Drilling Near the Coral Reefs
The Anglo-Dutch oil conglomerate Shell has applied for permits to drill just 30 miles off the World Heritage-listed coral reef in Western Australia thus alarming many naturalists.
World-famous for protecting ecological diversity, the Australian coral reefs may face the prospect of offshore oil drilling. “Just 30 miles away from the marine park that protects Ningaloo Reef, a haven for sealife that was recently nominated for World Heritage status, the proposed drilling project has raised fears of an oil spill that could seriously damage the reef and the creatures that depend on it. Warnings of the risks come shortly after a major international report that three quarters of the world’s coral reefs are under severe threat of ecological catastrophe from overfishing, pollution, and climate change.”
