Macquarie Island Marine Park

The Macquarie Island Marine Park (previously known as the Macquarie Island Commonwealth Marine Reserve) is an Australian marine park surrounding Macquarie Island in the southwest Pacific. The marine park covers an area of 475,465 km2 (183,578 sq mi) and is assigned IUCN category IV. It is the largest of the 14 parks managed under the South-east Marine Parks Network.[3]

Macquarie Island Marine Park
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
Map
Map showing the Macquarie Island Marine Park. The shaded area is a Sanctuary Zone ('no take' zone).[1]
LocationAustralia
Coordinates56°11′13″S 161°38′24″E / 56.187°S 161.640°E / -56.187; 161.640[2]
Area475,465 km2 (183,578 sq mi)
Established20 October 1999
OperatorParks Australia
Websitehttps://parksaustralia.gov.au/marine/parks/south-east

Conservation values

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History

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The Marine Park was originally proclaimed on 20 October 1999 as the Macquarie Island Marine Park. The name of the reserve was later changed on 28 June 2007 to the Macquarie Island Commonwealth Marine Reserve.[3] The name was changed again in 2017 back to Macquarie Island Marine Park.[5]

In early 2023, the federal government announced that the park would triple in size, adding an extra 385,000 km2 (149,000 sq mi) of protected water to the existing 162,000 km2 (63,000 sq mi) of marine park.[6] This expansion came into effect on 1 July 2023.[7]

Summary of protection zones

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The Macquarie Island Marine Park has been assigned IUCN protected area category IV. However, within the marine park there are three protection zones, each zone has an IUCN category and related rules for managing activities to ensure the protection of marine habitats and species.[3]

The following table is a summary of the zoning rules within the Macquarie Island Marine Park:[3]

Zone IUCN Activities permitted Total area
(km2)
Vessel transiting Recreational fishing Commercial fishing Commercial tourism Mining
Sanctuary Zone Ia No No No aviation only (>3000m) No 57,056
National Park Zone II Yes No No authorisation required No 385,127
Habitat Protection IV Yes No authorisation required authorisation required No 33,282
External links: Activity prescriptions for Macquarie Island Marine Park;Proposal to expand Macquarie Marine Park

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Map data: Sanctuary IUCN Ia and National Park IUCN II zones ('no take' zones) from Australian Marine Parks, (2018) Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy. CC BY 4.0. http://www.environment.gov.au/fed/catalog/search/resource/details.page?uuid=%7BCD8877F3-8C39-4A20-A53F-070FBEE5AF3C%7D
  2. ^ "Relation: Macquarie Island Marine Park (8444307)". OpenStreetMap. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d "South-east Marine Parks Network Management Plan 2013-23" (PDF). Parks Australia. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  4. ^ "Macquarie Island Commonwealth Marine Reserve". environment.gov.au. © Commonwealth of Australia (CC BY 3.0 AU). Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  5. ^ "Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Commonwealth Marine Reserves Renaming) Proclamation 2017". legislation.gov.au. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  6. ^ MacDonald, Lucy (5 June 2023). "Macquarie Island marine park set to almost triple in size". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  7. ^ "Macquarie Island Marine Park". parksaustralia.gov.au. Retrieved 8 March 2024.

[1]

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  1. ^ "South-east Marine Parks Network". parksaustralia.gov.au. Retrieved 8 March 2024.