Exclusive: Mass bleaching seen along Great Barrier Reef could mark start of global-scale event, expert warnsClimate crisis may have pushed world's tropical coral reefs to tipping point of 'near-annual' bleachingRising ocean temperatures could have pushed the world’s tropical coral reefs over a tipping point where they are hit by bleaching on a “near-annual” basis, according to the head of a US government agency program that monitors the globe’s coral reefs. “What we are seeing on the Great Barrier Reef and potentially elsewhere is really being driven just by anthropogenic climate change. Sea temperatures over the Great Barrier Reef were the highest on record this February. He said it was “too early” to say if a global bleaching event was on the way, but “it would not really surprise me”. The Great Barrier Reef’s values as a world heritage-listed location are due for review at a meeting scheduled in China in June.

Source: The Guardian March 31, 2020 16:30 UTC