Some 52% of Australia\u2019s ocean area has previously been declared marine park since the late 1990s, giving different levels of protection to wildlife and habitats, but only 24% has levels of protection that keep out all forms of fishing and extraction.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s clear that Australia can achieve 30% of our marine protected area estate in highly protected areas by 2030 and a three-year review of our remaining 44 marine parks will lay the foundation for this,\u201d Watt said.<\/p>\n
The term \u201chighly protected\u201d means all extractive activities are banned \u2013 which can include fishing, drilling and mining.<\/p>\n
Conservationists welcomed the commitment, but said the ocean was also under assault from global heating and Australia needed to set more ambitious goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for 2035, beyond the current 2030 goal of a 43% cut, based on 2005 levels, by 2030.<\/p>\n
Watt told a reception at the conference that Australia protected \u201cmore ocean than any other country on Earth\u201d and 1.3m sq km of highly protected areas had been added in the past three years \u2013 an area almost the size of the Northern Territory.<\/p>\n
\u201cA healthy ocean is critical to Australia\u2019s environment, economy and wellbeing,\u201d Watt said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAustralia may be a large country, but our ocean territory is bigger than our land mass and is central to our national identity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Watt also confirmed the government would introduce legislation before the end of the year to allow the ratification of a high seas biodiversity treaty<\/a>, which the country signed in September 2023 but had not yet ratified.<\/p>\n Christabel Mitchell, the oceans director at Pew Charitable Trusts, said: \u201cFully protected marine sanctuaries are the heart of a healthy ocean. They are critical breeding and feeding grounds for the fish, seals, whales, turtles and other marine life which go on to populate our oceans.<\/p>\n \u201cAustralia has some of the most diverse and magnificent oceans on the planet and it\u2019s our privilege and responsibility to protect them.\u201d<\/p>\n As reported in the Guardian, swathes of corals on reefs across vast areas of Western Australian coastline have died<\/a> in recent months after an unprecedented marine heatwave scientists said was fuelled by global heating.<\/p>\n Adele Pedder, a campaigner for marine protected areas at the Australian Marine Conservation Society, said some of Australia\u2019s most critical areas were still under-protected, but \u201cincreased protection needed to be matched by increased ambition on climate change\u201d.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Sign up to Clear Air Australia<\/p>\n Adam Morton brings you incisive analysis about the politics and impact of the climate crisis<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: <\/strong>Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Pedder said \u201chighly protected\u201d marine areas excluded all fishing and extractive activities, such as drilling.<\/p>\n She said: \u201cScience has shown us that these fully protected areas give resilience to ecosystems so they have a fighting chance in the face of climate change.\u201d<\/p>\n Recent approvals of fossil fuel projects showed the weakness in the country\u2019s environment laws \u201cthat the government absolutely needs to address\u201d, she said.<\/p>\n The Albanese government has promised to set an emissions reduction target for 2035 ahead of this November\u2019s UN climate talks in Brazil.<\/p>\n Richard Leck, the head of oceans at WWF Australia, said that target needed to be in line with keep global heating to 1.5C \u2013 a \u201ccritical threshold\u201d for coral reefs.<\/p>\n Australia\u2019s commitment to increasing marine sanctuaries and ratifying the high seas treaty was a \u201csignificant step forward\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n![\"WA](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/5760.jpg\")
WA reefs experiencing ‘worst coral bleaching event’ ever to hit state \u2013 video<\/p>\n