Chris Wilson Chris Wilson

East Antarctic marine park hopes build after seven years on table

There is renewed hope parts of East Antarctica will be declared marine protected areas, more than seven years after the proposal was first developed.

The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) will again discuss the plan at its annual meeting in Hobart this week.

First developed by Australia and the European Union in 2010, the plan is aimed at protecting marine and birdlife and restricting fishing activities.

Over the years the East Antarctic Marine Protected Area (MPA) proposal has been scaled back from an initial seven MPAs covering 1.9 million square kilometres, to three areas covering 1 million square kilometres of ocean.

Why East Antarctica?

The marine park would protect the area's biodiversity wildlife. (Australian Antarctic Division: Rob Bryson)

Australia's CCAMLR commissioner Gillian Slocum said that despite several failed attempts to pass the policy, it was still worth pursuing.

"Together with the European Union we have further revised the proposal, clarifying where different fishing activities can occur and simplifying the objectives to make conservation outcomes clearer," she said.

"We were heartened last year when the commission adopted the Ross Sea Region Marine Protected Area.

What is CCAMLR?

  • Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources set up in 1982
  • International body with 25 member nations, 11 others support convention behind CCAMLR
  • Monitors fisheries and ecosystems to determine policies to conserve marine life
  • Sets catch limits on all fisheries in Antarctic waters
  • Based in Hobart

"It is important we build on this momentum to create a system of marine protected areas to help us monitor and understand the effects of fishing and climate change on Antarctic and Southern Ocean ecosystems."

Claire Christian from NGO the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition said MPAs provided a long-term strategy for protection.

"You want to preserve a representative section of the biodiversity and all the fantastic wildlife we have around the continent," she said.

"You've got great colonies of penguins and seals and whales. You have fantastic underwater life everything from sea spiders to sponges to crustaceans."

Ms Christian said the coalition was confident CCAMLR would reach a consensus this year.

"We've heard encouraging things from most countries this year," she said.

What's the hold up?

CCAMLR had set a target of creating a network of MPAs around Antarctica by 2012.

Chairman Monde Mayekiso said achieving a consensus among all 25 members was sometimes a challenging process.

"There tends to be tension between your conservation objectives and your sustainable use objectives," Dr Mayekiso said.

"We need to be able to satisfy all CCAMLR members, some are fishing nations interested in fishing, some are interested in conservation we have to marry the interests of both groups and these do not always coincide.

"That might be the reason we're not able to move as fast as we want with MPAs."

Are there other marine protected areas?

Last year CCAMLR agreed to establish the world's largest MPA in the Ross Sea.

In 2009 the creation of the South Orkney Islands southern shelf MPA was signed off on.

A decision on the East Antarctic MPA is expected by the end of next week.

Green areas show the parts of East Antarctica which could be protected. (Supplied: Australian Antarctic Division)

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By Elise Fantin / reporter

Elise joined the ABC in January 2014 as a news reporter for its Mount Gambier office. Prior to this she worked for a newspaper in South Australia’s Riverland region. Elise was awarded Best Rural/Regional Journalist at the 2016 SA Media Awards. She joined the Tasmanian newsroom in Hobart in July 2016. Follow

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(Source: abc.net.au; October 16, 2017; http://tinyurl.com/yaqrmrm9)
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