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Marine Protected Areas
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Following the proclamation of the South-east Commonwealth Marine Reserves and while the Management Plan is being prepared under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act), an approvals system will apply to all commercial and some recreational activities in the Reserve Network. This is necessary to allow for continued activity within the reserves, where that activity is permitted, during the period while no management plan is in force.
The 'approvals system' will be further considered in consultation with stakeholders during the development of the management plan with a view to this approach being continued under the management plan. It is expected that the management planning process will take 12 months to complete.
The activities allowed in the South-east Commonwealth Marine Reserve Network are based on a system of zones that allow or prohibit certain activities.
An approval is a legal instrument that allows identified activities to occur in a marine reserve in the absence of a management plan for that reserve. The approval is given by the Director of National Parks, or his delegate, who has the statutory responsibility for the management of all Commonwealth reserves.
A range of activities that may be carried on in Commonwealth reserves are covered by provisions of the EPBC Act and the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2000 under the Act as outlined below: