Reefs' new name echoes the legacy of the 'Bingil Bay Bastard'

When a Far North Queensland farmer wanted to make fertiliser from coral on the Great Barrier Reef, a local poet emerged as his fiercest opponent.

It was the 1960s. The reef was much less understood and scientists were loath to weigh into a political debate about its future, which was just starting to heat up as Joh Bjelke-Petersen swept to power in Queensland.

Enter John Büsst, the man his opponents came to call the "Bastard of Bingil Bay".

He saw a great threat to the natural paradise that surrounded his home on the Cassowary Coast, between Cairns and Townsville, and so he wrote more than 4,000 letters agitating for its protection.

"He'd fly from Mission Beach to Melbourne to catch up with his buddy [prime minister Harold Holt] to say a few words," marine scientist Adam Smith said.

"He was really an unknown hero.

"When he saw others trying to damage or destroy [the reef], such as the proposed mining of Ellison Reef for coral, or the proposed drilling for oil — which was actually proposed by the Queensland government — he thought he would oppose it."

Two years ago, Dr Smith proposed two unnamed reefs be named in Büsst's honour, recognising his legacy in securing Commonwealth protection.

That naming process concludes this weekend with a celebration at Büsst's old home, Ninney Rise, and an expedition to what are now known as John Büsst Reefs.

"It must have been a huge undertaking to take on government with very little information," Dr Smith said.

Ahead of his time

Büsst's death in 1971, at the age of 62, came four years too early for him to see former prime minister Gough Whitlam declare the Great Barrier Reef one of the world's largest protected marine areas.

Acclaimed marine scientist Charlie Veron said Büsst, along with the late Judith Wright, was "essential" in championing the reef's protection when academics did not.

"If scientists had done that at the time, things would've moved quicker, I would think," Dr Veron said.

"But there were very few scientists who were able to speak out about the Great Barrier Reef."

Dr Smith said Büsst's campaign pre-dated the dive tourism industry and institutions like the Australian Institute of Marine Science and James Cook University.

"It was actually some of John's ideas that helped form those amazing organisations," he said.

Dr Smith said Büsst was also instrumental in campaigning for protection of Far North Queensland's tropical lowland rainforest.

Dr Smith said he would remember Büsst's legacy this weekend while diving in the waters that now, officially, bear his name.

"That's where the magic happens: when you put your head underwater, you look at the coral, you look at the fish, maybe we'll even see a shark," he said.

"[You] go, 'Wow, this is really special.'

"And thanks to … John Büsst's actions 60 years ago, we're enjoying this today."