Dead reef too high a price to pay for resources wealth

DEEP-GREEN agendas to rid the world of coal must not derail genuine concerns about the potential impact of wide-scale industrial development near the Great Barrier Reef.

Environmental pressures from mining, dredging, shipping, population growth and ocean acidification are well known and require a considered response.

The World Heritage Committee has been quick to praise Australia's good track record in protecting its environmental wonderland. But past actions do not always predict future outcomes.

By raising the alarm, the committee has done Australia, and the reef, a big favour. A strategic plan that looks at the cumulative impact of coastal development on the health of the reef is long overdue.

Concerns over dredging at Gladstone Harbour, which first raised the committee's alarm, justify taking a closer look at what has been accepted as standard practice.

The challenge is not to stop development but to limit the impact it has on Australia's greatest World Heritage asset.

The World Heritage delegation says the Great Barrier Reef ranks alongside the Great Wall of China and Taj Mahal in the global consciousness.

It is a fair bet that neither China nor India would be prepared to swap either for Australian coal.

Nor should we be prepared to sacrifice the Great Barrier Reef to give it to them.