The Great Barrier Reef extortion scam

What can the federal government do about it? Apart from closing 2300 kms of coast to anything but tourism?

The advocates claim the government needs a better emissions policy. This is nonsense. Australia has been moderately successful in reducing emissions and the growth in China's emissions every two years is equal to the totality of Australia's emissions, which are only 1.16% of global emissions.

What we do with emissions may have a bearing on national prestige and claims on world leadership, but it will have negligible impact on world CO2 levels, and hence, in this scenario, the GBR.

So here's how the scam works. The Reef is held "hostage" in concert by the various groups.

In a variation on the traditional hostage play, they pretend that the money isn't for them, it's for the reef.

So, the conservationists get enhanced panhandling capacity, as their supporters see them doing something. They also hope to close down a few mines, and farms, which further enhances panhandling capacity.

The research scientists get more and better funding, and for some of them this ironically means they get to spend more time exploring the beauties of the reef, something which they love to do. For others, it is a bigger career, overseas conferences (when they return) and the opportunity to build more complex models of what reefs ought to be doing rather than field trips.

And the Queensland government is after two billion dollars for their Renewable Energy and Hydrogen Jobs Fund. This will do nothing for the reef but might give them a leg-up over the Western Australian government that's testing the same industry with mining entrepreneur Twiggy Forest.

The irony is that whatever happens, the reef will never "get it". It will meet its fate in geological time, as all reefs have.

It is the residents of central, north and far north Queensland who will "get it". No one will want to come to see an "endangered" reef, so their tourism industry will die and all the ancillary jobs with it.

The federal government sees the problem. So here's the only solution available to them – instead of playing along with environmental groups start being sceptical. In this case, spend money on a proper audit of the existing reef science. And prosecute the case for carbon emission reduction in an orderly international framework, rather than according to what the nearest Extinction Rebellion cheer squad screams.

The golden rule of dealing with extortionists is, no matter what they demand, never give in.