BARRIER REEF POSTER CHILD FOR ALARMISTS
“THE REEF LARGELY REGROWS WITHIN A DECADE TO ITS FORMER GLORY”
Peter Ridd, Professor of Physics, has just won a landmark victory against the James Cook University who had fired him for questioning that the Great Barrier Reef was being destroyed by climate change. “I have published numerous scientific papers showing that much of the “science” claiming damage to the reef is either plain wrong or greatly exaggerated. As just one example, coral growth rates that have supposedly collapsed along the reef have, if anything, increased slightly”.The Great Barrier Reef is in fact in excellent condition. It certainly goes through periods of destruction where huge areas of coral are killed from hurricanes, starfish plagues and coral bleaching”. he said.
Damaged By Hurricanes, Starfish Plagues And Bleaching…… Not Climate Change
“We can no longer trust the scientific organisations like the Australian Institute of Marine Science,
even things like the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies – a lot of this is stuff is coming out, not properly checked, tested or replicated and this is a great shame because we really need to be able to trust our scientific institutions and the fact is I do not think we can any more.”
Great Barrier Reef is Thriving
Professor Peter Ridd has just won a landmark court victory in the Australian courts against the university which fired him for daring to challenge the narrative that the Great Barrier Reef is being destroyed by climate change.
The historic judgement by Judge Vasta in Brisbane, Australia, found that Ridd was wrongly dismissed by James Cook University in Queensland, Australia. It has been hailed as a major victory for free speech, free academic inquiry and scientific integrity.
A spokesman for the Institute of Public Affairs, Gideon Rozner the Australian think tank which helped raise funds for Ridd’s case said:
This judgement should rightly send shockwaves through Australian universities regarding their commitment to academic freedom and how they deal with academics who hold a contrary view to established group think.”
It marks a victory not just for Ridd but also for his former friend and colleague the late Bob Carter, another outspoken climate sceptic who was similarly traduced and ostracised by the same university.
Peter Ridd, Professor of Physics at James Cook University, was ostensibly sacked for ‘academic misconduct.’ But the underlying reason was his refusal to play ball on the subject of the Great Barrier Reef.
The Great Barrier Reef has become one of the poster children for the great global warming scare – and much generous grant funding is available to any Australian university department which can claim to show how badly it is imperiled by man’s selfishness, greed and refusal to amend his carbon-guzzling lifestyle. But Ridd just wasn’t having it.
Queensland Environment Minister Leanne Enoch accused the Government of failing to undertake due diligence when allocating its funding for the reef.
“The Government’s inability to explain its decision making around a $444 million investment to just one single organisation is evidence of the absence of robust governance and leadership in managing the Great Barrier Reef,” she said. For such a large investment, I would have expected more conscientious decision making.”
This followed a Report on surveys of the Townsville sector of the Great Barrier Reef which tends to back up Peter Ridd’s claims.
Summary:
Seven reefs in the Townsville had coral cover equal to, or greater than, that recorded since systematic manta tows began 31 years ago.
Coral cover had increased on 11 of the 12 reefs surveyed using manta tows.
Coral cover ranged from low (5-10%) to very high (63-75%).
Ongoing crown-of-thorns starfish (COTS) activity but no reef-wide outbreaks recorded.
Evidence of recent COTS recruitment to some reefs.
Coral bleaching generally low on midshelf reefs (0-10%) but moderate (10-30%) on outer-shelf reefs
Low levels of coral disease and Drupella.
Compensation, penalties, costs and reinstatement of Peter Ridd are matters yet to be determined by the court.
Special thanks must go to Sky News, Gideon Rozner of IPA, James Dellingpole and Jennifer Marohasey and others for their articles and contribution to the funding of Peter Ridd’s appeal.
6 Comments
There have been several studies that have found it is the run off of pesticides and fertilisers from farms and sugar cane plantations along the northern coast of Queensland that is causing problems with the Great Barrier Reef. Not the subject one should be talking about when our farmers are doing it so tough with the drought.
It’s a political thing..They don’t want to enforce the regulations on water quality for fear of a backlash from the sugar cane industry. Far better, it would seem, to blame global warming for any deterioration in the state of the reef. It should be noted that there are coral reefs that thrive in equatorial waters and global warming is questionable with all the tampering of temperature records that has been going on..
Dr Brodie of James Cook University said that “Hundreds of scientists” agreed fertiliser over-use was contributing to the decline of the reef, and the industry was aware of it.
“We’ve been talking to cane farmers for many, many years — decades, in fact — about how run-off of nutrients affects the Great Barrier Reef, and specifically about how run-off from extra nitrates from sugar cane fertiliser affects the Great Barrier Reef.”
Although coral reefs have been around for over 500 million years, the Great Barrier Reef is relatively young at 500,000 years, and this most modern form is only 8,000 years old, having developed after the last ice age. It has survived through the earths major warming and cooling periods and will survive no matter what man is doing to the planet. It will be a like feather duster compared to what the reef has had to endure in its past history.
The JCU has been receiving grants for years. If Peter Ridd’s claims are correct then they are guilty of obtaining grants by deception and should be penalised. Under questioning in Senate Estimates, departmental officials revealed $444 million had been given to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation without it having to go through a tender process.
According to the ABC news, the funding was proposed to be given in one payment, which is the largest donation that any Australian Government has made to a single foundation for environmental project. The Great Barrier Reef Foundation idea was floated by a small group of businessmen at an airport waiting for a flight and set up in 2000.
The court decision was about freedom of speech and had nothing to do with the health of the reef.
It would be a brave move to remove funding based on professor Ridd’s criticism. It is so valuable to our tourism industry, that even if it were proven there was no deterioration, continued funding would be essential so that the health of the reef would be closely monitored.
Global warming can affect the Great Barrier Reef in many ways. Peter Ridd does agree that hurricanes, which are increasing due to GHG emissions, are causing the the reef to die. I would not be surprised if the reef was wiped out within 10 years if we don’t reverse the pollution in our atmosphere.