Impact of Increased Sediment and Nutrient Dishcarges on the Long-Term Sustainability of the Great Barrier Reef

Long-term impacts of increased sediment and nutrient discharges will be determined for coral reefs in the Great Barrier Reef. Changes in water quality regimes will be obtained from geochemical records preserved within the carbonate skeleton of 200 to 400 year old corals. Ecological impacts will be determined by comparing changes in water quality experienced by mid-outer shelf reefs relative to the more degraded inshore reefs. This will be accompanied by biological studies of gradients in coral reef species diversity and cover. This approach will enable short-term fluctuations in reef dynamics to be discriminated from longer-term phase shifts in coral reef ecology and hence provide a scientific basis to ensure the sustainability of the GBR.