According to a report by the World Wildlife Fund, Australia’s Great Barrier Reef faces an unmanageable threat from a herbicide used widely by sugar cane growers on the Queensland coast. The report claims that Diuron has been found at 55 times safe levels in creeks that drain into the reef, and 100 times safe levels in the reef itself.

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The group has called for Diuron to be banned, though farmers in Queensland have said they rely on the chemical to maintain food production. The authority governing the sensitive reef, the world’s largest single structure made form living organisms, which can be seen from space, has said contamination from agricultural run-off is amongst the largest threats to the structure.

WWF said that banning Diuron alone would have immeasurable benefits for the reef, stating that the chemical has been found 60 km inside the reef at damaging concentrations. The chemical’s widespread use and long half-life have made it particularly unpopular with conservationists, who claim it accounts for 80 per cent of pesticide contamination in the reef.

WWF spokesperson Nick Heath said, "Just one gram [of Diuron] in four olympic-sized swimming pools is enough to damage sea grass. One of the most sensitive sea grasses is the preferred food source for turtles and dugongs."

However, cane growers maintain the herbicide’s use is “absolutely vital” and have accused WWF of “scaremongering to the highest level.” They claim to have halved their use of Diuron as a compromise, though a temporary ban was introduced in 2011 to limit use of the substance.

Following a decade-long review of the herbicide, the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority announced this week that it would be lifting its temporary ban, allowing farmers to resume use of the controversial chemical, albeit under tighter restriction.

The restrictions on Diuron will remain in place until a final assessment has been carried out by the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, and once it is available for use, farmers will be banned from applying the chemical in waterlogged areas, near drains or irrigation channels.

Scientists have warned that creeping biodiversity loss could pose more of a threat than climate change this century; in this case, the APVMA said that it would look at managing risk from chemical pollution before taking further action.

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