Reconstructing changes in the Great Barrier Reef - The Great Barrier Reef: An Environmental History - page 15

Reconstructing changes in
the Great Barrier Reef
Introduction
Few scientific studies of the Great Barrier Reef cover the period 1860-1960, the
one covered in this topic. In contrast, qualitative sources can provide information
about environmental changes in the Great Barrier Reef for that period; useful
sources include both documentary (especially archival) and oral history sources,
which have been little used in environmental histories of the Great Barrier Reef.
My study used an array of qualitative methods and sources to reconstruct changes
in the coral reefs, islands and marine wildlife of the Great Barrier Reef for that
period. However, the use of qualitative methods and sources requires a systematic
approach, and raises specific methodological and philosophical issues. This
chapter provides an outline and explanation of the sources and methods used in
my research. Two main types of qualitative source were used - documentary and
oral sources - including historical topics, maps, photographs, official records and
reports of Queensland Government departments, newspapers and oral history
interviews. However, among those sources, I emphasise the particular importance
of archival and oral history evidence in my research. Some of the limitations
of qualitative sources - including their subjectivity, bias and partial coverage -
are also considered below, and some responses to those limitations, including
cross-referencing and the use of expert, scientific advice, are described. This
chapter also contains a discussion of the particular issues associated with using
oral histories.
Sources of data
Two main types of qualitative source were used in my study: documentary and oral
sources. However, as Ganter (1994, p12) acknowledged, 'the distinction between
written and oral sources is, in any but the most pragmatic sense, an artificial
one'. She acknowledged that written sources may contain as many inaccuracies
and subjectivities as oral sources, and she argued that all sources must be treated
with equal caution. Ganter (1994) also suggested that some qualitative sources
fall into an ambiguous category - between written and oral sources - such as