The Great Barrier Reef is famous for it’s unique coral reef environment, and stunningly beautiful fishes. It’s a fantastic place to visit, and many people know about the pressures being put on it’s environment. But it’s less famous counterparts around Australia don’t get the same level of protection and interest, which is a shame.
The South-West of Australia has even more unique species than the GBR, with over 90% of them not found anywhere else in the world! New species are discovered nearly every week - it’s a marine biologist’s dream. The underwater landscape is fascinating too, with Australia’s deepest marine canyon and largest undersea mountain range. There’s coral reefs and seagrass meadows, all sorts of varied environments.
Unfortunately, less than 1% of it is protected. This means that it’s under threat from not just climate change making the waters hotter and more acidic, but commercial exploitation from fishing and mining, and general pollution.
So far, the marine life in the South-West has been hanging on tenaciously - loggerhead turtles and endangered blue whales visit every year as part of their migration, fur seals are making a population comeback after commercial seal-hunting was ended, the lobsters are doing better here than most places. But having their homes protected by law would make things a lot easier for them. I’ve been meaning to head south for a bit of whale-watching, but I had no idea that the blue whales that visit every year are no more protected in WA than they are elsewhere in the world.
The Save Our Marine Life group is asking for there to be a connected network of no-take marine protection areas in the waters from Kalbarri to Eucla. This would allow commercial and recreational fishing to continue, but would also allow the marine life safe havens. It’d also make it easier for eco-tourism to develop, as well as protecting the famous surf spots from changing beyond recognition.
I’ve signed their petition, and written a letter to my MP about getting this precious resource the protection it deserves. If you love the beach, or seals, or turtles, or whales, or just think that we can do a better job of keeping our unique oceans safe, please check out the Save Our Marine Life website and see what you can do to help. They’ve got a Twitter account run by Sandy the Seal, and a Facebook page you can send to friends you think would be interested in helping out.
