Kimberley deserves world class protection!

The Kimberley’s first marine park proposal is out for public comment.  Camden Sound Marine Park is the first of the so-called Great Kimberley Wilderness Parks announced by Premier Colin Barnett.  Yet neither the Wilderness nor the Whales are properly protected.

Surveying on Montgomery Reef, photo Jenita Enevoldsen.

Sanctuaries inadequate

Only 13% of the proposed Camden Sound Marine Park protects all marine life in sanctuary zones. This falls well below international and Australian scientific benchmarks for marine protection found in iconic regions elsewhere in Australia: The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and Ningaloo Reef Marine Park.

 Park protects mining not whales

Less than a quarter of the proposed marine park is designated for whale protection yet mining is allowed in more than half!  Protection for the nursery area of the largest population of humpback whales in the world is squeezed between mining leases for mud and other common minerals.

Proposed Camden Sound Marine Park with mining tenements overlaid.

The Kimberley coast is one of the most pristine left on Earth. Its coral reefs, mangrove forests and seagrass beds are worthy of the highest protection.

What can you do to improve the marine park?

Send your comments on the Draft Camden Sound Marine Park to the Department of Environment and Conservation and make your voice count.  Email your comments to haveyoursay@dec.wa.gov.au  For further information, you can find our draft submission outlining the problems of the proposed Camden Sound Marine Park.

Submissions close 1st February 2011.