Australia: Vital gaps in new marine park plan: Greens

WAToday: Vital gaps in new marine park plan: Greens

A plan that bans fishing, trawling and mining along a significant stretch of the WA and South Australian coastlines starts too far from the shore and fails to adequately protect the diverse marine life, according to key interest groups.

The draft marine bioregional plan, released by federal Environment Minister Tony Burke yesterday, covers 538,000 square kilometres of Commonwealth waters spanning from Kalbarri in the north, to Kangaroo Island in South Australia. The protected areas start about 5.5 kilometres off the coast.

Interest groups Recfishwest and the Australian Conservation Foundation were unsure of what to expect in the federal government's proposal ahead of its release, and while supportive in theory, both held concerns for various aspects of the plan.

Advertisement: Story continues below Australian Greens senator Rachel Siewert said the draft plan had fallen short of the comprehensive network of marine parks the government had promised in the lead-up to the last election.

Senator Siewert said the plan did not cover vital areas including Perth Canyon, Geographe Bay, The Capes area, the Abrolhos Islands and Recherche Archipelago.

''The gaps in the plan include many of the areas closer to shore, areas which are under threat from drilling and trawling activities,'' she said.

The Australian Conservation Foundation shared the Senator's concerns, saying the draft maps did not adequately protect several important ocean areas in the South-West.

Foundation campaigner Chris Smyth said the release of the maps was an important step, but that the government needed to ensure adequate funding was made available for comprehensive protection of marine sanctuaries.

"The federal government needs to increase its investment in the natural capital of the South-West marine region to generate long-term returns for ocean life, regional communities and coastal lifestyles in Western Australia and South Australia," he said.

"This will be good for the environment, for commercial and recreational fishers and for everyone else who relies on the good health of our oceans.'

Mr Burke's plan was a key pledge in Labor's 2010 election campaign, aiming to protect the high levels of biodiversity of marine life in Australian waters.

In areas of the South-West, up to 90 per cent of the marine life is not found anywhere else in the world, and one-third of the world's whale and dolphin species are also found in this region.

There will be three zones offering different levels of protection; marine national parks, which limit activities and aim to protect the marine life in the highest conservation areas; the multiple-use zones which will allow for sustainable economic use, including recreational fishing; and the special purpose zones which allow some activities, including use of some fishing gear not permitted in the multiple-use zones.

Recfishwest acting executive director Kane Moyle said the zoning of the plan had a "minimal impact" on recreational fishing, which was important for the future of West Australian fishing culture.

"It gives a strong indication to us that recreational fishing is still compatible with conservation," he said.

"It does have some very significant sanctuaries, but they are largely out in the deep waters.

"Recreational fishing is very important here in WA, it's part of our way of life."

State Fisheries Minister Norman Moore said he was still reviewing the finer details of the draft plan, and hoped consultation at major WA fishing hubs would be taken into consideration.

"I remain hopeful that the Commonwealth has taken a balanced and pragmatic approach to proposed marine reserves which minimises the social and economic impact on stakeholders such as the fishing sector," Mr Moore said.

"The draft Marine Reserve Network document includes proposed zones to cover an area from Shark Bay in Western Australia's north through to South Australia's Kangaroo Island, between three and 200 nautical miles offshore, within which some forms of commercial and recreational fishing activity will be excluded."

Formal consultations will be held at Geraldton, Perth, Bunbury, Albany and Esperance during the 90-day comment period, which closes on August 8.

For more information or to make a submission on the draft plan, visit www.environment.gov.au.