Reef

These results, from the Social and Economic Long-Term Monitoring Program survey 2021, are in response to the open-ended question: ‘What do you think are the three most serious threats to the Great Barrier Reef?’ Source: Hobman et al. 2022 1075

These results, from the Social and Economic Long-Term Monitoring Program survey 2021, are in response to the open-ended question: ‘What do you think are the three most serious threats to the Great Barrier Reef?’ Source: Hobman et al. 2022

Reef resident respondents recognised the seriousness of these threats to the Reef. Between 80 and 90 per cent of these respondents rated loss of coral cover, seagrass and mangroves, low abundance of fish, and poor coastal water quality as ‘moderate to big problems’.1075 Reef residents’ perceptions of threats to the Great Barrier Reef have changed through time (Figure 9.1). Threats perceived as the most serious by different stakeholder groups, such as commercial fishers, tourism operators and coastal residents, converged after the 2016 and 2017 mass bleaching events.  Climate change became the most frequently reported threat by all stakeholder groups following the events, and perceptions of fishing and poor water quality as threats also ranked high.1074

The effects of climate change on the Great Barrier Reef have influenced Australians to view climate change more seriously.1532 However, in one national survey, Australian residents perceived environmental pests, such as crown-of-thorns-starfish, as a greater threat to the Reef than climate change.2153 This result possibly reflects an understanding of crown-of-thorns starfish as a direct and specific threat to the Reef and climate change as a more universal threat across multiple ecosystems.

Table 9.2
Community views on threats facing the Great Barrier Reef and catchment waterways

Views were canvassed using a variety of methods over different time periods and are not directly comparable (Table 9.1). To rank the seriousness of threats, some sources used a mean score derived from the Likert scale while others used only the highest-scored, most-serious threats. The top five threats in this table are a subset of all threats listed in the different methods and reflect the ranking method used in each different survey. These results from the various surveys represent the views of respondents from different postcodes and not necessarily specific community sectors.

This table shows community views on threats facing the Great Barrier Reef across different groups - including a national survey, catchment residents, Traditional Owners, and 4 NRM regions
A flock of pelicans standing near each other in the water with the Cairns Esplanade and trees in the background.
Pelicans at the Cairns Esplanade. © Dieter Tracey 2021
  • 1074. Thiault, L., Curnock, M.I., Gurney, G.G., Heron, S.F., Marshall, N.A., Bohensky, E., Nakamura, N., Pert, P.L., Claudet, J. 2021, Convergence of stakeholders’ environmental threat perceptions following mass coral bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef, Conservation Biology 35(2): 598-609.
  • 1075. Hobman, E. V., Mankad, A., Pert, P. L., van Putten, I., Fleming-Muñoz, D., Curnock, M. 2022, Monitoring social and economic indicators among residents of the Great Barrier Reef region in 2021: a report from the Social and Economic Long-term Monitoring Program (SELTMP) for the Great Barrier Reef, CSIRO Land and Water, Australia.
  • 1120. The Reef 2050 Traditional Owner Steering Group 2022, Reef 2050 Traditional Owner Implementation Plan, Queensland Government, Brisbane.
  • 1159. Curnock, M.I., Pert, P.L., Maharjan, D., Gordon, B. and Kaniewska, P. 2022, Design and implementation of social surveys for Regional Report Cards in the Great Barrier Reef catchment., CSIRO Land and Water, Townsville.
  • 1532. Deshpande, S., Bradley, G., Paas, K., Hennessey, N., Foxwell-Norton, K., et al. 2023, Climate Action Survey 2022 – Summary for policy and decision making, Griffith University, Brisbane.
  • 2152. Taylor, B., Vella, K., Maclean, K., Newlands, M., Ritchie, B., et al. 2019, Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program: stakeholder, Traditional Owner and community engagement assessment. a report provided to the Australian Government by the Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program, Australian Institute of Marine Science, Townsville.
  • 2153. Taylor, B., Vella, K., Maclean, K., et al. 2019, Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program: Engagement Framework (DRAFT). A report provided to the Australian Government from the Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program, Unpublished report, Brisbane.