Bulk carriers moored off Hay Point awaiting to be loaded with coal. Environment Minister Greg Hunt in Australia approves a massive and destructive dredging project at Abbot Point, just 50km north of the beautiful Whitsunday Islands. The approval is huge in both its size and impact. It would see some 3 million cubic metres of seabed ripped up at Abbot Point to make way for even more coal ships. The dredge spoil will then be dumped nearby inside the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.