A SCIENTIFIC duel between two pre-eminent reef scientists has been slapped down with the head of Australian Institute of Marine Science refusing to be strong armed into a public debate.
Marine scientist Dr Peter Ridd, a vocal critic of the science relied upon when discussing the health of the Great Barrier Reef, challenged AIMS CEO Dr Paul Hardisty to a public debate in Townsville next week.
Dr Ridd wanted to debate the impact 'unchecked science' had on farmers, particularly when it came to the state government introducing controversial reef regulation legislation, ahead of the October 31 state election.
It follows a Senate inquiry into reef health earlier this year, which heard only 3 per cent of the Great Barrier Reef was adversely impacted by agriculture.
Cane grower and farming advocacy groups in North Queensland and two Queensland Senators put their names on a public letter, demanding Dr Hardisty take part in the debate, pre-scheduled for October 8.
But Dr Hardisty has declined to take part, saying the so-called "scientific duel" was not a constructive or collegiate way to advance science.
An AIMS spokesman said Dr Hardisty had not been approached to take part in the debate, before arrangements were made and it was publicly promoted.
"Before any discussion took place with Dr Hardisty about this "scientific duel" all the arrangements had been made in advance, complete with a venue, format, timings, and pre-determined topics," the spokesman said.
"It was promoted on Facebook and a media release issued without Dr Hardisty's knowledge or consent.
"Dr Hardisty was not party to these arrangements in any way and no formal proposal had been made to him until he received an email request the following week to attend the "showdown."
An open letter sent on Thursday morning again requested Dr Hardisty attend, saying the subject of the debate was checks and balances around Great Barrier Reef marine science and the 2017 Scientific Consensus Statement.
"Farmers across Queensland request that AIMS, as the main marine science organisation based on the Great Barrier Reef, provide information within this public forum to substantiate the 2017 Scientific Consensus Statement which has been utilised by the Queensland government to push through the 2019 reef regulations," the letter said.
"Any refusal by Dr Hardisty to attend, or to provide suitable alternate representative scientists, will be seen as a mark of utter contempt for the Australian farmers and general public whose lives are being impacted by AIMS and other marine science, and for the politicians at all levels of government who are being influenced in their political decision-making by and reliant upon the evidence published by AIMS and other GBR scientific institutions."
The AIMS spokesman again reiterated Dr Hardisty would not be attending and a representative would not be sent in his place.
"We will continue to take part in appropriate and respectful scientific discourse carried out in good faith, and remain focused on delivering the highest quality science for the nation," the spokesman said.
"We will continue to reach out to and welcome farming groups, members of the public, and interested organisations of all kinds, to discuss the science we do, and share our data, findings and analysis.
"All of our published work and data are openly available to the public."