Comalco helps research Barrier Reef
Comalco and The Great Barrier Reef Research Foundation have formed a partnership - Future Reef - to support research based initiatives to protect the Great Barrier Reef off the east coast of Australia. This famous reef is the largest World Heritage Area, covering 35 million hectares and generating A$5 billion per year to the Australian economy through associated industries. Both partners believe that climate change is the most critical issue affecting the long term survival of the reef.
“We hope to learn more about climate change and that the experience will encourage us to drive energy efficiency across our whole business with even greater determination,” said Oscar Groeneveld, Comalco’s chief executive and Rio Tinto’s head of Aluminium. Comalco has committed A$1 million over four years to two reef research programmes that will be overseen by the foundation and run by the University of Queensland’s Centre for Marine Studies.
The first is the four year Ocean Acidification Research Programme, the world’s first significant investigation into the impact of increased concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the ocean and on the Great Barrier Reef. The programme will be carried out at the university’s Heron Island Research Station near Gladstone where scientists will collect data from large mesocosms (aquariums) simulating the reef environment. Each mesocosm will be filled with reef organisms and exposed to different levels of carbon dioxide concentration. The research will include monitoring of water chemistry and the effect of CO2 on coral health and marine organisms.
The second programme is Reef Searchers, a four year employee participation programme, where employees from the Group's Australian operations will work alongside reef experts at the Heron Island station to collect baseline data for the research project. One hundred and twenty employees will take part in 12 expeditions over four years. Employees will work alongside scientists to collect and analyse sampls from the reef surrounding Heron Island to provide a comparative dataset to the mesocosm findings.
Employee involvement over four years represents a significant in kind contribution to the research as the cost of this exercise would normally be prohibitive. The first expedition visited Heron Island in early 2006.
Comalco’s footprint in Queensland is almost exactly aligned with the reef, through which the company ships its products and raw materials. Comalco’s main assets are concentrated around Gladstone - the gateway to the reef.
Photo: The University of Queensland Centre for Marine Studies
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