JURIEN BAY MARINE PARK MANAGEMENT PLAN 2005-2015 Management Plan Number 49 Vision In the year 2025, the marine flora and fauna, habitats and water quality of the Jurien Bay Marine Park will be in the same or better condition than in the year 2005. The area will support viable and ecologically sustainable fishing, aquaculture, recreation and nature-based tourism and the marine park will be considered an important asset by the local community. Cover photograph (insert 2 – Lionfish) courtesy of Ron Currie. Other cover photographs courtesy of Department of Conservation and Land Management Department of Conservation and Land Management ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Marine Parks and Reserves Authority and the Department of Conservation and Land Management (CALM) was greatly assisted in the preparation of the Jurien Bay Marine Park Management Plan 2005 – 2015 by the considerable time and effort put into discussion and meetings by the Advisory Committee for the Proposed Jurien Bay Marine Reserve. Many groups provided valuable input on the zoning scheme for the marine park, such as representatives from the science, conservation, tourism, recreational and commercial fishing and aquaculture sectors and the Central West Coast Professional Fishermen’s Association. The input from the local community of Jurien Bay, Cervantes and Green Head and the Shires of Dandaragan and Coorow is also acknowledged. A number of CALM’s planning team staff were involved in the preparation of the management plan including Andrew Hill (Coordinator), Dr Chris Simpson, Dr Sue Osborne, Liesl Jonker, Dave Rose, Nigel Sercombe, Ray Lawrie and Phil Kindleysides, with staff from other branches providing assistance. Staff from the Department of Fisheries provided information and guidance in respect to commercial and recreational fishing and aquaculture and their input in the drafting of this report is acknowledged. In particular, Richard Sellers, Andrew Cribb, Greg Paust, Robin Clark, Eve Bunbury, Colin Chalmers and Neil Sumner provided valuable assistance. i Jurien Bay Marine Park Management Plan 2005 - 2015 Department of Conservation and Land Management TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ..................................................................................................................................... i List of Figures....................................................................................................................................................... iii List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................................ iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.................................................................................................................................. iv 1 INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................................... 1 2 DEFINITION OF THE AREA AND RESERVE TENURE ..................................................................... 2 3 VISION AND STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES .............................................................................................. 5 3.1 VISION ..................................................................................................................................................... 5 3.2 STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES........................................................................................................................... 5 4 ECOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL VALUES .................................................................................................. 5 5 MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORKS............................................................................................................ 9 5.1 INTERNATIONAL AND NATIONAL CONTEXT ............................................................................................. 9 5.2 STATE POLICY CONTEXT ....................................................................................................................... 10 5.3 LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK.................................................................................................................... 10 5.4 RESPONSIBILITIES OF AUTHORITIES AND GOVERNMENT AGENCIES....................................................... 10 6 DESCRIPTION OF MANAGEMENT ISSUES....................................................................................... 11 7 MANAGEMENT OF ECOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL VALUES........................................................... 12 7.1 ECOLOGICAL VALUES............................................................................................................................ 14 7.1.1 Geomorphology............................................................................................................................. 14 7.1.2 Water and sediment quality........................................................................................................... 16 7.1.3 Intertidal reef platforms ................................................................................................................ 20 7.1.4 Seagrass meadows ........................................................................................................................ 21 7.1.5 Macroalgal communities............................................................................................................... 23 7.1.6 Seabirds......................................................................................................................................... 24 7.1.7 Invertebrate communities.............................................................................................................. 25 7.1.8 Finfish ........................................................................................................................................... 27 7.1.9 Sea lions ........................................................................................................................................ 29 7.1.10 Cetaceans and turtles.................................................................................................................... 31 7.2 SOCIAL VALUES..................................................................................................................................... 32 7.2.1 Indigenous heritage....................................................................................................................... 32 7.2.2 Maritime heritage.......................................................................................................................... 33 7.2.3 Commercial fishing ....................................................................................................................... 34 7.2.4 Aquaculture................................................................................................................................... 36 7.2.5 Coastal use.................................................................................................................................... 38 7.2.6 Seascapes ...................................................................................................................................... 39 7.2.7 Recreational fishing ...................................................................................................................... 40 7.2.8 Water sports .................................................................................................................................. 43 7.2.9 Marine nature-based tourism........................................................................................................ 44 7.2.10 Petroleum drilling and mineral development................................................................................ 45 7.2.11 Scientific research......................................................................................................................... 46 7.2.12 Education ...................................................................................................................................... 47 8 GENERIC MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES........................................................................................... 48 8.1 DEVELOPMENT OF AN ADMINISTRATIVE FRAMEWORK.......................................................................... 48 8.1.1 Development of a zoning scheme .................................................................................................. 49 ii Jurien Bay Marine Park Management Plan 2005 - 2015 Department of Conservation and Land Management 8.1.2 Zones in the Jurien Bay Marine Park ........................................................................................... 58 8.1.3 Limitations of the zoning scheme .................................................................................................. 60 8.2 EDUCATION AND INTERPRETATION........................................................................................................ 60 8.3 SURVEILLANCE AND ENFORCEMENT...................................................................................................... 61 8.4 RESEARCH ............................................................................................................................................. 61 8.5 MONITORING ......................................................................................................................................... 62 8.6 PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.........................................................................................................................