Reef report paints bleak picture, again

The latest report card on the Great Barrier Reef paints a bleak picture of its overall health.

The reef has scored a D, for the fifth year in a row, in the 2015 Reef Report published by the Queensland and federal governments.

Although the overall condition of the reef remained poor, the report acknowledged the coral quality had improved, albeit slightly.

WWF Australia voiced their disappointment about the continued poor scores and called on both governments to spend more money to save the reef.

"The scary thing is this latest fail was for the period before the mass bleaching event killed an estimated 22 per cent of the reef's coral," WWF-Australia spokesman Sean Hobbin said.

Australia is due to report to the World Heritage Commission in December to show how the reef is being protected.

"Results show the need to accelerate the rate of change and drive innovation to meet the ambitious targets," the report said.

The Australian Marine Conservation Society also took aim, saying present funding commitments fall well short of what is needed to improve the reef's water quality.

Spokeswoman Imogen Zethoven cited a state government report released in August that calculated it would cost $8.2 billion.

"The reef can't survive and thrive without clean water," she said.

"We must see accelerated action by the Queensland government to move ahead with legislative caps on water quality, supported by the federal government."