Tony Fontes Diver & Whitsundays Dive Operator, holding a 'Danger! Climate Change' sign above the Great Barrier Reef to highlight the impacts of Climate Change and the need for government action to reduce emissions.
"To this day, I remember my first dive on the Reef because it changed my life forever."
"I consider myself both lucky and privileged to have spent the last 40 years working on the Reef as a dive instructor, guide and naturalist. It has given me a lifetime of adventure. I have had the opportunity to interact with some of the most incredible marine animals, from the huge and majestic humpback whales to the tiny nudibranches as colourful as butterflies."
"There are few things as heart-wrenching as watching your favorite dive site slowly cooked by a marine heatwave. As corals overheat, they will bleach, becoming a bright white, or a bright, almost glowing yellow, green, pink or even blue pastel. As beautiful as bleaching corals look, the coral animals are stressed and dying. If the heatwave continues, the corals will die, and disappear under a cover of dirty brown algae."
Coral reefs can require up to 10-15 years to fully recover from a major bleaching event.