Coral reefs, climate change and land-based pollution: past, present and future impacts on coral reef development

Climate change and declining water quality have been identified as the greatest threats to the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) ecosystem. The aims of this work will address key knowledge gaps by: 1) providing detailed information on how GBR water quality has changed over the last century; 2) using novel geochemical proxies in long-lived corals and developing other innovative reef biomonitors; 3) quantifying contemporaneous coral reef development and bio-physical reef growth histories; and 4) providing the first integrated assessment of how water quality has influenced coral reef formation historically. Findings will be immediately relevant to the long-term management of the GBR.