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Response

Note: Some of the material contained in this chapter is out of date and currently under review (1/7/2004)

Response

Management of inter-reefal and lagoonal seabed areas is carried out both by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and the Queensland Fisheries Service. Common to both of these agencies are the principles of conservation, ecologically sustainable use, protection of critical areas, equitable resource use and integrated management. However, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority is primarily responsible for the care and development of the GBRMP, and is only involved in fisheries management where it affects Marine Park values. The Queensland Fisheries Service is responsible for the management of fishing and collecting operations and optimisation of the use of available fisheries resources. Further details of the management activities of these two agencies can be found in Management Status - Fisheries.

Response: Protection of ecosystem function and biodiversity

The RAP is designed to protect biodiversity, preserve ecosystem function and maintain ecological connectivity throughout the Great Barrier Reef.

The GBRMPA launched the Representative Areas Program (RAP) in 2001. The RAP used the best available scientific information to map the GBRMP and divide it into distinct bioregions, each bioregion comprising an area with a specific mix of biological and physical traits. While the RAP identified 40 separate and unique non-reef bioregions in inter-reefal and lagoonal areas and the continental slope, it also highlighted that under the existing zoning system, only three to four per cent of the inter-reefal and lagoonal areas are currently highly protected and some inter-reefal and lagoonal bioregions do not have any highly protected areas at all. This exposes some habitats and the organisms living in them to significant risks as their entire geographic range may be subjected to extractive activities. This also means that in some regions, there is inadequate protection of the ecological resources that would be required to help nearby habitats recover should they be subjected to some type of disturbance.

To redress this imbalance, the GBRMPA is currently rezoning the entire Marine Park through the RAP. The aim is to ensure that the new zoning system provides adequate protection for the range of biodiversity contained within each bioregion, preserves the ecological function of these areas and maintains the biological connections between different parts of the Great Barrier Reef. To achieve these aims, scientists have recommended that at least 20 per cent of the area of each bioregion should be highly protected and included in an interconnected network of protected areas. Scientists have also suggested that the zoning system should be based on certain ‘principles’ to reduce any negative effects the new zoning plan may have on users of the Marine Park, and to maximise the chance of the system achieving its aims and recommend the inclusion of special and unique sites in the overall network.

For information about the biological principles being used:

http://www.reefed.edu.au/rap/overview/principles/bops.html

For information about the social, economic, cultural and management principles used:

http://www.reefed.edu.au/rap/overview/principles/seps.html

The desired outcome is a network of protected areas that ensures the healthy functioning of the Great Barrier Reef ecosystem by:

  • protecting biodiversity;
  • preserving ecological functions; and
  • maintaining biological links.

From May to August 2002, the first round of formal community consultation was undertaken to explain the principles behind the RAP and to gain feedback from the community about current use of the Marine Park and the best options for placing protected areas. Over 10,000 submissions were received. These submissions were analysed and were used to develop a Draft Zoning Plan that was released on 2 June 2003 for the second round of formal community consultation. The Draft Zoning Plan contains the proposed network of protected areas.

Response: Sustainable fisheries

Fishing effort has been reduced by capping the number of fishing days and through a licence buy-back scheme.

Both spatial and seasonal closures under the fisheries management regime and the zonal management system for the GBRMP apply to the trawl fishery. The area of the Great Barrier Reef lagoon where trawling is prohibited is approximately ten per cent. A much larger proportion, over 50 per cent, of the inter-reefal areas is not available for trawling. With the commencement of the Trawl Plan in 2000, further management strategies were introduced to reduce effort, minimise impact on non-target species and to improve the ecological sustainability of the fishery, including the following:

Reducing effort by:

  • limiting fishing gear and maximum engine power of fishing vessels;
  • capping and reducing fishing effort (109,879 days in 1996, reduced to 102,929);
  • a voluntary licence buy back and licence surrender upon trade of effort units removing about 260 licences from the fishery (from 800 boats in 1999 to 517 boats in October 2002);
  • allocation of a maximum number of fishing nights to individual licensees;
  • permanent closure to trawling of areas that had not been trawled previously, making 50 per cent of the area of the GBRWHA now closed to trawling;
  • major annual seasonal closures to protect fishery viability;
  • closures to protect habitats and/or juvenile target species; and
  • rotational closures within key scallop production areas to maintain viable levels of broodstock.

Reducing impact on non-target species through:

  • seasonal area closures to protect sea turtles during their mating and nesting; and
  • mandatory use of Bycatch Reduction Devices (BRDs) and Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) on all trawl nets.
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The use of TEDs became mandatory throughout the trawl fishery in 2000. There are many different types of TEDs and BRDs, many of which are custom designed to meet the needs of individual fishers.

More effective monitoring and management of the fishery through:

  • installation of Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) technology on all vessels;
  • introduction of bycatch and by-product recording in logbooks;
  • possession and size limits on several by-product species;
  • introduction of sustainability reference systems and review provisions for target species, bycatch and benthic communities; and
  • provisions for licence suspension for Serious Fisheries Offences.

While the trawl plan has made significant improvements in the management of the trawl fishery, there are significant information gaps that need to be addressed before the condition of the stock and the ecological sustainability of the fishery can be assessed. Research projects currently underway include:

  • estimating and characterising bycatch in various sectors of the fishery, testing the effectiveness of TEDs and BRDs and collection of population parameters for by-product species;
  • assessing effectiveness of on-board devices (e.g. hoppers) for increased survival of discarded bycatch;
  • standardisation of fishing effort to integrate the trawl fleet’s long-term increase in fishing power into catch rate estimates for stock assessments;
  • refinement of sustainability reference points for management;
  • improved stock assessment methods using Vessel Monitoring System technology;
  • developing stock recruitment and spawner level indicators; and
  • assessing the effects of fishing effort reduction on target species and fishery ecosystems.

The GBRMPA has completed an audit of the East Coast Trawl Fishery that outlines the achievements and weaknesses of this fishery in achieving the objectives set out in the Trawl Plan. For more information on the management of the trawl fishery, see Management Status - Fisheries.  The ECTF is in the final stages of review by Environment Australia which is assessing the existing management arrangements against the principles of ecologically sustainable management practices under the EPBC Act 1999 and the Guidelines for the Ecologically Sustainable Management of Fisheries.

Response: Improving water quality

In 2002, the Queensland and Commonwealth governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding to develop a Reef Water Quality Protection Plan to address the issue of declining water quality in the Great Barrier Reef. The process included a review of water quality issues by an independent Scientific Panel which, in 2003, confirmed that there has been significant increases in nutrient run-off and signs that inshore coral reefs have been affected. A Productivity Commission report into Great Barrier Reef catchments was also released in February 2003 that also identified declines in water quality, but recommended that programs and policies for improving water quality should be implemented at a sub-catchment level. The Reef Water Quality Protection Plan will be developed with regional Natural Resource Management bodies to ensure that water quality programs are appropriate for each region. For more information on the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan, see Management Status – Water Quality and Coastal Development.

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