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UNESCO will write to the West Australian government amid concerns that curious tourists are trampling 3.5-billion-year-old stromatolites — the world's oldest "living fossils" — because the state government has not replaced a viewing platform to protect them.
Key points:
- People in WA's north west are concerned the stromatolites are being damaged by tourists
- The "living fossils" are 3.5 billion years old
- The local government says the state needs to act now to protect them
The site at Hamelin Pool, about 600 kilometres north-west of Perth in the Gascoyne region, is registered with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as place of world heritage significance, in large part due to the stromatolites.
But concerns are being raised that the state government's Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) has left the site vulnerable to damage by failing to replace a viewing platform damaged during Cyclone Seroja in 2021.
A UNESCO spokesperson said in a written response to questions it had not been informed of the damage to the boardwalk.
"In accordance with the operational guidelines of the World Heritage Convention, we will write to the state party of Australia to request further information regarding this matter," the spokesperson said.
"As we all know, the stromatolites in Shark Bay [are] one of the superlative natural phenomena present in the Shark Bay World Heritage property, and visiting such fragile ecosystems should be done in [a way] that respects the need to protect them."
Before the pandemic began, about 130,000 people visited the stromatolites every year, according to the Shire of Shark Bay.
A scientists' haven, the area is one of the world's best examples of stromatolites, which are the oldest life forms on earth.
Shire President Cheryl Cowell said that, with the boardwalk closed indefinitely, some tourists were going around the DBCA's temporary fence and walking into the water to get a closer look.
"They're not the sort of thing that you should be walking on and stomping on," Ms Cowell said.
"Although they look just like rock, they're actually quite fragile."
World heritage status
The stromatolites made up two of the four criteria used by UNESCO to deem the Shark Bay area a site of world heritage value.
"The stromatolites of Hamelin Pool were the first modern, living examples to be recognised that have a morphological diversity and abundance comparable to those that inhabited Proterozoic seas," the UNESCO website says.
"As such, they are one of the world's best examples of a living analogue for the study of the nature and evolution of the earth's biosphere up until the early Cambrian [period]."
The stromatolites are also valued by the nearby communities, including Shark Bay and Denham, as one of the area's most-visited tourist attractions.
Ms Cowell said the shire-run tourist information centre was bearing the brunt of complaints about the boardwalk closure.
"The shire is getting a lot of flack from tourists who … normally, their first port of call is to go in there and check those out," she said.
"And the complaints that we get … are quite significant."
She said a temporary fix was needed to protect the site while a replacement boardwalk was being organised.
DBCA looking for funding
In a written statement, the DBCA said the boardwalk was built in 1996 to allow visitors to experience the stromatolites with minimal impact on the environment.
It said it had started the process to replace the boardwalk since it was destroyed by the cyclone.
"A structural engineering assessment, which evaluated several options, found that the boardwalk should be replaced rather than repaired to minimise both short and long-term environmental impacts on the stromatolite environment and to mitigate the risk of future storm damage," the statement said.
The department said signage erected around the site prominently displayed information about the sensitivity of the area.
"DBCA remains committed to the replacement of the boardwalk and continues to explore funding opportunities to support its replacement," it said.
Tourists disappointed
The DBCA said the best time to view the stromatolites from the beach was at low tide, and encouraged people to use binoculars to get the best view.
Tara Hannibal, who owns Oceanside Village accommodation in Denham, said it was not the same.
She said, as a tourist attraction, the wonder of the stromatolites was lost if viewed from the shore.
"Really, you're looking from the beachside and there's very little to look at, basically nothing," Ms Hannibal said.
"Because normally you can walk along the boardwalk and it's awesome seeing stromatolites breathe, and the bubbles, and you don't get any of that experience."
Tourist Bob Goodall wrote to Tourism Minister Rita Saffioti to express his disappointment after visiting the site earlier this month.
"In the hour-long visit to this unique site, more than 30 other visitors from overseas, interstate and locally were very disappointed at not being able to see the stromatolites," Mr Goodall said in a letter provided to ABC Radio Perth's Mornings program.
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