Questions & Answers

Frequently asked questions relating to the creation of a fully protected Coral Sea Heritage Park.

1. What is the proposed boundary of the Park?

The boundary covers the whole area that is referred to as the Coral Sea – it extends from the edge of the Great Barrier Reef out to the edge of Australia’s territorial waters.  The boundary of the Coral Sea Conservation Zone was announced by the Federal Environment Minister, the Hon. Peter Garrett in May 2009. Click here to see a copy of the Conservation Zone map.

2. What does “fully protected” mean?

A fully protected area prohibits extractive industries such as fishing, and oil and gas exploration. It allows tourism and shipping and other activities which do not remove resources from the area.

3. Why is it important for the Coral Sea to be fully protected?

In the last 50 years, 90% of the world’s large ocean-going fish have disappeared due to overfishing. There is an urgent need to protect large areas of the ocean from fishing to ensure the survival of these majestic species. Full protection also ensures the integrity of ecosystems and their processes.

4. Why does the proposed Coral Sea park need to be so big?

Unlike many reef fish species that stay with their home reef during most of their life cycle, big ocean-going fish that are found in the Coral Sea move over large distances. A single large fully protected park would ensure that the scale of management appropriately matches the biological scale of important ecosystem processes such as dispersal and migration.

5. Do fully protected areas really work?

There is overwhelming evidence that fully protected areas help depleted species recover. They can enhance the viability of fishing in the future. Since one third of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park was protected from fishing in 2004, the density of coral trout – a highly prized commercial species – has increased by an average of 57-75% in most reefs throughout the Marine Park (Adams, S., Mapstone, B.D., Russ, G.R., and Davies, C.R. 2000).

6. What’s the point of Australia protecting migratory and pelagic (ocean-going) species when they can swim out of Australian territory and be caught elsewhere by foreign fishing fleets?

Many migratory and pelagic species are under threat and highly vulnerable to overfishing. Fully protecting the Coral Sea would be a huge step forward for conservation. It is possible that some individual species may be caught when they leave Australian waters, but not all of them will be. In the long term, the Coral Sea could be the start of a network of large, fully protected areas in the Western and Central Pacific. It is crucial, however, that tougher controls on fishing in the high seas for tuna and billfish are implemented and rigorously applied.

7. With the Great Barrier Reef protected, why do we need to add the Coral Sea?

The Coral Sea has distinctive fish and coral reef assemblages from those in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). The reefs in the Coral Sea are scattered and diverse and therefore more vulnerable to irreversible decline, as there is very little connection among the reefs of the Coral Sea, compared to the GBR. This lack of connectivity also means that populations highly associated with Coral Sea reefs have evolved over many generations in relative isolation, and may therefore be genetically distinct.

In addition, the Coral Sea is the cradle of the Great Barrier Reef. Ocean currents move from east to west. Riding on these currents are long-lived larvae that help replenish populations of species in the GBR.  Fishing in the Coral Sea contributes to the decline of sharks and - to a lesser extent - turtles in the GBR. Vulnerable leatherback turtles are most at risk of being caught on longline hooks than other turtle species. If the Coral Sea were to be protected from fishing, turtles, sharks and large pelagic fish such as tuna, billfish and mackerel in the GBR would benefit.

8. Does the Coral Sea need to be fully protected to secure its historic heritage value?

The Coral Sea is of great historic significance to Australia.  It was the site of a battle in May 1942 which turned the tide of WWII in the Pacific. Three US ships sank and remain on the ocean floor in Australian waters. Two hundred and sixteen crew of the USS Lexington lost their lives. We believe these ships should be left undisturbed. The area may well be a war grave and it is a tradition in Australia and elsewhere to pay due respect to such sites.

9. Will protection of the Coral Sea mean it is somehow protected against the impacts of global warming? How?

Only a dramatic reduction in Australia’s and the world’s greenhouse gas emissions will adequately protect the future of the world’s coral reefs. But, full protection of the Coral Sea would result in a more biologically diverse and healthy ecosystem. This means it would be more capable of recovering from shocks such as coral bleaching.

10. Will the protection of the Coral Sea threaten the Queensland economy?

No. The oil and gas industry is not interested in exploring the Coral Sea. The Gross Value of Production of all fishing in the Coral Sea is on average about $10 million. It is our understanding that operators in the Eastern Tuna and Billfish Fishery who work in the Coral Sea are willing to be bought out. Most of operators in the Coral Sea Fishery are of the same opinion. 

11. Will a fully protected Coral Sea park mean job losses?

There may be a very small number of losses directly related to the initiative, but it is expected that job growth as a result of the park would far outweigh any losses. Parks are now well recognised as net job generators in the Australian economy. A Coral Sea Heritage Park would be a major boost to tourism in North Queensland, at a time when this is much needed. Tourism hubs for the Coral Sea (like Cairns) also have an opportunity to expand the range of experiences and opportunities available for seeing and appreciating all that the Coral Sea has to offer.

12. Who is funding the campaign?

The campaign is funded by five organisations: the Lyda Hill Foundation, the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Oak Foundation, the Robertson Foundation and the Sandler Foundation.

13. Is the Coral Sea the only fully protected marine park environment groups are proposing in Australia?

No. The Save our Marine Life alliance is working to secure several large fully protected areas in Australia’s southwest. As part of the Marine Bioregional Planning Process, other organisations such as the Australian Marine Conservation Society and the Australian Conservation Foundation, will also be arguing for fully protected marine reserves throughout Australian waters.