claim: Any action by Australia to reduce emissions of fossil fuels would not help to protect the reef unless there is an effective international agreement by major emitters.
evidence: The international community began the long process towards building effective international and domestic measures to tackle GHG emissions ( carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydroflurocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulphur hexafluoride ) in response to the increasing assertions that global warming is happening due to man-made emissions and the uncertainty over its likely consequences.