Sir David Attenborough makes heartfelt plea for the Reef

 

• Nathanael Cooper

  
  

As news broke that 93 per cent of the coral on the Great Barrier Reef was suffering from some level of bleaching, the ABC was preparing to broadcast the final episode of David Attenborough's ground breaking documentary on the reef.

Ironically, the focus of the final episode is the survival of the reef.

David Attenborough. 

Episode one focused on the builders on the reef, episode two is about the creatures that visit the reef and episode three focuses on what is likely to happen in the future.

In a rare move, at the conclusion of the episode, Sir David makes an impassioned plea in a moving piece to camera where he speaks of the imminent threat to the reef.

"The twin perils brought by climate change, an increase in the temperature of the ocean and its acidity, if they continue to rise at the present rate the reefs will be gone within decades and that would be a global catastrophe.""The Great Barrier Reef is in grave danger," he says.

He speaks of the ecological result of a disappearing reef but more importantly the moral and ethical problem faced by humans who have brought the problem to the reef.

"There's surely another reason why we should protect the reefs," he says.

"They are among the planet's richest, most complex and most beautiful ecosystems.

"Do we really care so little about the earth on which we live that we don't want to protect one of the world's greatest wonders from the consequences of our behaviour?"

David Attenborough with reef tanks.  

After three hours of some of the most stunning cinematography exploring the reef and its inhabitants, it is an emotive plea from one of the world's greatest naturalists.

Series producer Anthony Geffen who has worked on 11 of Sir David's documentaries, said Sir David wanted to use the series to make a very personal statement.

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http://www.canberratimes.com.au/environment/conservation/sir-david-attenborough-makes-heartfelt-plea-for-the-reef-20160423-godlzu.html