Managing water quality

Government agencies work in partnership with key stakeholders and the community to develop and implement a range of strategies to manage water quality. These strategies help to minimise impacts and improve the quality of water entering the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

The Queensland and Australian Governments have made a joint commitment to improve the water quality entering the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park through the release of the Great Barrier Reef Water Quality Protection Plan. The goal of the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan is to 'halt and reverse the decline in water quality entering the Reef within ten years' by reducing the load of pollutants entering the Great Barrier Reef and rehabilitating and conserving areas of the catchment with a role in removing water borne pollutants. For more information about the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan click here or contact the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority on (07) 4750 0700.

Students involved in the Reef Guardian Schools Program focus on sampling and protecting the quality of water entering the Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority's Water Quality and Coastal Development Group focuses on a number of key water quality issues that impact on the Great Barrier Reef including coastal development, agriculture, aquaculture and mining. The Group also focuses on community education to help raise awareness about water quality and to help people discover new ways to protect the Great Barrier Reef by minimising the impact of their activities on the land and in their home, workplace or at school.