Australia in ‘jaw-dropping’ decision to remove itself from UN climate report - over fears it would damage tourism

All references to Australia were removed from a UN report on climate change and World Heritage sites after objections from Canberra, in a move scientists and activists Friday called “extremely disturbing”.

The study, World Heritage and Tourism in a Changing Climate, was jointly published Thursday by Unesco, the Union of Concerned Scientists and the United Nations Environmental Programme.

It profiles the impacts of climate change on major tourism drawcards including the Statue of Liberty, Venice and Stonehenge, listing 31 vulnerable sites in 29 countries.

Initially it contained a chapter on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, which is suffering its worst bleaching in recorded history, and sections on Kakadu National Park and the Tasmanian Wilderness, scientists said.

But when the Australian Department of Environment saw a draft, it objected and every mention of Australia was removed.

The department said it “indicated” to Unesco that “it did not support any of Australia’s World Heritage properties being included” in the study.