Petition Marine Parks

Keep seismic blasting out of Australian Marine Parks


Most Australians assume our marine parks are protected from damaging activities like seismic blasting. But the truth might surprise you.

Seismic blasting involves vessels firing extremely loud underwater explosions every 10–15 seconds, day and night, to search for offshore oil and gas. The blasts can damage lobsters,¹ kill scallops,² wipe out zooplankton,³ and drive whales away from key feeding and breeding grounds.⁴

Shockingly, seismic blasting is still allowed inside about half of Australia’s offshore marine parks!

Marine parks are meant to protect our ocean, not expose them to seismic blasting and drilling.

Right now, we have a once-in-a-decade opportunity to change that. Australia’s offshore marine parks are currently under review, a process that only occurs once every ten years.

Last year, new seismic blasting was banned in Australia’s offshore marine parks around Tasmania and Victoria. Now it’s time to extend these protections to all of Australia’s offshore marine parks.

Sign the petition now to support ending all new seismic blasting in Australian Marine Parks and strengthening the protection of our offshore ocean.

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We, the undersigned, call for new seismic testing/blasting to be banned from all Australian Marine Parks during the upcoming Commonwealth marine park network reviews.

Most Australians assume our marine parks are protected from activities like seismic blasting and are shocked to learn that the Australian Government still allows this damaging activity in about half of the Australian Marine Parks.

Seismic blasting involves a vessel towing multiple lines of air cannons that fire extremely loud underwater explosions every 10–15 seconds, day and night, 7 days a week. Research shows seismic blasting can kill scallops, irreversibly damage lobsters, wipe out tiny zooplankton like krill from more than a kilometre away, and may disrupt whale communication and feeding behaviour.

Seismic blasting is one of the main ways the fossil fuel industry searches for offshore oil and gas deposits, and new locations to dump carbon pollution. If seismic blasting continues to be allowed inside Australian Marine Parks, it can lead to further industrial activity including drill rigs, pipelines and increased shipping, along with the ongoing risk of spills that could devastate marine life, coastal communities, and fishing and tourism industries. Marine parks are designed to protect important ocean ecosystems and biodiversity. They should not allow oil and gas activities like seismic blasting.

In addition, scientific evidence shows marine sanctuaries support healthier ecosystems with more fish, larger fish populations, and greater resilience to environmental pressures like climate change. Australian Marine Parks are currently under review – a process that only occurs once every decade. Decisions made through the upcoming reviews will determine the health of Australian marine life for at least the next ten years and provide an opportunity to ensure marine parks fulfil their conservation purpose and benefit future generations of Australians.

The Albanese government’s South-east Marine Parks Network Management Plan 2026 banned new seismic blasting, including any petroleum exploration permit and special prospecting authority (SPA), from all marine parks in the region to protect important values.

We urge the Australian Government to consistently apply the same protections against seismic blasting and oil and gas development across all Australian Marine Parks, and to increase marine sanctuary protection, during the upcoming network reviews.

Who Can Sign the Petition?

Anyone! We encourage all ocean lovers to add their name.

This petition also appears on the Save Our Marine Life website. Save Our Marine Life is an alliance of conservation groups co-led by AMCS. You are welcome to sign the petition on both websites. Each name will only be counted once when we present the petition.

References
  1. Day, R. D. et al. (2019). Seismic air guns damage rock lobster mechanosensory organs and impair
    righting reflex. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 286 (1907).
  2. Day, R. D. et al. (2017). Exposure to seismic air gun signals causes physiological harm and alters
    behavior in the scallop Pecten fumatus. PNAS, 114 (40), E8537-E8546.
  3. Richardson, A. J., Matear, R. J., & Lenton, A. (2017). Potential impacts on zooplankton of seismic
    surveys. APPEA (The Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association).
  4. Williams, R. et al. (2015). Impacts of anthropogenic noise on marine life: Publication patterns, new
    discoveries, and future directions in research and management. Ocean & Coastal Management, 115,
    17-24.

Feature image: Air cannons explode beneath the surface during seismic blasting in Europe. Image supplied by Greenpeace.