CommonwealthCommonwealth

Commonwealth

The Commonwealth acts in a number of ways to protect turtles, both as a manager of reserves and a manager of fisheries as well through conservation programs. The Commonwealth provides programs to fund actions for listed threatened species that are the subject of recovery or threat abatement plans. Commonwealth legislation prohibits the export of marine turtles or products derived from them.

One means of protecting wildlife and their habitats has been the declaration of protected area regimes and Australia is a global leader in this field. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP) is one of the world's most extensive protected areas, protecting significant amounts of marine turtle habitat. The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is included on the World Heritage List with marine turtles identified in the nomination as one of its natural attributes. Internationally significant populations of green, hawksbill, loggerhead and flatback turtles occur on the GBR. A large number of islands and their adjacent waters are closed to visitation seasonally under management plans or permit conditions restricting access for the purposes of seabird and turtle protection. The Commonwealth also monitors nesting marine turtles and hatching success in the Coral Sea National Nature Reserves, on Field Island in Kakadu National Park and at Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve.

Hunting by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities living adjacent to the GBRMP may be undertaken only through a permit as prescribed under park zoning plans. Permits have in the past been granted on a community basis or, in the absence of an identified community organisation, to individuals. There is currently a modelling assessment of the southern GBR population of green turtles to determine if an ongoing harvest is sustainable.

Trawlers operating in the GBRMP incidentally catch marine turtles – the main species being loggerhead, green and flatback turtles (Robins 1995). The bycatch of turtles was part of the justification used to list otter trawling as a key threatening process under the EPBC Act. Approximately 49.6 per cent of the GBRMP is closed to trawling and within the GBRMP the use of TEDs is compulsory. This requirement has been extended throughout the East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery. There is also a requirement for fishers to report all interactions with marine turtles.

The Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) manages a number of fisheries where there are interactions with marine turtles, notably the Northern Prawn Fishery (NPF). In addition to the compulsory use of TEDs from April 2000 there are area closures in the NPF that provide some measure of protection to turtles. Most areas of inshore seagrass habitat in the Gulf of Carpentaria are permanently closed to trawling. These inshore areas are frequently the feeding grounds of turtle species including the green turtle. Seasonal closures in the NPF may also offer protection to turtles as they coincide with nesting periods for some species. The NPF is seasonally closed from 1 December to 30 March and again from 16 June to 31 July.