What you need to know about the Cairns Area Plan of Management

Special management arrangements

Some places in the Cairns Area have special values, such as nature conservation and scientific use values. Special management arrangements are in place to protect these areas. These are set out in the table below.

Island	Management arrangements
Cod Hole Locality	No anchoring allowed, access for vessels or aircraft via moorings only
Lizard Island	Vessels more than seven metres in length cannot anchor in Locality 1 (including in the Natural Resources Conservation (Mermaid Cove, Lizard Island) Special Management Area) Boats longer than 35 metres may anchor only in Localities 2 or 3, and within the Reef Anchorage Limited line fishing and collecting (using one hook and one line per person) is allowed within the Public Appreciation Special Management Area (except in the Natural Resources Conservation (Mermaid Cove, Lizard Island) Special Management Area) Fishing and collecting is not allowed within the Natural Resources Conservation (Mermaid Cove, Lizard Island) Special Management Area (except for trolling and bait netting for pelagics, which is allowed within the Conservation Park (Yellow) Zone
Low Island Locality	Vessel and aircraft speed limit of six knots No access to island between sunset and sunrise (some activities are exempt) No anchoring of vessels or aircraft more than 35 metres in length No hull scraping, cleaning or painting No discharge of greywater, sewage, fresh fish or parts of fresh fish
Mabel Island, High Island and Round Island	No weekend access*
Michaelmas Cay	Vessel or aircraft speed limit of six knots Beach access allowed from 9:30am to 3pm, no access to fenced area* No operation of horns, loud speakers or sirens No aircraft to fly below 3000ft No anchoring of vessels or aircraft more than 35 metres in length
Normanby Island (Frankland Islands group)	A sand spit next to the day area is fenced off from September to March to protect nesting little terns*
Woody Island	Vessel speed limit of six knots Closed from September to March to protect nesting pied imperial pigeons*

* Please note these are managed under Queensland legislation

Motorised water sports

These activities may disturb other users of an area. Motorised water sports are generally not permitted within 500 metres of the reef edge. Hovercrafts may be used at Lizard Island Locality 2. For a full list of Locations where motorised water sports are not permitted, refer to Schedule 4 of the Plan of Management.

View Responsible Reef Practices for motorised water sports.

Anchoring and mooring in the Cairns Area

No Anchoring Areas and reef protection markers

Some reef areas are particularly vulnerable to anchor damage. You can help protect these vulnerable reefs by observing designated No Anchoring Areas (refer to table below). These areas are often marked by reef protection markers, which are white, pyramid-shaped buoys with a blue Marine Parks label, positioned along an imaginary line.

When visiting a reef or bay that has a No Anchoring Area:

You may enter No Anchoring Areas when approaching or leaving moorings or beaches. You cannot anchor inside a No Anchoring Area or inshore of the line of buoys, however vessels may access and anchor on the beach when conditions allow.
You cannot attach your vessel or aircraft to a reef protection marker.

No Anchoring Area Locations in the Cairns Area

Marked No Anchoring Areas (shown by reef protection markers)

Lizard Island (Watsons Bay and Anchor Bay)

Low Island

Unmarked No Anchoring Areas (no reef protection markers present)

Cod Hole Locality

Refer to the Cairns Area Plan of Management on the GBRMPA website for further details.

Please ensure you anchor with care outside the line of reef protection markers.

Please note: you may not anchor within 50 metres of a mooring or 200 metres of a pontoon in the Cairns Area, except at the following Locations:

Cape Tribulation Bay Locality 1
East Hope Island Reef
Green Island Reef Locality 1
Lizard Island Locality 2 and 3
Low Island Locality

View Responsible Reef Practices for anchoring and mooring.

Public moorings

You can use public moorings at a number of sites to help protect fragile reefs in these areas. Public moorings are blue-coloured buoys with a colour-coded band that signifies the �class� of the mooring. There are five classes of mooring, and you must ensure that you use a class of mooring that is suitable for your vessel and the weather. The relevant vessel length and wind conditions are displayed on the colour-coded band and marked plastic tag attached to the pick-up line.

Public moorings have been installed at the following sites in the Cairns Area:

Cod Hole
East Hope Island
Flynn Reef
Green Island
High Island
Lizard Island (Mermaid Bay and Watsons Bay)
Low Island
Michaelmas Cay
Milln Reef
Normanby Island
Norman Reef
Russell Island
Snapper Island
Upolu Cay
Vlasoff Cay.

Periodically, some of these moorings may be out of commission or occasionally unavailable when being maintained. If a mooring is damaged or missing, please report it to the Queensland Environmental Protection Agency.

Private moorings

Privately owned moorings have been installed by regular users of an area, including commercial tourism operators. The GBRMPA Moorings Register will help you identify privately owned, permitted moorings at a particular site. Private moorings are not generally available for public use. The moorings are private property and you must have the owner�s formal permission to use them.

View Responsible Reef Practices for mooring.

Tourism in the Cairns Area

The Cairns Area attracts more visitors than any other region of the Great Barrier Reef. A wide variety of tourism experiences are accessible in Low Isles this area, including day and overnight sightseeing tours to the reef, snorkelling, scuba diving, fishing charters and swimming with whales. Cruise ships also frequently visit the region.

Visit our Tourism and Recreation webpages for more information on tourism in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, and how you can choose a high standard tour.