Report values Great Barrier Reef at $42 bn, says 50% corals lost in 30 yrs

Deloitte study warns of massive economic fallout unless Australia take steps to protect it

A report on Monday valued the Great Barrier Reef at $42 billion and warned of vast economic consequences for Australia unless more is done to protect it.

The Deloitte Access Economics report detailed the economic impact the Great Barrier Reef provides directly and indirectly, reports Xinhua news agency.

In the 2015-16 financial year, the total economic contribution to Australia by the Great Barrier Reef was 6.4 billion Australian dollars ($4 billion) along with 64,000 associated jobs, the report said.

The lead author of the analysis, John O'Mahony, a partner at Deloitte Access Economics, told Xinhua that one of the main things he discovered in the course of compiling his report was his own realisation of just how significant of an economic and social asset the Reef has become.

Around 50 per cent of the corals on the Great Barrier Reef has been lost in the last 30 years.

Severe changes in the ocean will see a continued decline, the report said.