Assessment of the conservation values of the Norfolk Seamounts area A component of the Commonwealth Marine Conservation Assessment Program 2002-2004 • A. Williams • F. Althaus • D. Furlani Report to the Department of the Environment and Heritage March 2006 BLANK PAGE Assessment of the conservation values of the Norfolk Seamounts area A component of the Commonwealth Marine Conservation Assessment Program 2002-2004 A. Williams F. Althaus D. Furlani Report to: Department of the Environment and Heritage March 2006 Assessment of the conservation values of the Norfolk Seamounts area: a component of the Commonwealth Marine Conservation Assessment Program 2002-2004: Report to the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage Bibliography. ISBN 1 876 996 96 X. 1. Seamounts – Norfolk Island. 2. Marine ecology Norfolk Island 3. Conservation of natural resources Norfolk Island. I. Williams, A. (Alan) -. II. CSIRO. Marine and Atmospheric Research. CREDITS: Design: CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research Printing: PML Hobart, Tasmania Published by CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research Conservation values assessment – Norfolk Seamounts Table of contents TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................................... I LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................. V LIST OF FIGURES..............................................................................................................VII SUMMARY.......................................................................................................................... 1 BACKGROUND.................................................................................................................... 9 Scope of the Conservation Values Assessments (CVAs) ................................................ 9 The Norfolk Seamounts area – original outline........................................................... 10 The Norfolk Island Seamounts Area (NISA) – definition............................................. 12 METHODS......................................................................................................................... 13 Stakeholder engagement and data collation................................................................ 13 Data analysis ............................................................................................................... 14 FINDINGS ......................................................................................................................... 15 Physical Environment.................................................................................................. 15 Bathymetry............................................................................................................... 20 Geomorphology........................................................................................................ 21 Physical oceanography............................................................................................. 27 Distinct sub-regions within the assessment area ...................................................... 31 Biological Environment ............................................................................................... 32 Bioregionalisation .................................................................................................... 32 List of species........................................................................................................... 35 Key species............................................................................................................... 36 Key processes........................................................................................................... 42 Discrete biological units within assessment area ..................................................... 43 Special locations....................................................................................................... 44 MPA identification criteria.......................................................................................... 44 Representativeness ................................................................................................... 44 Comprehensiveness.................................................................................................. 46 Ecological importance.............................................................................................. 46 International / national importance........................................................................... 47 Uniqueness ............................................................................................................... 48 Productivity .............................................................................................................. 48 Vulnerability ............................................................................................................ 48 i Conservation values assessment – Norfolk Seamounts Biogeographic importance........................................................................................ 49 Naturalness ............................................................................................................... 49 Current and potential uses and existing management regimes.................................... 50 Fisheries.................................................................................................................... 50 Minerals and Petroleum............................................................................................ 55 Tourism and recreation (non-fishing)....................................................................... 55 Maritime transport.................................................................................................... 56 Indigenous interests/ values...................................................................................... 57 Legislation/ management arrangements ................................................................... 58 Current and potential impacts on natural values......................................................... 61 DISCUSSION...................................................................................................................... 63 Seamounts and their natural values .......................................................................... 63 The Norfolk Island Seamounts Area in the national and regional context............... 64 Conservation values of seamounts in the Norfolk Island Seamounts Area.............. 65 Threats to conservation values of the NISA............................................................. 67 Factors for future conservation planning.................................................................. 67 CONCLUSION.................................................................................................................... 71 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................... 72 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................... 73 APPENDIX 1...................................................................................................................... 85 APPENDIX 2...................................................................................................................... 87 APPENDIX 3...................................................................................................................... 91 Form letter to potential stakeholders and data holders............................................... 91 Form letter to managers and participants in the NORFANZ survey ........................... 96 APPENDIX 4...................................................................................................................... 99 Norfolk Seamounts CVA – Workshop — AGENDA ..................................................... 99 Norfolk Seamounts CVA – Workshop — OUTCOMES.............................................. 100 Introductory comments........................................................................................... 100 Main discussion points ........................................................................................... 100 Data descriptions .................................................................................................... 101 Norfolk Seamounts CVA – Workshop — RECOMMENDATIONS ............................ 108 Conclusions ............................................................................................................ 109 APPENDIX 5 — FAUNAL DISTRIBUTION IN THE CORAL AND TASMAN SEAS — REGIONAL DATA ANALYSIS ............................................................................................................ 111 ii Conservation values assessment – Norfolk Seamounts Background................................................................................................................ 111 Methods...................................................................................................................... 112 Regional distribution of surveys and data sets ....................................................... 112 Regional data available for analyses ...................................................................... 113 Data conditioning ..................................................................................................