Like our national parks on land, Australia’s marine sanctuaries provide protection and sanctuary for wildlife and habitats, for us all to enjoy for generations to come. Healthy marine life is also central to Australia’s coastal lifestyle and local economies.
The Turnbull Government made massive cutbacks to our marine sanctuaries. They stripped back protections leaving icons like the Coral Sea, the Kimberley, Lord Howe Island and Geographe Bay further exposed to destructive commercial fishing and oil and gas activities – threatening some of our most special places.
These changes ignored decades of science, the advice of the Government’s own independent review, the wishes of local communities, and the voice of hundreds of thousands of Australians who have called on our government to reinstate our vital marine sanctuary protections.
Our oceans, and the wondrous and vulnerable wildlife that call them home, are in more danger than ever – from climate change, pollution, overfishing and industry. To reduce marine protections is completely irresponsible.
Australia made history by declaring the world’s largest network of marine parks and sanctuaries, protecting some of the most biodiverse waters on the planet.
This network was the result of decades of science, years of consultation and work by all sides of politics – it was initiated under the Howard Government and finalised by the Gillard Government.
Australians continue to strongly support the full restoration of our national network of marine sanctuaries and reject the Government’s cutbacks!
The Coral Sea is one of the healthiest tropical marine ecosystems left in our global oceans.
It needs protecting yet the our Government has made huge sanctuary cutbacks in this region.
The north marine region includes some of the world's most intact tropical ocean ecosystems.
It is home to an abundance of tropical sea life threatened in many other parts of the world.
The north-west is refuge for the largest population of humpback whales on the planet!
These waters provide a safe haven for over 29,000 whales migrating every year.
Our south-west marine parks contain critical habitats for threatened and endangered species.
This region has the most southerly range of major tropical coral reefs anywhere in the Indian Ocean.
Our south-east marine parks have the high number of species found nowhere else on Earth.
Many iconic cold water species are all only found on the south coast of Australia.
The cool waters of the temperate east marine region are characterised by remarkable beauty.
The sea floor drops away to the deep ocean more than 5800 metres below surface in this area!