The Great Barrier Reef by James Bowen and Margarita Bowen, Cambridge, £40, ISBN 0521824303 Reviewed by David Williams
CONTROVERSY swirls as strongly as the ocean tides around the ecological status of the Great Barrier Reef. Some who have seen substantial changes worry that humans are degrading the ecosystem. There is evidence to back this up. Analyses of coral cores suggest that the amount of sediment from the coastal area deposited on the nearshore zone of the reef increased swiftly after farmers and ranchers began sheep and cattle farming 130 years ago. Others who have seen cyclical changes in reef systems…
