A high level panel of internationally respected marine scientists has found that a South Australian Government proposal for marine parks in the South East fails to address current and potential threats to the marine environment and concludes that no scientific evidence exists to show how the proposed Marine Parks 18 and 19 in the South East will contribute substantially to protecting and conserving the marine ecosystem and biota against current and potential threats.
This suggests that Marine Parks 18 and 19 are unnecessary and will only create costs for the Government with few if any quantifiable benefits.
The State Government is proposing that approximately 70 per cent of coastal waters in the South East of the State be proclaimed as marine parks, with the potential for subsequent governments to exclude recreational and commercial fishers from any, or all waters contained within the marine parks outer boundary without going back to the community or Parliament.
The panel – comprising Emeritus Professor Robert Kearney of the University of Canberra; former SA Director of Fisheries, Dr Gary Morgan; Professor Colin Buxton and Dr Caleb Gardner from the University of Tasmania; and Dr Paul McShane of Monash University - is highly critical of the way in which the Government has “packaged” the marine parks proposal.
Based on the information provided by Government, the threats to the marine ecosystems and biota within the region generally have been assessed by the panel, taking into account conservation values, existing closed areas, conservation parks and existing legislation and the vulnerability of the ecosystems and biota.
The panel concluded from its assessment that the significant threats to the marine biodiversity and the marine environment in the South-east are:
• Agricultural run-off, especially from drains, generally impacting the inshore marine ecosystem throughout the region; and
• Reduced water volumes and quality that impact on water bird and migratory wader breeding colonies in several areas and also impact fish nursery areas, particularly in the Coorong.
“Other threats, of a lesser significance, that were identified include the physical disturbance of sea lion haul-out sites at Penguin Island/Beachport and also at Baudin Rocks and the physical disturbance of migratory wading bird and penguin breeding sites in other areas of the South-East, aside from the Coorong.
“Threats to marine biodiversity and the marine environment in the South East have been identified but few of these threats are addressed by the proposed marine parks, either because there is no marine park proposed in the area where the threat exists or because a marine park is an ineffective means of addressing the threat.
“The need in South East, as in the rest of South Australia, is to properly identify the threats to the marine environment and its biodiversity and then to address those threats through an appropriate management response. The management response, to be targeted and effective should be able to utilise all of the available management tools (including existing legislation and regulations) and therefore may or may not include the need for protected or ‘no-take’ areas.”
The President of the South Eastern Professional Fishermans Association, Mr Joel Redman said the Association was grateful for the support given to the report from Lacepede, Robe & Grant Councils in commissioning the work and the encouragement provided by recreational groups in the area.
“The report sets a direction we can all get behind – that is to look at the 10 hot spots of high conservation value, assess the effectiveness of current management arrangements in protecting these areas, properly identify the threats to the marine environment and its biodiversity and then to address those threats through an appropriate management response.”
“We will be committed to such an approach and if a marine park drops out as the appropriate conservation tool, we will get behind it and make it work, but we will never agree to massive general use areas tied up in marine parks – they will just create long term confusion, uncertainty and unnecessary cost.”
“We remain committed to working with the Government and will meet with Minister Weatherill this week to present the report and more importantly attempt to agree on a more sensible and effective approach for the South East.
“In fact, we’re very much in the same boat as the Government when it comes to looking after the ocean and preserving the habitats of our unique species because the ongoing livelihood of our fishery, fishing families and their kids depend on it.”
SOUTH EAST HOT SPOTS
Ten “hot spots” of high conservation value in the South East are identified in the DEH documentation for the marine park process. These are:
1. Blackfellows Caves/Nene Valley,
2. Blanche Bay/Cape Northumberland,
3. Eight Mile Creek/Brown Bay/Green Point (and offshore reefs),
4. Ellards Creek/Piccaninnie Ponds,
5. Cape Banks/Canunda,
6. Lacepede Bay/Cape Jaffa/Margaret Brock Reef,
7. Guichen Bay/Baudin Rocks/Cape Dombey/Little Dip,
8. Nora Creina Bay,
9. Penguin Island/Cape Martin/Beachport and
10. Coorong.
