Australia welcomes UNESCO decision

Reuters July 05, 2026 Less than a minute read

SYDNEY:

Australia welcomed a draft UNESCO decision not to list the Great Barrier Reef as an endangered site, its assistant tourism minister said on Saturday, despite ongoing struggles of the world's biggest coral reef ecosystem with coral bleaching.

The reef, which has suffered several mass coral bleaching events in recent years, is not currently on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) list of world heritage sites that are in danger, although UN scientists have previously recommended that it should be added.

Australia's government has lobbied for years to keep the reef - which contributes more than A$9.0 billion ($6.25 billion) to the economy annually - off the list.