Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I commend the member for Fremantle for bringing this motion to the House. I believe the motion, which is quite lengthy, covers very well the critical issues relating to the development of marine conservation parks. I want to refer in particular to subparagraphs (a), (b) and (c) in paragraph (1) of the motion. Subparagraph (a) talks about only one per cent of some key areas in Australia being currently protected sections. Subparagraph (b) talks about the fact that where you have marine parks in place fish populations ultimately increase. Subparagraph (c) talks about the importance of marine sanctuaries in preserving the ocean life we have, which in turn goes on to benefit both commercial and recreational fishers.

I have had some personal experience of the establishment of a marine conservation park in my home state of South Australia. I was a member of the advisory committee that established a dolphin sanctuary in Gulf St Vincent, just outside of Adelaide, and I then went on to serve as a board member on that sanctuary. I can well recall that the arguments in debates that were put up then were similar to some of those that I have just heard from members opposite on this issue. There were concerns about recreational and commercial fisheries. I say that when the process is properly managed the ultimate outcome is, in fact, one that benefits everyone concerned. It becomes a win-win situation. All the fears and scaremongering that went on at the time that that conservation park was being established proved to be unfounded. In fact, the coastal area of Adelaide, which is probably the biggest fish breeding ground for our state, is reviving and we are getting better fish numbers and, as a result of that, everyone is becoming a winner.

We have built our national identity and lifestyle around our oceans and coast. We know our oceans are great because we have got great places to prove it: the Great Barrier Reef, the Great Sandy Strait, the Great Ocean Road, Great Keppel Island, Great Oyster Bay, Great Palm Island and the Great Australian Bight. The Great Australian Bight is in my patch of ocean off the South Australian coast in the South-West Marine Region, which stretches 1.2 million square kilometres from Kangaroo Island to Kalbarri in Western Australia. I note it is a region that the South Australian government is also looking at in terms of developing marine parks or sanctuaries or conservation areas along that coastline. The marine region is the first of four in which the Gillard government will establish networks of Commonwealth marine reserves by the end of 2012. This comes at the same time as the South Australian government is finalising its own marine parks network. So what are the iconic places and ocean life that should be given high-level protection in the four marine regions? Let me take you on a quick tour. The mixed seagrass, sand and limestone reefs at the head of the Great Australian Bight provide a nursery for the threatened southern right whale. The bight's extensive shelf is covered in sands, and the many animals that filter water for their food—sponges, ascidians and bryozoans—make this one of the world's most diverse soft-sediment ecosystems. Blue whales come to feed at canyon upwellings near Kangaroo Island. So do school sharks, fur seals and Australian sea lions.

Further west, the deepest waters in Australia's oceans are found in the Diamantina Fracture—more than seven kilometres deep. Its isolation, complex seafloor shape, mixing of currents and great depths are likely to support unique ocean life. Rounding the south-west corner of Australia, the seagrass meadows of Geographe Bay attract loggerhead turtles, resting humpback whales and a mix of tropical and temperate ocean life that feeds, breeds and lives in the area.

The Abrolhos Islands almost mark the end of the South-West Marine Region and it is here where the warm Leeuwin Current has created a remarkable mix of tropical and temperate ocean life. Shark Bay is at the beginning of the North-West Marine Region, which extends over one million square kilometres to the Northern Territory border. Shark Bay has one of the largest dugong populations in the world, and Ningaloo Reef near Exmouth is the longest fringing barrier reef in Australia.

We have been protecting rivers, forests, mountains, canyons, plateaus and national parks on land for more than a century. It has taken us all that time to realise that we now need to protect the currents, kelp forests, sea mountains, underwater canyons, plateaus and other iconic areas in our oceans. There is some catching up to do, but by the end of 2012 the Gillard government will have established a network of Commonwealth marine reserves in each of the four regions. High-level protection of marine sanctuaries must be a critical component of those reserves. (Time expired)

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