| The Great
Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system,
composed of roughly 3,000 individual reefs and 900 islands,
that stretch for 2,600 kilometres (1,616 mi).[2] The reef
is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland
in north-east Australia. A large part of the reef is protected
by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.
The Great Barrier Reef can be seen from
outer space and is sometimes referred to as the single
largest organism in the world. In reality, it is made
up of many millions of tiny organisms, known as coral
polyps. The Great Barrier Reef was also selected as a
World Heritage Site in 1981. CNN has labelled it one of
the seven natural wonders of the world. The Queensland
National Trust has named it a state icon of Queensland.
Due to its vast
biodiversity, warm clear waters and its accessibility
from the floating guest facilities called 'live aboards',
the reef is a very popular destination for tourists, especially
scuba divers. Many cities along the Queensland coast offer
boat trips to the reef on a daily basis. Several continental
islands have been turned into resorts.
As the largest commercial activity
in the region, it has been estimated that tourism in the
Great Barrier Reef generates over AU$4 billion annually.]
There are approximately two million visitors to the Great
Barrier Reef each year. Although most of these visits
are managed in partnership with the marine tourism industry,
there are some very popular areas near shore (such as
Green Island) that have suffered damage due to overfishing
and land based run off. Any impacts from tourist activity
merely exacerbate the more pronounced effects of land
based run-off and overfishing.
The 2003 Pixar
film, Finding Nemo, featured the Great Barrier Reef as
a setting.
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