Sediments
Recent modelling suggests the suspended sediment load entering the Reef has increased to 7930 kilotonnes per year from the pre-European settlement load of 2931 kilotonnes.
The increase in sediment load is mainly due to soil erosion, exacerbated by poor land management practices and the highly variable rainfall patterns in some areas. In addition, hardened surfaces and straightened channels, as a result of urba and industrial development and agriculture, mean run-off has more erosive power, increasing stream bank erosion.