Raine Island is a vegetated coral cay 32 hectares (79 acres) in total area situated on the outer edges of the Great Barrier Reef off northeastern Australia.
Raine Island is the site of the oldest European structure in tropical Australia, a stone beacon built in 1844, and harbours the world's largest remaining population of green turtles (Chelonia mydas).
In addition, as the shape of the island had changed over time, the spread of the beaches outwards had led to greater risk of inundation of the turtle nests.
Between 2011 and 2020, a collaborative project by the Queensland Government, BHP (as corporate sponsor), the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Great Barrier Reef Foundation, and Wuthathi and Meriam traditional owners, reshaped the island using heavy machinery in a way that gave the female turtles a smoother passage and reduced the risk of nest inundation.
Over the years, the structure deteriorated; undermining, stone bedding loss, natural erosion, harsh weather and lightning strikes all contributed to its dilapidation.
[10] In 1988, the Raine island Corporation carried out repairs to secure the structure, for which it was honoured with the Australian Bicentennial National Trust of Queensland John Herbert Award for Excellence in Heritage Conservation.
The Corporation's goals were to promote research into, and to ensure the preservation and protection of, the natural and cultural heritage resources of Raine Island, the Moulter and Maclennan Cays and the surrounding seas.
In August 2007 Raine Island, along with the neighbouring Moulter and MacLennan Cays, was declared a National Park (Scientific) under Queensland's Nature Conservation Act 1992.
[8] "Not only does Raine Island have the largest known green turtle rookery in the world with tens of thousands of turtles coming to lay their eggs each year, it is home to the endangered herald petrel and the vulnerable red-tailed tropic bird and is arguably the most significant seabird rookery on the Great Barrier Reef," "By upgrading Raine Island from Nature Refuge status to National Park (Scientific), its special values and adjacent cays and ensuring nature conservation research can continue to be conserved."