Yet if you read Australian Marine Conservation Society’s
submission into the Coral Sea they fail to mention anything about this threat. Here
it is full for you
24th February 2012
Dear Sir/Madam,
Submission by the Australian Marine Conservation
Society on the Coral Sea Commonwealth marine reserve proposal
The protection of Australia’s unique and diverse
marine environment is of critical importance to the Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS)
and our 20,000 supporters across the country. AMCS appreciates the opportunity
to provide a submission on the proposed Coral Sea Commonwealth marine reserve
and we look forward to future engagement in the process.
Overview
The Marine Bioregional Planning process is an
opportunity to deliver world class protection for Australia’s world class
marine environment. Consequently, AMCS as a founding member of the Protect our Coral Sea coalition, is
calling for the establishment of a very large, world-class, highly protected
marine national park in the Coral Sea to protect its incredible natural
features and marine life including, but not limited to, coral reefs, seamounts,
troughs, critical spawning sites and migration routes.
AMCS welcomes the
government’s policy commitment to implement a National Representative System of
Marine Protected Areas. Delivering on such a commitment will position Australia
as a world leader in marine conservation and be a true investment in the future
of Australia’s marine environment and the economies that rely on its long term
health and productivity. To meet this commitment, we recommend the government
ensures that the networks of marine reserves for each of the South
West, North West, North, Coral Sea, and Temperate East marine bioregions are
declared under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC)
Act no later than the end of 2012.
AMCS welcomes the intention to establish a marine
reserve in the Coral Sea, as part of a larger network or reserves around the
country. The Coral Sea region is globally important for biodiversity as one of
the healthiest areas that remain in our global ocean. The Coral Sea is home to
341 species which are listed on the International Union for the Conservation of
Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species thereby providing Australia an
opportunity to contribute to the conservation of globally threatened and important
marine life.
Over the past four years
thousands of AMCS supporters have written letters to their MPs and emailed successive
Federal Environment Ministers asking for the protection of our iconic Coral
Sea. They’ve done so in unison with tens of thousands of others who also
support this important cause through the broader Protect our Coral Sea
coalition. In addition, since the consultation period opened in November, many AMCS
supporters have emailed formal submissions to the public consultation over the
proposed marine reserve as individuals concerned about the conservation of the
marine environment. At time of submission the Protect our Coral Sea coalition
had facilitated over 60 000 submissions in support of greater protection. This
makes the protection of the Coral Sea one of Australia’s most widely supported
conservation initiatives of a lifetime.
The response by AMCS and
Protect our Coral Sea supporters is just one indication of the huge community
support, interest and expectation that exists for the meaningful protection of
the Coral Sea. This high level of public support
gives the government the mandate, indeed the duty, to ensure that the final
marine reserve for the Coral Sea delivers a very high level of protection for the
Coral Sea and for its coral reefs, seamounts, troughs, critical
spawning sites and migration routes.
The protection of
the Coral Sea in a very large highly protected Marine National Park Zone is
supported by science. There is
overwhelming scientific evidence that marine national parks are critical to the
future of our oceans and that large marine national parks are particularly beneficial
for marine life. Marine national
parks help to protect and recover populations of threatened species, provide
benefits to fish stocks and build resilience so the marine environment can
better withstand the affects of climate change. This is particularly important
in the Coral Sea where extreme weather events and the isolation of reefs make
life in the Coral Sea all the more vulnerable.
The numerous peer reviewed publications have, for example, been reviewed and
summarised in a number of literature reviews.
The establishment
of marine reserves is also supported by the economics. Marine reserves provide
benefits to coastal communities and the broader economy. Nature based tourism
is a predicted winner from the protection of the Coral Sea as an investment in
its health is an investment in the industry’s assets.
AMCS believes the
proposed marine reserve is a promising start however fails to deliver the level
of protection required for this important area. The submission below provides
general comments on the positives of the reserve as well as shortcomings and
through these comments identifies the improvements needed.
The Positives
·
Scale of the marine reserve
The proposed reserve establishes an outer boundary of
989,842 km2. We welcome the scale of the proposed reserve as it
matches the scale of important ecosystem processes such as dispersal and
migration throughout the Coral Sea. At 989 842 km2, if the entire
reserve were be highly protected in a Marine National Park Zone, it would
provide protection for many pelagic species, being large enough to encompass
significant proportions of their home ranges and life cycles, including
yellowfin (Thunnus albacares) and
bigeye (Thunnus obesus), striped
marlin (Tetrapturus audax), and
shortfin mako shark (Isurus oxyrhinchus)
·
Prohibition of mining and oil and gas
development
Mining of any kind has no place in
a marine reserve and we welcome the proposal to exclude all such activity from within
all zones of the marine reserve.
·
Prohibition of demersal fishing including demersal
trawl, gillnet, and demersal longline
The impacts of demersal fishing
are widely recognised. Compared to many other areas within Australia’s EEZ the
Coral Sea’s depth and physical characteristics dictate there is minor
opportunity for bottom fishing. We understand ABARES is currently assessing the
level of trawling in the proposed reserve. We welcome the exclusion of this
activity within the entire marine reserve.
The Shortcomings
AMCS believes that the proposed Coral Sea marine reserve fails to fully
embrace the opportunity presented by the Coral Sea. The Coral Sea may be the
world’s last great tropical ocean ecosystem where a highly protected marine
reserve - on the scale of the proposed multiple use reserve - could be
established and effectively managed. For Australia to let this opportunity pass
by would be a great loss for marine life in our waters, for Australians and the
global community. The following shortcomings need to be addressed to fully
realise this opportunity:
·
Coral reef
protection
Under the proposal only Kenn and Mellish Reef would receive a high level
of protection in a Marine National Park Zone. The zoning within the proposed reserve would leave 22
reef systems unprotected from various forms of commercial fishing and 23 reef
systems unprotected from commercial charter fishing. This would mean that 90%
of the Coral Sea’s reef systems which aren’t already protected by Lihou and
Coringa-Herald National Nature Reserves would continue to be unprotected from
various forms of fishing. This is a very significant weakness of the proposal. AMCS
believes all the coral reef systems should be fully protected under a single,
very large Marine National Park Zone.
Coral reefs
comprise less than 1% of the Coral Sea’s area. Global biodiversity patterns
suggest they are likely to host the majority of it marine species.
219 species of coral that are
known to exist in the existing Coral Sea Conservation Zone (CSCZ) are included
on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Of these, 96 were listed as critically
endangered, endangered, or vulnerable, therefore 42% of corals of the greatest
conservation concern globally occur in the CSCZ.
The Coral Sea’s reefs, shoals and cays are
likely to be the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and the
resulting acidification, temperate change and strong weather events that are predicted.
Protecting these features from extractive activities such as fishing is our
best management option to enable them to survive and recover from these
impacts.
·
Seamount
protection
The southern Coral Sea boasts several seamounts and is considered a global
biodiversity hot spot for apex
predators including the short fin mako (Isurus
oxyrhinchus), blue sharks (Prionace
glauca) and bronze whalers (Carcharhinus
brachyurus). These features are inadequately protected under the proposal and
the continuation of pelagic longline fishing in these areas is another serious
weakness. Pelagic longline fishing should be removed from the entire area of
the marine reserve, creating a globally significant safe haven for pelagic
species that are under pressure elsewhere in the Pacific.
·
Trough
protection
The Coral
Sea contains Australia’s largest marine trough systems – the Queensland and
Townsville troughs. These systems boast the only known black marlin spawning
aggregation in the world as well as spawning aggregations of lanternfish,
bigeye tuna and yellowfin tuna, listed by the IUCN as vulnerable and
near-threatened respectively. The partial prohibition of longline fishing in
the Townsville trough and for the entire Queensland trough is a positive move. All
commercial fishing should be removed from these productive and important
features.
·
Overly complex zoning
For a very
remote area such as the Coral Sea the proposed complex zoning arrangements may pose
a significant challenge and be more costly to manage than a simpler zoning
scheme. Research demonstrates that simpler zoning arrangements were more
cost-effective to manage than more complex ones. A complex zoning arrangement will
require greater resources to monitor and enforce.
·
Protection from commercial charter fishing
Commercial
charter fishing in the Coral Sea is an activity undertaken by a small number of
individuals, particularly when compared to regions such as the Great Barrier
Reef Marine Park.
The impact of fishing on reef fish populations at isolated locations in the
Coral Sea is unknown to science however, given the isolated and relatively
undisturbed nature of these reefs, it is likely the reef fish populations are
particularly vulnerable to even minor levels of fishing pressure. AMCS
understands that the vast majority of commercial charter fishing occurs within
the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and hence that the exclusion of this
activity would have very minimal impact upon the industry and yet would ensure
the Coral Sea’s reefs are secure from this potential threat.
In
summary, AMCS urges the Department to protect the Coral Sea’s coral reefs,
seamounts, troughs, spawning sites and migration routes in a highly
protected Marine National Park Zone. As one of the least impacted tropical
marine environments on the planet, the Australian government has an opportunity
to protect something truly special and secure Australia an enduring claim as a
world leader in marine conservation.
We recognise the commitment of the Minister and Department to the
protection of the Coral Sea as a beacon of hope in our global ocean. We commend
your efforts to this point, however the aforementioned shortcomings must be
addressed if this truly special place is to remain healthy and productive and
be safeguarded for future generations of Australians and the global community.
We thank the Department for
the opportunity to comment on the proposed Coral Sea Marine Reserve and look
forward to our continued engagement with the department on this important development.
Please do get in contact if we can provide further information or clarification
of anything raised in this submission.
Yours sincerely,
Daisy Barham
Coral Sea campaigner,
Australian Marine Conservation Society
As you can see nothing at all
about shipping or the threat this possess to the species of the area, lots
about fishing though.
