(CNN) After a devastating coral die-off, campaigners in Australia had been expecting the Great Barrier Reef to slip onto UNESCO's "List of World Heritage in Danger." However, the World Heritage Committee opted not to include it during its annual meeting in Poland, a move praised by the Australian government as a "big win," but condemned by campaigners as "farcical." UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger has 55 entries, which include natural wonders and man-made sites. Jerusalem's Old City was added in 1982, and Aleppo, the Syrian city bombarded by air strikes, made the list in 2013. In a draft document later adopted without debate, the World Heritage Committee noted with "serious concern" coral bleaching along the Great Barrier Reef, and asked for an overall report on the state of conservation by December 2019.UNESCO leaves World Heritage Site off list of endangered sitesGovernment calls decision a "win"; environmentalists disagree
The _ government commended the decision to leave the Reef off the list. "The Great Barrier reef is under extreme threat from climate change, coal development, overfishing and influx of nutrients and the lack of _ recognition of the danger it is in is perplexing." The Australian government commended the decision to leave the _ off the list.