Artificial reef off Qld coast providing hope for Great Barrier Reef

With the Great Barrier Reef in the midst of a mass coral bleaching event, an artificial reef off the Queensland coast is providing hope for underwater habitats. Wonder Reef is made up of nine giant underwater structures that sit 22 metres above the sea floor and house 32,000 cubic metres of reef habitat. “It has really provided an amazing opportunity for marine life to settle and to visit,” marine biologist Lea Breistroff said. “On top of that, it’s been a great bonus for us as local divers and visiting divers. “When we first started diving it, it was very barnacle-dominated, very algae-dominated, and we’ve really seen a shift quite rapidly.”