Friends of the Reef not worried about global warming | The Australian

THE Greens reckon the Great Barrier Reef is a casualty of Labor's lower-than-expected emissions reduction target, but for those who work among the corals, forecasts aren't so bleak.

Furthermore, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh reckons the reef's future depends as much on what happens in other countries decisions made in Canberra.

Shark expert Ben Cropp said yesterday the outer reef was more or less the same as when he started diving 50 years ago, although more accessible corals had been damaged. Patrick Ligthart, a volunteer with the Low Isles Preservation Society, said his section of the reef had never looked better, and he was sceptical about predictions of its demise.
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Mr Ligthart lives in Port Douglas and as a volunteer cleans away rubbish and maintains the reefs around the Low Isles. He is critical of scientists who say the reef is in decline.

"They say that, but I come out to the reef all the time, and the reef's in good shape," he said.

"I believe warmer climate might be good for corals anyway. There'll be more water for it to grow in for a start.

"I don't really know about climate change. For a start, nobody really seems to know what's happening. Some people say there's an ice age coming. The world has been heating and cooling for million of years. Maybe the rate has been changing, but even old timers say the reef here has never looked better."

Mr Ligthart, a 39-year-old internet consultant who moved to Australia eight years ago from The Netherlands, said the corals around the islands spawned spectacularly in November, and sea birds and turtles were in abundance.

Blame the Sun for a Cloudy Day? -- Berardelli 2008 (1217): 1 -- ScienceNOW

Based on the 130 years of data, Baker predicts that the current solar cycle, which reached a minimum in 2007, will continue a bit longer. In fact, he says, "there could be a 100-year minimum in solar activity," meaning much of Australia could experience a prolonged drought.

Jennifer Marohasy » What Warms the Oceans?

Do you realize that is has been postulated that long-term variations in solar/lunar tides control inter-decadal ocean surface temperatures by influencing the rate of up-whelming of cold deep-water?