Federal government commits $100 million to Great Barrier Reef conservation from Cairns base

The federal government has committed $100 million to a new Great Barrier Reef conservation program to be administered from a research hub established at James Cook University's Cairns campus, with the funding focused on coral restoration, water quality improvement, and the development of heat-resistant coral strains that can survive increased ocean temperatures.

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said the program, which will run for seven years, represented the single largest injection of federal conservation funding into reef science since the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park was established in 1975. "The reef is under pressure from climate change in ways that no amount of local management can fully address, but we can make it more resilient, and we can give it the best possible chance," she said.

James Cook University vice-chancellor Sandra Harding said the hub would employ 120 researchers and create collaboration frameworks with 28 international institutions. The coral restoration program builds on JCU's existing micro-fragmentation and assisted evolution work, which has produced coral strains with demonstrably higher thermal tolerance than wild-type colonies.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority will receive additional funding within the program for expanded monitoring capacity, including new underwater sensor networks across 40 high-priority reef sites. The data from the networks will feed a new public dashboard showing reef health in near-real-time.

Cairns mayor Terry James said the research hub would establish the city as the global capital of reef science, supporting professional employment opportunities and reinforcing the region's identity as a centre of environmental stewardship.

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