A recent study has revealed that over a dozen coral islands, integral to Australia’s maritime boundaries, are on the brink of vanishing due to multiple threats, including rising sea levels. The potential disappearance of these islands carries significant implications for Australia’s maritime borders, as they extend the country’s jurisdiction over more than a million square kilometers of territory.
The study, published in the Science of the Total Environment journal, assessed 56 islands, considering factors such as vulnerability to heatwaves and flooding. Three islands on Western Australia’s North West Shelf were identified as being at “very high risk” from climate threats, while 11 islands in the Coral Sea off Queensland were classified as facing a high risk. None of the assessed islands were deemed to have zero risk.
The report emphasizes that the current conditions, as well as the threat of marine heatwaves and rising oceans due to climate change, intensify the risks to these islands. The potential disappearance of these islands not only poses challenges for the communities that inhabit and rely on them but also has geopolitical implications.
Dr. Thomas Fellowes from the University of Sydney, co-author of the study, highlighted the significant role these islands play in expanding Australia’s rights over fishing, transport, and mineral exploration. He stressed that Australia’s coastal management hinges on the survival of these coral islands and suggested that reducing fossil fuel usage could help mitigate the decline of these vulnerable land masses.
Coral islands, characterized by low-lying land masses formed from coral debris sediments, are currently under threat in Australian waters. The Great Barrier Reef, for instance, has lost more than half of its corals due to climate change, including mass bleaching events. As coral reefs support around 25% of the world’s marine species at various stages of their life cycle, the continued decline of these ecosystems has far-reaching consequences for marine biodiversity.
