Describe the spatial patterns and dimensions of one ecosystem at risk, and analyse the negative impacts of human activity on this ecosystem Essay

Describe the spatial patterns and dimensions of maven (1) eco dust at risk, and analyse the negative impacts of human activity on this ecosystem. superstar ecosystem at risk that has been studied is the chromatic let down The spectacular barrier bring down is located dour the East coast of Northern Queensland. It stretches well-nigh 2300km from Papua New Guinea to Fraser Island. Overall the with child(p) parapet get down system c overs an bea of over 348,000km2 making a vast, very complex ecosystem. there is a long history of human activity and use on and of the queen-sized(p) parapet bring down. Negative impacts on the abundant Barrier lower include clime change, oil spills, holiday evisceraterry, overfishing, land clearing, sewage and waste disposal, coral harvesting and dredging and sand mining.Climate change has impacted Northern Queensland and the Great Barrier take down as it subjoins in ocean temperature, growths in occur sea level, has a change in rainfall patterns. It changes the ocean currents and circulation, which has an increase in El Nino events which cause extreme weather and tailful upon the bring down and cause a magnanimous amount of run off from the land, causing turbidity, lowering of salinity on the reef and increased amount of sediment. Extreme weather conditions can also increase the CO2 levels which can also change the chemical social structure of the Great Barrier Reef causing coral bl apieceing.On-going climate change will have and has already caused many consequences for the Great Barrier Reef. This change will and has directly impacted many species of fish, invertebrate, mammals and birds along with many aquatic and terrestrial plants. There ar also substantial impacts on the functioning of the reef. The biggest occupation about climate change and the Great Barrier Reef is the rise in sea temperature which will affect the movement of body of water around the reef and the food for thought cycle on the reef which also means the chemical structure which will be altered because of the increased amount of CO2 turn into the water.With this and the rising sea levels, may be enough to destroy the reef, collapsing of the reef ecosystem. Recreational fishing is also a common past-time on the reef. When boats anchorman on the reef, the heavy metal anchors ravish the reefs coral formations and dredge up the sea grass bed. These boats are also a source of defilement through oil and oil spills, rubbish and sewage. The Great Barrier Reef devil dog Park Authority estimates that around 6000 large commercial ships traverse through the Great Barrier Reef each year. These ships can drivel anything from grain, minerals, bulk cargo ( much(prenominal) as cars) and oil.Luckily there has not been a major oil spill on the reef. Ships also have the probable to bring with them feral aquatic species by releasing ballast water which is used to balance the ship containing these aquatic animals. Commercial fishing or overfishing has been an measurable economic activity for Queenslands coastal communities. Unsustainable fishing practices in the past have left many areas of the Great Barrier Reef with decreased fish stocks. While many areas of the Great Barrier Reef are now off limits to commercial fishers, various areas of the reef can still be fished. Local fishermen are now no continuing a major threat to the reef as they understand the shoot to encourage the areas fish stocks.However, the reef still carcass threatened by illegal fishing, which is often carried out by foreign fishing trawlers, and by unsustainable recreational fishing. Tourism is one of the most important industries in Northern Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef organism bedded twelfth on the Wonders of the World list brings a lot of touristry to Australia and especially far North Queensland. The economic value of the Great Barrier Reef exceeds more than $4 billion a year. In 2005, over 1.8 mill ion tourists visited the reef. Research conducted by the James Cook University in Cairns has shown that tourism has five main impacts on the reef ecosystem these are coastal tourism development, island-based tourism, marine based tourism, water-based activities and fruity bearing interactions.Coastal tourism development is excuseed as tourists generally visit and stay at mainland Hotels, Motels and Resorts, where this places a strain on coastal environments, including estuarine river systems. Island-based tourism is the growth of tourism on islands throughout the Great Barrier Reef, which creates problems associated with sewage and rubbish discharges. Marine based tourism is where tourist boat companies make thousands of journeys out to the Great Barrier Reef each year, which brings rubbish and a potential for oil spills.These boats also require berth points or anchor points on the reef which can destroy the coral. Water-based activities for explain diving and snorkelling are the most popular water-based activities on the reef. Most divers(prenominal) are very elaborate and usually cause no damage to the corals. However, studies have shown that a small proportion of divers swim also close to the corals, breaking them. The more fragile corals are susceptible to this. Wildlife interactions is the interactions with aquatic animals that live on the reef, most tourism operators are very careful to ensure tourists are well informed and to be strict with these rules and make sure that the tourists do not get too close to the wild animals that live on the reef, However, once again research shows that there are still a small portion of operators and tourists that are careless and chip wildlife which can impact on breeding cycles and natural interactions.Other impacts of tourism on the Great Barrier Reef include trampling of coral. This is a common occurrence where people walk on the reefs and the coral that develop exposed at low tide. Souveniring of coral, she lls and other elements of the reef ecosystem was also a major problem. In the past tourists and some commercial traders took large amounts of materials such as corals, mostly from the inner reef, which has now been constituted as being illegal unless the collector is correctly licensed. There are 26 major river systems that flow into the waters of the Great Barrier Reef from mainland Queensland. Approximately 25% of the land area of Queensland drains onto the reef. This runoff represents a major impact on the reef. Coastal development on land adjacent to the reef is expanding rapidly. tourist developments such as those found between Cairns and Port Douglas, result in large amounts of land that is being cleared. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority has information and research that the clearing of wetlands is another major issue impacting on the sustainability of the reef. Intertidal wetlands provide important habitats and nurseries for many of thousands of species that liv e on or near the reef. These wetlands also hold a large amount of water reducing the amount of fresh water the Great Barrier Reef receives each year which keeps salinity levels stable. Aquaculture is becoming a more popular form of commercial farming.Prawns, a number of fish species and pearl and edible oysters are commercially farmed throughout the Great Barrier Reef and in ponds near or next to the reef. These farms can sometimes release chemicals and diseases that impact and cause damage to the other species of aquatic life on the reef which can also cause pollution. Conventional husbandry on the coastal plain adjacent to the reef has been of great concern for reef ecologists and marine biologists.The use of chemical fertilisers in the farming areas of the reef can increase nutrients that promote algae growth. The algae can and already has been smothering the reef which causes a decrease in light brainstorm for the corals to perform photosynthesis to grow. A type of agriculture t hat can dramatically slander the reef includes land clearing which results in the erosion of topsoil and an increase in turbidity levels in the water. There are a large number of negative impacts on the ecosystem at risk studied, but the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, along with other little groups including the Aboriginal Culture have been enforcing a number of ways to protect and create awareness to tourists, fishers and all people on or see the reef or surroundings to keep the ecosystem as stable as they can.