Management of the Great Barrier Reef involves a number of agencies. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) is the primary Federal Government agency responsible for the planning and management of the Marine Park. GBRMPA is also responsible for assisting the Australian Government to meet its international responsibilities in relation to the environment and protection of world heritage. Various Queensland Government agencies are involved in the management of the Great Barrier Reef and adjoining lands and tidal waters. Joint management arrangements between the Australian and Queensland Governments are formalised and guided by agreements between the Prime Minister of Australia and the Premier of the State of Queensland1
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A combination of tools and approaches are used in the management of the Great Barrier Reef Region (Table 1). Legislative instruments include zoning plans, plans of management; species recovery plans, permits and enforcement provisions. Non- legislative tools which guide management intent include strategies, policies, position statements and guidelines. Decision-making is underpinned by the best available
1 Great Barrier Reef Intergovernmental Agreement
http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/3189/gbr-agreement-2009.pdf
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research, scientific data and information, and GBRMPA works closely with research and scientific institutes to identify and prioritise its research information needs for management (GBRMPA, 2009a). GBRMPA encourages community engagement in the protection and management of the Great Barrier Reef. This includes partnerships with Traditional Owners in the management of marine resources2
50, and partnership and stewardship programs, including education programs, with industry sectors, local government and regional communities. GBRMPA’s Reef Guardian Program3
51 provides a platform for it to work closely with those who use and rely on the Reef or its catchment for their business or recreation to help build a healthy Reef. GBRMPA adopts an adaptive, ecosystem-based management approach to the management of the Great Barrier Reef. The condition and trend of biodiversity values which underpin the health and resilience of the Great Barrier Reef, key risks and management effectiveness are constantly reviewed and updated in response to new and emerging issues. A comprehensive report on the Outlook of the Great Barrier Reef is compiled every five years (GBRMPA, 2009b).
1.3 Key Risks
In 2009, GBRMPA identified, through its Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report (Figure 2), that the Great Barrier Reef ecosystem is at a crossroad and decisions Australia makes now are likely to determine its long-term future. Climate change, declining water quality from catchment runoff, coastal development and remaining impacts from fishing were identified as the biggest risks to the future of the Reef.
Since this 2009 report, some of the identified risks to the Reef have increased. These include increases in shipping activity as a result of port expansions; population growth as a result of expanding urban and industrial activities along the Great Barrier Reef coast; intensification and changes in land use within the Great Barrier Reef catchment; and extreme weather events including flooding and cyclones.
2 Traditional Use of Marine Resources Agreements
http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/our-partners/traditional-owners/traditional-use-of-marine-resources-agreements
3 Reef Guardians Program
http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/our-partners/reef-guardians
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Table 1: List of management tools and their purpose.
Management tool
Purpose Act and
Regulations
The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 and Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Regulations 1983 govern the protection and management of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. They provide for the zoning plan and plans of management, and govern permit decisions. They include offence and penalty provisions (e.g. prohibition of mining).
Zoning Plan Provides spatial control of use (predominantly extractive activities) and, to a
lesser extent, access within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. Establishes the need for permits for some uses in the Marine Park, such as tourism, infrastructure and research. There are complementary arrangements in adjacent areas under Queensland jurisdiction.
Management plans
Set out specific arrangements for areas, species, ecological communities or activities (e.g. Cairns Area and Whitsundays Plans of Management). They complement zoning and permit arrangements. Some components are legally binding.
Permits Facilitate opportunities for use of the Great Barrier Reef. Marine Park. Permits
are issued for marine tourism, research, harvest fisheries, dredging and infrastructure (e.g. jetties and marinas) and include detailed environmental impact assessment. Matched in adjacent areas of Queensland jurisdiction, generally through the provision of a joint permit. Fisheries licences are issued by the Queensland Government.
Traditional Use of Marine Resources Agreements
Formal agreements describing how Traditional Owner groups work with Australian and Queensland governments to manage traditional use activities in sea country.
Strategic Assessments
Strategic assessments are broad landscape-scale environmental assessments of a policy, plan or program under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. They differ from the usual project-by- project impact assessments which focus on specific development activity.
Compliance Activities that encourage adherence with legal requirements, both through
education and enforcement. Includes both formal (e.g. Field Management Program jointly undertaken with the Queensland Government) and informal (e.g. Eyes and Ears Incident Reporting Program) activities.
171 Management tool Purpose Policy documents
Specific arrangements that guide decision makers and the public. These include: strategies which outline a long-term approach to managing an issue (e.g.
Recreation Management Strategy)
policies which provide a statement of principles to guide decision-making (e.g. Environmental Impact Management Policy);
site management arrangements which are localised plans for use of sites with significant values and/or use issues (e.g. Clump Point Site Plan);
position statements which outline GBRMPA’s position on an issue where it has a strong interest but no direct regulatory control (e.g. Position Statement on Indigenous participation in tourism)
Guidelines which detail recommended practice in support of a policy or position statement (e.g. Guidelines on coral transplantation).
Site
infrastructure
On-ground infrastructure installed to better protect the values of individual sites (e.g. reef protection markers, public moorings, signs). Implemented and maintained by the GBRMPA and the Queensland Government through the Field Management Program.
Partnerships Formal arrangements, often executed through a memorandum of understanding
(MOU) or an agreement, to enable a partnership approach to management of the Marine Park (e.g. Intergovernmental Agreement with the Queensland Government, Reef Advisory Committees, Local Marine Advisory Committees, MOU with a government agency, partnership with Ecotourism Australia).
Education & community awareness
Programs to inform and motivate members of the community about the Great Barrier Reef and its protection and management, including ways they can contribute (e.g. Reef HQ, GBRMPA website, information sheets, zoning maps).
Stewardship and best practice
Voluntary arrangements with stakeholders that provide the opportunity for contributions to protection and management (e.g. Reef Guardian Programs, Pro- vision Reef Stewardship Action Plan, best environmental practices).
Research and monitoring
Undertaken or commissioned by GBRMPA to better inform decisions on protection and management of the Great Barrier Reef (e.g. Reef Health Indicator Surveys, Eye on the Reef monitoring, Climate Change research programs).
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Great Barrier Reef is the February 2012 formal agreement4
52 between the Federal Environment Minister and GBRMPA to undertake a strategic environmental assessment of the Great Barrier Reef Region. The strategic assessment is one of several actions being carried out in response to concerns raised by the World Heritage Committee5
53 about the increasing pressure of urban and industrial development along the Queensland coastline.
The strategic assessment is being carried out under Australia's Federal Environment
Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and will examine the effectiveness
of the GBRMPA’s management arrangements to protect and conserve values which underpin the Great Barrier Reef's World Heritage listing and Marine Park declaration. Recognising that many of the major pressures on the Great Barrier Reef ecosystem occur outside the marine environment, a second parallel strategic assessment is being carried out by the State of Queensland. This assessment will examine the effectiveness of arrangements under the Queensland coastal management, planning and development framework to ensure that development occurs sustainably and does not impact unacceptably on the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.
GBRMPA and the Queensland Government are working together to analyse impacts at the marine-coastal interface from activities such as coastal development and shipping, and on water quality and island management.
The decision to undertake two, complementary strategic assessments recognises the need for an integrated ecosystem based approach to management of land and marine environments with the capacity to impact on Great Barrier Reef health and resilience.
2.1 Process
Strategic assessments enable a `big picture’ approach to environment, biodiversity and heritage protection that provide certainty in the long-term, by determining where sustainable development can occur, the type of development that will be allowed and
4 Strategic Assessment Agreement between the Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population
and Communities and the GBRMPA
http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/26909/s146-gbr-strategic-assessment-gbrmpa.pdf
5 World Heritage Committee Decision 36COM 7B.8, Great Barrier Reef (Australia) (N 154) 2012.
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the conditions under which development may proceed. They differ from the usual project-by-project impact assessments which focus on a specific development activity. The strategic assessment process is a collaborative one between the Australian Government and the strategic assessment partners, in this instance GBRMPA and the Queensland Government, and includes two formal rounds of public consultation (DSWEPAC, 2012).
The comprehensive strategic assessment is the largest and most complex strategic assessment undertaken in Australia. It will include both a broad examination of the Great Barrier Reef Region and more focussed studies of specific locations and issues. Terms of Reference6
54 for the strategic assessments were approved by the Federal Environment Minister on 30 August 2012 and these set out the requirements for the assessment. Key steps include:
1. Identifying and describing values to be protected: This includes ecological,