05/05/2006 - The Australian
Government has acted to preserve the unique environment
of Australia's south-eastern waters, with an area
almost as big as the State of Victoria included
in 13 new Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).
Announcing the 226,000 square
kilometers of new protected zones today, Minister
for the Environment and Heritage, Senator Ian
Campbell, said the decision again confirmed Australia
as a world leader in marine-environment conservation.
About one-third of the world's
marine protected areas were now in Australian
waters.
The MPA network is the culmination of extensive
discussions with stakeholders, with more than
120 days of consultation alone since the release
of the proposed network in December.
The new MPA network covers waters
off Victoria, Tasmania, far south New South Wales
and eastern South Australia and will pave the
way for the creation of a national network of
MPAs throughout Australia's vast ocean territory.
"This is a major advance for the protection
of the unique marine life of the south-east marine
region, and significantly, we have been able to
deliver these new marine protected areas with
minimal impact on industry," Senator Campbell
said
"Since I released the proposed
network last December, we have made more than
20 adjustments to boundaries and zoning that will
reduce the impact on commercial fishing by more
than 90 per cent.
"We have also managed to
design an MPA network which, through the use of
multiple use areas, recognises that the South-east
is a critical petroleum production area for Australia.
The new MPA network will not prevent prospective
oil and gas areas from being explored and developed."
The Minister also noted that
for the first time the geological storage of carbon
dioxide has been flagged as an allowable use in
multiple use zones in MPAs, subject to meeting
regulatory and other requirements. Carbon dioxide
capture and storage involves capturing carbon
dioxide emissions, compressing them into a liquid
form and then injecting them under pressure into
deep underground geological formations. The storage
of carbon dioxide is one of a suite of measures
aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions as
part of Australia's climate change strategy.
While the independent Scientific
Peer Review Panel, which was established to assess
the MPA network, indicated it would like to see
even greater environment protection provided,
it concluded that the MPA network was a "significant
and important step towards a comprehensive, adequate
and representative system of MPAs and represents
a major advance in biodiversity conservation in
the South-east region."
Senator Campbell said that in
addition to the environmental protection afforded
by the new MPA network, extensive fisheries closures
being implemented by AFMA, such as the proposed
closure of Bass Strait to bottom trawling, would
also have a positive impact on the marine environment.
The fisheries changes are included in the Australian
Government's $220 million Securing Our Fishing
Future package.
"The new MPA network cannot be viewed in
isolation from the significant steps this Government
is taking to get our fisheries onto a truly sustainable
basis and to inject a strong environmental protection
ethos into fisheries management," he said.
The development of the South-east
MPAs started about three years ago and was accelerated
in December 2005, when the Government released
a candidate network of MPAs for consultation.
Fishermen impacted by the creation
of the MPA network may be able to obtain assistance
under the Securing Our Fishing Future package
- including those eligible to participate in the
fishing concession buyout being conducted by the
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.
The Government will soon start
a statutory process to have each MPA declared
as a Commonwealth reserve. Further information
on this process and the Australian Government's
Marine Protected Areas program is available at
http://www.deh.gov.au/coasts/mpa/index.html
Further background on Australia's Oceans Policy
is available online at www.oceans.gov.au/the_oceans_policy_overview.jsp
Further information about the Securing Our Fishing
Future package can also be obtained on the AFMA
website at http://www.afma.gov.au/securing/direction.htm#management
or by contacting the package hotline on 1800 617
866.
