UN mission must see coral bleaching to get ‘whole picture’ of Great Barrier Reef, experts say

The UN’s 10-day mission on the Great Barrier Reef may influence whether the site is listed as ‘in danger’ by the World Heritage committee. Photograph: Grumpy Turtle Designs/WWF

A UN mission under way in Queensland to see if the Great Barrier Reef should be put on an “in danger” list will not get “the whole picture” unless it visits reefs currently experiencing coral bleaching, conservationists and the government’s own reef envoy have said.

Details of the 10-day mission, which began on Monday in Brisbane, are being kept confidential and the locations to be visited have not been formally disclosed.