Ashmore Reef Marine National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve Management Plans (Cth)
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve
and
Cartier Island Marine Reserve
Management Plans
This is the first Management Plan for Cartier Island Marine Reserve and the second Management Plan for Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve
Foreword
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve (the ‘Reserves’) are within Commonwealth waters off the coast of northern Western Australia. Environment Australia (EA) is the Commonwealth’s managing authority for the Reserves. The Reserves protect unique and vulnerable marine ecosystems with high biological diversity. The Reserves include reefs which are part of remote reefal systems which provide critical stepping stones for the transportation of biological material from the centres of biodiversity in the Indo-Pacific to the reefal and other inter-dependant ecosystems located along the Western Australian coast.
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve are part of the National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas (NRSMPA). The primary goal of the NRSMPA is to establish and manage a comprehensive, adequate and representative system of marine protected areas and to contribute to the long-term ecological viability of marine systems, to maintain ecological processes and to protect Australia’s biological diversity at all levels. Accelerated development of the NRSMPA is a specific action of Australia’s Oceans Policy launched by the Commonwealth Government in December 1998.
Management planning for the Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve is designed to conform to the Best Practice in Performance Reporting in Natural Resource Management (ANZECC 1997), with an emphasis on strategic objectives, management goals and strategies, and performance assessment. The performance assessment framework will generally follow that set out in the Strategic Plan of Action for the National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas – A Guide for Action by Australian Governments (ANZECC 1999).
The management plans for the Reserves have been prepared under provisions of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) and meet all the statutory requirements for a management plan under that Act. The EPBC Act allows for the management plans for different reserves to appear in one document. Given the close proximity of the Reserves, the similar nature of the threats they face and the management goals and strategies required, the management plans for the Reserves have been combined in one document (the ‘Plan’). The Plan contains the first management plan for Cartier Island Marine Reserve, and the second management plan for Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve.
As required by the EPBC Act, the Plan assigns an IUCN (World Conservation Union) category to the Reserves, and in the case of Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve to each of the zones of the Reserve. Cartier Island Marine Reserve is not divided into zones by the Plan. The overall category of both Reserves is IUCN category Ia – strict nature reserve. Such reserves are managed primarily to ensure habitats, ecosystems and native species are preserved in an undisturbed state and to facilitate research.
As required by the EPBC Act, the Plan provides for the protection and conservation of the Reserves and states how the Reserves will be managed. The Plan describes the conservation and cultural values of the Reserves, the pressures on these values, and a management regime to ensure these values are protected. A framework for compliance and enforcement and for assessing the performance of the management of the Reserves is provided.
A management plan for a Commonwealth reserve has effect for seven years, unless revoked or amended earlier by another management plan for the reserve. The Plan may only be altered following the same statutory and consultative process used in its preparation.
Conall O’Connell
First Assistant Secretary
Marine and Water Division
Delegate of the Director of National Parks
Environment Australia
GPO Box 787
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Acknowledgments
Environment Australia is grateful to those organisations, groups and individuals who made comments and provided information and assistance during the preparation of these management plans for Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword.................................................................................................................................................................. iii
Acknowledgments.................................................................................................................................................... v
Glossary................................................................................................................................................................. viii
1. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................ 1
2. MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK.......................................................................... 7
2.1 National context................................................................................................................................................. 7
2.2 International context......................................................................................................................................... 7
2.3 Legislative context............................................................................................................................................ 9
2.4 IUCN protected area management category of the Reserves.................................................................. 10
2.5 Management of the Reserves........................................................................................................................ 11
3. STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES............................................................................... 13
4. DESCRIPTION OF ASHMORE REEF NATIONAL NATURE RESERVE AND CARTIER ISLAND MARINE RESERVE................................................................................................ 14
4.1 Location............................................................................................................................................................ 14
4.2 Physical features and processes.................................................................................................................. 14
Geomorphology................................................................................................................................................. 14
Oceanography.................................................................................................................................................... 14
Climate................................................................................................................................................................. 15
4.3 Ecological values of the Reserves................................................................................................................ 15
Biological diversity............................................................................................................................................ 15
Marine habitats.................................................................................................................................................. 16
Marine vertebrates............................................................................................................................................ 16
Marine invertebrates......................................................................................................................................... 17
Terrestrial habitats and flora............................................................................................................................ 18
Terrestrial fauna................................................................................................................................................. 18
4.4 Cultural values................................................................................................................................................ 19
History................................................................................................................................................................. 19
Indonesian artefacts.......................................................................................................................................... 20
European wrecks................................................................................................................................................ 20
5. RESERVE USES AND PRESSURES............................................................ 21
5.1 Traditional fishing.......................................................................................................................................... 21
5.2 Unauthorised boat arrivals............................................................................................................................ 22
5.3 Tourism and recreation................................................................................................................................. 23
5.4 Research........................................................................................................................................................... 23
5.5 Australian commercial fishing.................................................................................................................... 24
5.6 Mining operations........................................................................................................................................... 24
5.7 Shipping............................................................................................................................................................ 25
5.8 Buildings and other structures.................................................................................................................... 25
5.9 Other commercial activities......................................................................................................................... 25
5.10 Pollution......................................................................................................................................................... 25
6. MANAGING ASHMORE REEF NATIONAL NATURE RESERVE AND CARTIER ISLAND MARINE RESERVES.............................................................................................................. 29
6.1 Access............................................................................................................................................................... 35
6.2 Cultural values................................................................................................................................................ 36
6.3 Traditional fishing.......................................................................................................................................... 37
6.4 Unauthorised boat arrivals............................................................................................................................ 38
6.5 Tourism and recreation................................................................................................................................. 39
6.6 Research........................................................................................................................................................... 41
6.7 Australian commercial fishing.................................................................................................................... 42
6.8 Mining operations........................................................................................................................................... 43
6.9 Buildings and other structures.................................................................................................................... 44
6.10 Filming and other commercial activities.................................................................................................. 44
7. COMPLIANCE AND MONITORING................................................................. 46
7.1 Compliance and enforcement........................................................................................................................ 46
7.2 Performance assessment.............................................................................................................................. 46
7.3 Reviewing the Plan......................................................................................................................................... 47
ATTACHMENTS...................................................................................................... 52
Attachment 1: Memorandum of Understanding between Australia and Indonesia 1974 (as reviewed in 1989). 52
Attachment 2: Proclamation of Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve....................................................... 58
Attachment 4: Some species present in Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve protected under the EPBC Act as listed marine species (section 248).......................................................................................................... 61
Attachment 5: Some Commonwealth Legislation relevant to this Plan.......................................................... 63
Attachment 6: Instrument of Prohibition of access to areas of Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve. 65
Attachment 7: Australian Reserve Management Principles relevant to the Reserves................................. 67
List of Figures
Figure 1. Location of Cartier Island Marine Reserve and Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve within the area covered under the Memorandum of Understanding between Australian and Indonesia (the MOU Box) in the Indian Ocean. 3
Figure 2. Location of Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve............. 4
Figure 3. Boundary of Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve....................................................................... 5
Figure 4. Boundary of Cartier Island Marine Reserve......................................................................................... 6
Figure 5. Areas closed to the public at Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve......................................... 31
List of Tables
Table 1. Potential and existing pressures on major values of the Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve.......................................................................................................................................................................... 27
Table 2. Summary of activities regulated in Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve 33
Glossary
| AFMA | Australian Fisheries Management Authority |
| AGSO | Australian Geological Survey Organisation |
| AIMS | Australian Institute of Marine Science |
| ANZECC | Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council |
| Bonn Convention | Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals |
| CAMBA | Agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the People’s Republic of China for the protection of Migratory Birds and their Environment. |
| CSIRO | Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation |
| CITES | Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora |
| DIMA | Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs |
| Director | Director of National Parks under the EPBC Act |
| DISR | Department of Industry, Science and Resources |
| EPBC Act | Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 |
| EPBC Regulations | Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2000 made under the EPBC Act |
| ER(CP) Act | Environmental Reform (Consequential Provisions) Act 1999 |
| IMCRA | Interim Marine and Coastal Regionalisation for Australia |
| IUCN | World Conservation Union (previously International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) |
| JAMBA | Agreement between the Government of Japan and the Government of Australia for the Protection of Migratory Birds and Birds in Danger of Extinction and their Environment |
| MOU | Memorandum of Understanding |
| MOU Box | An area of the eastern Indian Ocean subject to an MOU between Australia and Indonesia signed in 1974 and reviewed in 1989 |
| MPA | Marine Protected Area |
| NPWC Act | National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1975 |
| NPWC Regulations | National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Regulations 1975, made under the NPWC Act |
| NRSMPA | National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas |
| Ramsar Convention | Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar, Iran, 1971) |
| The Plan | Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve Management Plan and Cartier Island Marine Reserve Management Plan |
| The Reserves | Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve |
| UNCLOS | United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea |
Introduction
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve (the ‘Reserves’) lie off the coast of northern Western Australia in the eastern Indian Ocean (Figures 1 and 2).
Located in Australia’s External Territory of Ashmore and Cartier Islands, the Reserves are under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth of Australia. They are within an area subject to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Indonesia and Australia (Attachment 1), which provides for continued Indonesian traditional fishing activities in an area known as the MOU Box (Figure 1).
The Reserves were established by the Commonwealth for the purposes of protecting their outstanding and representative marine ecosystems and to facilitate scientific research. Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve was established on 16 August 1983 (see Figure 2 and Attachment 2). Cartier Island Marine Reserve was established on 21 June 2000 (See Figure 3 and Attachment 3).
The Reserves were established by proclamations under the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1975, which was replaced by the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) on 16 July 2000. The proclamations of the Reserves are continued by the Environmental Reform (Consequential Provisions) Act 1999 (ER(CP) Act) as if they had been made under the EPBC Act, and as if the proclamations stated that the purposes for which the Reserves were declared were: the preservation of the area in its natural condition; and, the encouragement and regulation of the appropriate use, appreciation and enjoyment of the area by the public.
The Reserves protect biologically diverse reef systems of Australia’s North West Shelf, and are in the Oceanic Shoals Bioregion. The Oceanic Shoals Bioregion is described in the Interim Marine and Coastal Regionalisation for Australia: an Ecosystem-based Classification for Marine and Coastal Environments (IMCRA Technical Group 1998).
The Reserves have international significance due to their high biological diversity, oceanic location, cultural values, and geomorphological make up. Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve protects a vital genetic ‘bank’ for the region (Glenn and O’Brien 1999). Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve is listed on the Register of the National Estate[1]. Ashmore is also included on the World Conservation Union (IUCN) list of Coral Reefs of International Significance.
[1] The Register of the National Estate is the register under the Australian Heritage Commission Act 1975 of those places, being components of the natural environment of Australia or the cultural environment of Australia, that have aesthetic, historic, scientific or social significance or other special value for future generations as well as for the present community
A number of species in the Reserves are protected under the EPBC Act (Part 13). This includes cetaceans, and listed marine, threatened and migratory species (Attachment 4).
The fauna of the Reserves is considered regionally, and in some cases internationally, significant. A number of species present, such as marine turtles, dugongs, migratory birds and some seabird species are protected under international agreements (Attachment 4). Several species found in the Reserves are on the 1996 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals. Many bird species found in the Reserves are listed on the Japan-Australia and China-Australia Migratory Bird Agreements (JAMBA and CAMBA).
The reefs of the Reserves, along with the nearby Hibernia Reef, are notable for high biodiversity. The Reserves protect critical habitat for an unusually high diversity and abundance of sea snakes (Hanley and Russell 1993), and provide feeding and breeding areas for turtles and critical habitat for dugongs (Whiting et al. 1999). Ashmore Reef supports the greatest number of coral species of any reef off the West Australian coast (Veron 1993) and has a rich echinoderm fauna (Marsh et al. 1993). It also has the most diverse marine fish fauna of any region in Western Australia (Hutchins 1998). Additionally, the Reserves contain endemic snakes and molluscs, and are the largest emergent reef systems in the region.
The reefs of the Reserves exhibit high levels of inter-dependency with adjacent ecosystems to the north and south. Along with a limited number of other reefs in the region, Cartier and Ashmore reefs are considered important as biological stepping-stones, facilitating the transport of biological material to the reef systems along the Western Australian coast (Simpson et al. 1991). The major southern flowing current that originates in the region, the Leeuwin Current, and its interaction with other currents plays a significant role in the maintenance of coral reef and algal communities further to the south.
The Reserves have historical and cultural significance. In particular, traditional Indonesian fishers have an historic and ongoing cultural and economic association with islands and reefs in the region. Resources of the Reserves have been harvested by Indonesian fishers for hundreds of years. Traditional Indonesian fishers continue to regularly visit Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve for fresh water, shelter and to visit grave sites.
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve are small but critical elements of the wider region. Australian government agencies, in cooperation with Indonesian stakeholders, are continuing to look at options for management and research on a regional scale, and to integrate management of Ashmore and Cartier into a broader regional perspective.
Figure 1. Location of Cartier Island Marine Reserve and Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve within the area covered under the Memorandum of Understanding between Australian and Indonesia (the MOU Box) in the Indian Ocean.
Figure 2. Location of Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve
Figure 4. Boundary of Cartier Island Marine Reserve.
2. Management Framework
2.1 National context
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve are part of the National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas (NRSMPA). As described in ANZECC (1999) the NRSMPA aims to:
-establish and manage a comprehensive, adequate and representative system of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)
-contribute to the long-term viability of marine systems
-maintain ecological processes and systems
-protect Australia’s biological diversity at all levels.
MPAs within the NRSMPA have been established principally for the conservation of biological diversity.
The Commonwealth Government’s commitment to the NRSMPA was reaffirmed through Australia’s Oceans Policy (Commonwealth of Australia 1998), which identified the need for integrated ocean planning and management to reduce the risk of progressive decline and irreversible damage to our marine systems. One of the mechanisms to achieve integrated management is the establishment of a system of MPAs with the primary objective of biodiversity conservation.
The Reserves fall within the Oceanic Shoals Bioregion. The Oceanic Shoals Bioregion is described in the Interim Marine and Coastal Regionalisation for Australia: an Ecosystem-based Classification for Marine and Coastal Environments (IMCRA Technical Group 1998).
Australian government agencies, in cooperation with Indonesian stakeholders, are continuing to look at options for management and research on a regional scale, and to integrate management of Ashmore and Cartier into a broader regional perspective.
2.2 International context
The Reserves are within Australian Commonwealth waters off the coast of northern Western Australia (see Figure 1). A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by the Australian and Indonesian governments in 1974, and reviewed in 1989 (Attachment 1), sets out arrangements by which traditional fishers may access marine resources in the region. This MOU allows for continued Indonesian traditional fishing activities in an area known as the MOU Box, which includes the Reserves. The MOU requires parties to cooperate in implementing the prescribed understandings designed to recognise traditional Indonesian fishing activities and protect the marine habitats of the area. Traditional fishing and harvesting activities are restricted within the Reserves (see Chapter 6 of this Plan and Attachment 1).
Protection of the biodiversity of the Reserves assists Australia in meeting its obligations under the Convention on Biological Diversity 1992. The Convention requires parties to pursue the conservation of biological diversity and the sustainable
use of its components. A key feature of the Convention is the establishment of a system of protected areas where special measures need to be taken to conserve biological diversity.
This Plan is consistent with Australia’s obligations toward the conservation of migratory species listed on the Appendices of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (Bonn Convention). Parties to this Convention have agreed to protect migratory species, and negotiate and implement agreements for the conservation and management of migratory species including co-operation and support of research relating to migratory species. Australia has also negotiated bilateral migratory bird agreements with the Governments of Japan and China (JAMBA and CAMBA respectively). The Reserves help protect migratory species listed in or under the Bonn Convention, JAMBA and CAMBA by providing refuge areas where breeding, foraging and migration regularly occur.
This Plan is consistent with Australia’s obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS), which came into force in November 1994. UNCLOS provides a framework to regulate all aspects of the uses of the sea, including conservation of the marine environment.
Consideration may be given during the life of this Plan to nominating either or both of the Reserves for listing as a Wetland of International Importance under the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar, Iran, 1971), commonly referred to as the Ramsar Convention. The Ramsar Convention aims to maintain the ecological character of listed wetlands through conservation including, where appropriate, wise use[2].
[2] Wise use is defined under the Ramsar Convention as the sustainable use of wetlands for the benefit of humankind in a way that is compatible with the maintenance of the natural properties of the ecosystem.
Wetlands are designated as Ramsar sites on the basis of their ecological, botanical, zoological, limnological or hydrological values. The Reserves protect significant coral reefs, which are an under-represented wetland type on the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance[3].
[3] Under the Ramsar Convention, wetlands are areas where water is the primary factor controlling the environment and associated plant and animal life. As a result of the broad definition of wetlands, the Ramsar Convention extends to a wide variety of habitat types, including rivers and lakes, coastal lagoons, mangroves, peatlands, and coral reefs.
If the Reserves are designated as Ramsar sites, a Ramsar Information Sheet will be prepared which will describe the site, criteria for inclusion in the Ramsar List, wetland types present, hydrological, ecological, and socioeconomic issues, and conservation measures taken and needed to conserve the ecological character of the site. The Ramsar Information Sheet will be made available through the Environment Australia and Ramsar Convention web sites.
2.3 Legislative context
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve are Commonwealth reserves managed under the EPBC Act. Administration, management and control of Commonwealth reserves are the function of the Director of National Parks. The Director’s functions and powers in relation to the Reserves and other Commonwealth marine reserves have been delegated to the First Assistant Secretary of the Marine and Water Division of Environment Australia.
The EPBC Act requires the Director to prepare management plans for Commonwealth reserves. Once prepared, the plans are provided to the Minister for the Environment and Heritage for approval. A management plan is a “disallowable instrument”, and when approved by the Minister must be tabled in each House of the Commonwealth Parliament. Unless disallowed by either the House of Representatives or the Senate within 15 sitting days, the plan will then come into operation. A management plan for a Commonwealth reserve has effect for seven years, unless revoked or amended earlier by another management plan for the reserve.
The EPBC Act requires the Director to exercise the Director’s powers and perform the Director’s functions to give effect to the management plan for a Commonwealth reserve. The Commonwealth and other Commonwealth agencies must not perform functions or exercise powers inconsistently with the management plan (section 362).
A management plan for a Commonwealth reserve must provide for the protection and conservation of the reserve (section 367). Certain matters must be taken into account in preparing a plan (section 368(3)). So far as relevant to the Reserves, those matters are:
-the regulation of the use of the reserve for the purpose for which it was proclaimed (in the case of the Reserves, the preservation of the area in its natural condition; and, the encouragement and regulation of the appropriate use, appreciation and enjoyment of the area by the public)
-the protection of the special features of the reserve, including objects and sites of biological, historical, palaeontological, archaeological, geological and geographical interest
-the protection, conservation and management of biological diversity and heritage within the reserve
-the protection of the reserve against damage
-Australia's obligations under agreements between Australia and one or more other countries relevant to the protection and conservation of biological diversity and heritage.
The EPBC Act prohibits certain acts from being done in a Commonwealth reserve except in accordance with a management plan (section 354(1)). These acts are:
-kill, injure, take, trade, keep or move a member of a native species
-damage heritage
-carry on an excavation
-erect a building or other structure
-carry out works
-take an action for commercial purposes.
Mining operations are also prohibited unless the Governor-General has approved them and they are carried on in accordance with a management plan (section 355).
Actions that would, or are likely to, have a significant impact on a specified matter of “national environmental significance” are subject to the assessment and approval provisions of the EPBC Act (Chapters 2 and 4). The matters of national environmental significance are:
-World Heritage properties
-wetlands of international importance (Ramsar wetlands)
-listed threatened species and ecological communities
-listed migratory species
-nuclear actions
-the marine environment
-such further actions as are prescribed by the EPBC Regulations under the EPBC Act.
The Reserves are “Commonwealth marine areas” for the purposes of the EPBC Act. The taking of an action in a Commonwealth marine area (including the airspace above it) that will or is likely to have a significant impact on the environment, or the taking of an action outside a Commonwealth marine area that will or is likely to have a significant impact on the environment in a Commonwealth marine area, will be subject to the assessment and approvals provisions of the EPBC Act.
Responsibility for compliance with the assessment and approvals provisions of the EPBC Act lies with persons taking relevant “controlled” actions. A person proposing to take an action that the person thinks may be or is a controlled action must refer the proposal to the Minister for the Environment and Heritage for the Minister’s decision whether or not the action is a controlled action.
The EPBC Act also contains provisions that prohibit and regulate actions in relation to threatened species and ecological communities, migratory species, cetaceans (whales and dolphins) and other (listed) marine species (Part 13). A number of species that are known to occur in the Reserves are listed threatened species and listed migratory species under the Act. Cetaceans and other marine species listed under the Act are also known to occur in the Reserves (see Attachment 4).
A list of some legislation relevant to the Reserves is in Attachment 5.
2.4 IUCN protected area management category of the Reserves
The EPBC Act requires that a management plan for a Commonwealth reserve must assign the reserve to one of the following IUCN protected area categories:
-strict nature reserve
-wilderness area
-national park
-natural monument
-habitat/species management area
-protected landscape/seascape
-managed resource protected area.
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve are assigned by this Plan to IUCN category Ia – strict nature reserve. The characteristics of a strict nature reserve are “the Commonwealth reserve or zone contains some outstanding or representative ecosystems, geological or physiological features or species.”
The EPBC Act provides that a management plan for a Commonwealth reserve may divide the reserve into zones and assign each zone to an IUCN category, which may differ from the category to which the reserve is assigned.
Cartier Island Marine Reserve is not divided into zones.
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve is divided into two zones. The majority of the Reserve is zoned IUCN category Ia – strict nature reserve. This area of the Reserve was closed to the public under an Instrument of Prohibition made on 3 September 1997 under the National Parks and Wildlife Regulations (See Attachment 6 for the Instrument of Prohibition and a map of the closed area). This instrument is continued in force under the EPBC Regulations. The remainder of the Reserve, comprising West Island Lagoon and part of West Island, is zoned IUCN category II – national park. The characteristics of a national park are “the Commonwealth reserve consists of an area of land, sea or both in natural condition”.
The EPBC Act requires that the provisions of a management plan for a Commonwealth reserve must not be inconsistent with the relevant "Australian IUCN reserve management principles" for the IUCN category to which the reserve or any zone is assigned by the plan. Australian reserve management principles for all IUCN categories are set out in the EPBC Regulations (Schedule 8). The principles applying to IUCN categories Ia and II are reproduced at Attachment 7.
2.5 Management of the Reserves
The functions and powers of the Director of National Parks in relation to the Reserves and other Commonwealth marine reserves have been delegated to the First Assistant Secretary of the Marine and Water Division of Environment Australia.
Management of the Reserves will include cooperative arrangements with other government agencies including Coastwatch, the Australian Customs Service, Defence, the Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Fisheries WA, the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs and the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service. Such collaboration supports a whole of government approach to regional management and facilitates effective and cooperative management arrangements of the Reserves.
Cartier Island, and the surrounding area within a ten kilometre radius, is a gazetted Defence Practice Area. The Department of Defence agreed to transfer the responsibility for Cartier Island and surrounding marine areas to Environment Australia subject to access restrictions to ensure public safety. The area of the Reserve as defined in the Reserve proclamation (Attachment 3) is the area within a four nautical mile radius from the island (approximately 7.4 kilometres). The Department of Defence has advised that this is sufficient for public safety purposes.
3. Strategic Objectives
The strategic objectives for Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve comply with the EPBC Act, the Strategic Plan of Action for the National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas: A Guide for Action by Australian Governments (ANZECC, 1999), the Guidelines for Protected Areas Management (IUCN 1994) and the relevant Australian IUCN Reserve Management Principles (Attachment 7). The strategic objectives and the IUCN reserve management principles form the basis for this management plan.
The strategic objectives for Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve are to:
-protect the high conservation values in the marine and terrestrial environments of Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve
-manage the Reserves as part of the National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas
-contribute to the protection of the overall conservation values in the Oceanic Shoals Bioregion
-facilitate research on the ecology of the Reserves and the Oceanic Shoals Bioregion
-provide biological refuges that will contribute to an integrated management framework for the sustainable use and long term protection of marine resources in the MOU Box.
4. Description of Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve and Cartier Island Marine Reserve.
4.1 Location
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve is situated at 12°20'S, 123°0'E and lies some 450 nautical miles west of Darwin, 330 nautical miles north of Broome and 60 nautical miles south of the Indonesian island of Roti. Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve encloses an area of approximately 583 square kilometres.
Cartier Island Marine Reserve lies approximately 25 nautical miles to the south-east of Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve at 12°32'S, 123°33'E Cartier Island Marine Reserve covers 167 square kilometres.
Both reserves include the seabed and substrata to a depth of 1000 metres. The locations of the Reserves are shown in Figures 1 and 2. The boundaries of the Reserves are shown in Figures 3 and 4, and are defined in the proclamation of each Reserve (Attachment 2 and Attachment 3).
4.2 Physical features and processes
Geomorphology
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve contains two extensive lagoons, several channelled carbonate sand flats, shifting sand cays, an extensive reef flat, and three vegetated islands – East, Middle and West Islands. Cartier Island Marine Reserve contains one unvegetated sand cay and mature reef flat with two shallow pools immediately to the north east of the cay.
The reef fronts of the Reserves are punctuated with spur and groove formations and have a high diversity of robust corals. The reef crests are algal dominated with the reef flats striated with lines of coral rubble. The sand flats are extensive and mobile, comprising carbonate sands. The two lagoons at Ashmore have a total of four northern entrances, both have luxuriant coral growth and all three islands at Ashmore have beach rock. At Cartier the unvegetated sand cay has an incomplete protective skirt of beach rock that assists in stabilising its position.
Naturally occurring hydrocarbon seeps have been identified throughout this major hydrocarbon province. The Australian Geological Survey Organisation (AGSO) is currently investigating the relationships between the seeps and benthic community structure. It is thought that the seeps add significantly to the nutrient content and consequently the biota of the region's waters (Glenn and O’Brien 1999).
Oceanography
The regional oceanic processes of Australia’s North West Shelf are influenced by several major factors including monsoons, dominant south-easterly winds, seasonal up-welling from the Indian Ocean, and the Indonesian Through Flow.
The Indonesian Through Flow carries warm low-saline water from the western Pacific Ocean into cooler, high nutrient, highly saline up-welling water of the Indian Ocean. The southward flowing Leeuwin Current originates in the region and flows southward down the Western Australian coastline. This is the only example of a west-coast southern-flowing boundary current in the world. The interactions between these currents and the reefs of the Indo-Pacific play a significant role in the maintenance of coral reef and algal communities further to the south (Hatcher 1991).
Sea surface temperatures vary seasonally with the highest oceanic water temperature recorded at 31 degrees Celsius. Lagoonal water has been recorded up to 35.4 degrees Celsius (Glenn in prep).
Tidal ranges for the Reserves exhibit a mean spring tide maximum of 4.75 metres (Flinders Institute for Atmospheric and Marine Sciences 1997).
Climate
The Reserves are in the tropics. The climate is dry (arid tropical), and annual evaporation is twice that of the annual average precipitation. Most rainfall is restricted to the relatively short summer monsoon period. Prolonged periods of rainfall are rare, and yearly rainfall is 950 mm. Monsoonal conditions dominate from December to May with thunderstorms on average 85 days per year (Lavering 1993). Cyclones are common on the North West Shelf with the region experiencing seven per cent of the annual global cyclone total (Pielke 1990). Cyclones typically move south-west across the Arafura and Timor Seas down the Western Australian coastline and can result in large-scale sediment redistribution in the region.
Westerly to north-westerly rain-bearing winds blow from about November to March, and dry south-easterly to easterly trade winds prevail from about May to September. Transitional winds occur in the periods between the monsoon and trade winds and are light and unsteady from either the south-east or north-west. Squall conditions increase in frequency towards the end of transition to the monsoon. March, October, November and December are the calmest months (Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service 1989).
4.3 Ecological values of the Reserves
Biological diversity
The geographical location, seasonal oceanographic conditions, naturally occurring hydrocarbon inputs, and diverse benthic habitat in the Ashmore region support distinct assemblages of benthic and pelagic communities. Ashmore and Cartier reefs are located in a transition area between mainly algal dominated growth to the north and coral dominated growth to the south (Glenn and Opdyke 1997).
The marine environments of the North West Shelf, and specifically the Ashmore region, are notable for overall high biological diversity. Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve supports the greatest number of reef building coral species of any reef area on the Western Australian coast (Veron 1993). There are also particularly high numbers of mollusc and fish species in the Reserves, and the region has particular global significance in terms of its sea snake diversity and density.
The reefs of the Reserves exhibit a high level of inter-dependency with adjacent eco-systems to the north and south (Simpson 1991). The Indonesian Through Flow current transports genetic material southwards from the biologically diverse reef systems of the Philippines and Indonesia. As initial recipients in Australian waters of this transported material, the North West Shelf reefs and shoals play a primary role in the maintenance of biodiversity in reef systems further to the south.
Marine habitats
There are a variety of marine habitats in the Reserves. Major marine habitats include reef front and crest, reef flat, sand flats, and lagoons.
The reef front and crest is comprised of hard and soft corals, gorgonians, sponges and a range of encrusting organisms. It provides habitat also for a number of fish, crustaceans and echinoderms. The reef flats have areas of sea grass, which provide critical habitat for a number of species including dugong and turtles. The sand flat habitats support species including feeding turtles, stingrays, echinoderms, molluscs including clams, and crustaceans. The sand flats are important for feeding migratory waders and shore birds. Areas of the sandflats that do not dry at low tide also have a sparse cover of soft corals and various algae. The lagoon habitat supports a wide range of fish, and predators such as sharks and sea snakes. It is also a feeding area for dugong and turtles. The lagoons also support corals, sponges and a range of holothurians, echinoderms and polychaetes on and beneath the substrate.
Marine vertebrates
The Reserves provide critical habitat for an unusually high diversity and density of sea snakes (Hanley and Russell 1993) making them internationally significant. At Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve there are estimated to be 40,000 sea snakes from at least 13 species, representing the greatest number of sea snake species recorded for any locality in the world (Guinea 1993, Guinea and Pike 1994). Thick sea snakes of the subfamily Aipysurini are prominent, three species of which are endemic to Australia’s North West Shelf. Some of these sea snakes, for example the Turtle Headed Sea Snake, appear to have extremely limited ranges and diets, depending entirely on very small areas of reef (Guinea, Northern Territory University, pers. comm.). Interestingly there are morphological differences between some of the same species of sea snakes from Cartier Island and those from Ashmore (Guinea, Northern Territory University, pers. comm.).
The Reserves protect critical habitats for feeding and breeding sea turtles, and support large and significant populations of turtles. The nationally vulnerable Green Turtles Chelonia myda, Hawksbill Turtles Eretmochelys imbricata and the nationally endangered Loggerhead Turtles Caretta caretta are found in the Reserves (Guinea 1995). Preliminary surveys estimate that approximately 11,000 sea turtles feed throughout the year at Ashmore (Guinea, Northern Territory University, pers. comm.).
Feeding turtles are present on the reef throughout the year. Each individual may spend several decades feeding in the Reserves, before migrating up to 2,000 kilometres to other reefs for nesting. Adult turtles that have been feeding elsewhere as juveniles return to the Reserves for breeding and nesting. Undisturbed reef flats and sandy beaches are critical to support these populations and help to ensure their reproductive success (Environment Australia 2000).
Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve supports a small population of Dugong dugon. Their range possibly extends to Cartier Island and other submerged shoals in the region (Whiting 1999). Preliminary DNA studies indicate that this population may be genetically distinct from any other Australian population (Whiting 1999). The extent to which this population interacts with populations from the Australian coast or Indonesian coasts is not known. The seagrass beds of Ashmore and Cartier reefs are critical habitat for this population (Whiting 1999).
A survey by the Museum of Western Australia in 1997 brought the total number of recorded fish species for Ashmore Reef to 709 species, which indicates that Ashmore has the most diverse marine fish fauna of any region in Western Australia (Hutchins 1997).
Marine invertebrates
The Reserves support a high diversity of reef building corals, the highest off the coast of Western Australia (Veron 1993). Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve has 255 species of reef-building corals in 56 genera (Veron 1993). Non-reef-building corals also occur in large numbers. These include alycyonaceans, antipatharians and gorgonians. Other common species, especially on the reef flats, are Blue Coral Heliopora coerulea and Organ-Pipe Coral Tubipors musica (Marsh 1993). There are also 136 species of sponges (Russell and Hanley 1993).
A range of molluscs are present in the Reserves, including octopus, cuttlefish, squid, chitons and bivalves such as giant clams. Ashmore and Cartier reefs support at least 433 mollusc species (Wells 1993). There are relatively few species of chitons and cephalopods (Wells 1993). The gastropod Amoria spenceriana is endemic to Ashmore and adds significantly to the reef’s conservation value (Willan 1995). Importantly, the molluscan fauna found at Ashmore differ considerably from that of the Western Australian coast (Wells 1993). Some mollusc species in the region, particularly trochus (Trochus niloticus), have declined in numbers and may become regionally extinct without restrictions on harvesting (Skewes et al. 1999).
Crustaceans in the Reserves include crayfish, prawns, crabs and hermit crabs. Some 286 species of crustaceans have been recorded (Russell and Hanley 1993). These include 99 species of decapod crustaceans, 40% of which are xanthoids (crabs) and 25% pagoroids (hermit crabs) (Morgan and Berry 1993).
The Reserves have a rich echinoderm fauna, with a total of 192 echinoderm species reported at Ashmore in 1989, covering all classes of the phylum (Vail and Hoggett 1989). This includes 39 species of crinoids (feather stars); 27 species of asteroids (starfishes); 45 species of ophiuroids (brittle and basket stars); and 25 species of echinoids (sea-urchins, heart-urchins and sand dollars). Holuthurians (trepang or sea-cucumbers) are particularly diverse and abundant, with 45 species of holothurians (trepang or sea-cucumbers) recorded (Marsh et al. 1993). This abundance is probably because of extensive suitable sandy habitats at Ashmore.
Terrestrial habitats and flora
Terrestrial habitats in the Reserves consist of vegetated islands and unvegetated sand cays. There are numerous sand cays in the Reserves, including the unvegetated Cartier Island. West, Middle and East Islands in Ashmore Reserve support vegetation. These islands provide critical nesting habitat for many species, including marine turtles and a number of sea and migratory birds.
A limited range of plant species have been recorded at the Ashmore islands. Evidence suggests an on-going dynamism in terrestrial species. New species are introduced by human activities and ocean currents, and the loss of species may be the result of natural events such as cyclones, long dry seasons and beach erosion. (Pike and Leach 1997).
Terrestrial fauna
The Reserves support a high population of seabirds, many of which are migratory and typically have their breeding sites on small isolated islands. The Ashmore islands are regarded as supporting some of the most important seabird rookeries on the North West Shelf. Large colonies of Sooty Terns, Crested Terns, Bridled Terns and Common Noddies breed on East and Middle Islands. Smaller breeding colonies of Little Egrets, Eastern Reef Egrets, Black Noddies and possibly Lesser Noddies also occur on the islands (Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service 1989). Many of the bird species present in the region are listed under JAMBA and CAMBA.
The Reserves are also an important staging point for many migratory wading birds. During October to November and March to April large flocks of Eastern Curlews, Ruddy Turnstones, Whimbrels, Bar-Tailed Godwits, Common Sandpipers, Mongolian Plovers, Red-Necked Stints and Tattlers occur as part of the migration between Australia and the Northern Hemisphere (Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service 1989).
Terrestrial invertebrates recorded at the Ashmore islands include hermit crabs, 127 species of insects, 7 species of spider and a single species each of centipede, pseudoscorpion and millipede (Brown 1999). A species of possible concern is the Ginger ant Solenopsis geminata, an aggressive species native to North America which has spread through much of the tropics and could potentially attack young and adult birds. The Asian House Gecko Hemidactylys frenatus, rare on the islands in 1995, is now common at Ashmore (Brown pers. comm.).
4.4 Cultural values
History
Indonesian fishers have been active in utilising the marine resources along the northern coast of Australia for approximately three centuries (Campbell and Wilson 1993, Stacey 1999, Stacey 2000). Ashmore has been regularly visited and fished by Indonesians since the early eighteenth century (Fox 1996, Fox 1988, Stacey 1999). Early travellers to Ashmore included the Bajo, migratory sea peoples originating from the coastline of Sulawesi and islands south of Sulawesi, and fishers from the island of Roti (Fox 1998).
Indonesian fishers were voyaging south seeking new sources of trepang (holothurians or sea cucumbers) which were in demand as a delicacy (Fox 1998). Turtle shell, trochus shell, shark fin and reef fish were other valuable commodities sought by these fishers in waters south of the Indonesian archipelago (MacKnight 1976, Stacey 2000).
One tale of the discovery of Ashmore by the Rotinese is that a vessel sailing from Roti to Timor was forced to run ahead of a storm for five days. The vessel was in open sea and the crew saw some birds and followed them, expecting to find land where they could seek help. They arrived instead at Ashmore, where they remained for some time fishing. They then steered north and returned to Roti (Dwyer 2000).
Rotinese sailors continued to visit Ashmore in their wooden perahus (traditional sailed fishing boats), often using no navigational equipment. The traditional method was to sail due south in alignment with the most prominent hillpoint on the south coast of Roti. If they hadn’t reached Ashmore within a full day of leaving Roti, they would return and realign and sail south again (Fox 1988).
Traditional fishers replenished water from the fresh water wells on the islands of Ashmore, collected fish, birds, bird eggs, holothurians, clam flesh, shells, turtles and turtle eggs for food and commerce (Campbell and Wilson 1993), and collected firewood to supplement wood carried with them. They also used Ashmore as a staging point for voyaging to other reefs in the region and further south (Fox 1988).
Ashmore and Cartier were discovered by Europeans early in the nineteenth century. Captain Nash aboard the Hibernia discovered Cartier Island and Captain Samuel Ashmore discovered Ashmore (Russell and Vail 1988). Dutch or Portuguese sailors may have already known of their existence. Disputes between the United States of America and Great Britain between 1878 and 1909 over ownership of Ashmore resulted in confirmation of British sovereignty and the annexure of Cartier Island (Pike and Leach 1997). In 1932 Britain handed Ashmore and Cartier Island over to the Australian Government.
The discovery of phosphate deposits (guano) in the area attracted the attention of American whalers operating in the region in the 1840s. Extraction of the deposits was underway by the mid-nineteenth century. By 1891 all guano was reported to have been removed from Ashmore's West Island. The amount of material and the consequences of this activity are largely unknown. However, there is evidence that prior to mining, West Island was the only Ashmore island with significant numbers of nesting sea birds and was therefore the only one with sufficient quantities of guano for mining. It would appear that most populations of nesting birds were driven off West Island by the mining activity and by introduction of rats, and that the birds established instead on Middle and East Islands (Clark, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, pers. comm.). Rats were eradicated from West Island during the 1980s.
Cartier Island and the surrounding area within a ten kilometre radius is a gazetted Defence Practice Area for the purposes of military exercises, and has been used as an air weapons range. The Department of Defence renewed the gazettal of this area for military purposes in 1994. Original use of the area for this purpose appears to date back to World War II. The Department of Defence has advised that Cartier Island has not been used as an active air weapons range for over a decade.
A clearance of Cartier Island was conducted in 1986 to remove obvious unexploded military materials. Due to highly mobile sand deposits and the difficulty of clearing the reef, Cartier Island and reef cannot be guaranteed free of unexploded military materials, which may be easily exposed through natural wind and wave activity or turtle nesting in the area. This risk of unexploded bombs poses a safety hazard to visitors to the reef and island.
The Department of Defence has indicated that degazettal of the Defence Practice Area is dependent upon Environment Australia developing a program to restrict access to Cartier Island and reef for safety reasons. The Department of Defence indicated that it would be possible to develop guidelines for use of the area for research and management.
Indonesian artefacts
Indonesian artefacts in the Reserves include ceramics, graves, ballast rocks and what could be a trepang cooking site (Clark 2000). Graves are found on West, Middle and East Islands. Seven graves were recorded on West Island and one on Middle Island in 1996 (Clark 2000). Additionally, at least one Indonesian fisher was buried on Cartier Island during 2000. The cultural artefacts are deteriorating through natural processes.
European wrecks
The Ann Millicent, an iron hulled barque of 944 tons, was wrecked on Cartier Island on 5 January 1888. It was on a voyage from the Gulf of Carpentaria to Adelaide when it struck the southern edge of the reef around Cartier Island and was grounded. A wreck believed to be that of the Ann Millicent is visible at low tide on the southern reef edge of Cartier Island.
During the Second World War a RAAF Beaufighter sustained damage during a conflict and landed on Cartier Island. Following the rescue of the crew, the wreck was strafed by other aircraft and set alight. Some remains of the aircraft are still found on Cartier Island.
5. Reserve Uses and Pressures
A range of uses have been made of the Reserves and the surrounding area. Coral reef communities are also subject to disturbance from a range of recurrent natural events, including storms, cyclones, toxic blooms, and El Niño events. As a result of these recurrent disturbances, coral reef communities are dynamic. Given the dynamic nature of the reef and potential for disturbance it is important to ensure the protection of a range of reefs to ensure a representative sample of the variety of habitats in the region will be conserved over time.
This Plan focuses on existing and potential pressures caused by human activities that can be influenced by management actions. Table 1 summarises the existing and potential pressures on the conservation values of the Reserves, and links them to human activities in and around the reserve.
Attachment 7: Australian Reserve Management Principles relevant to the Reserves
The reserve management principles under the EPBC Regulations that apply to the category strict nature reserve (IUCN category Ia) are as follows.
-The reserve or zone should be managed primarily for scientific research or environmental monitoring based on the following principles;
-Habitats, ecosystems and native species should be preserved in as undisturbed a state as possible;
-Genetic resources should be maintained in a dynamic and evolutionary state;
-Established ecological process should be maintained;
-Structural landscape features or rock exposures should be safeguarded;
-Examples of the natural environment should be secured for scientific studies, environmental monitoring and education, including baseline areas from which all avoidable access is excluded;
-Disturbance should be minimised by careful planning and execution of research and other approved activities; and
-Public access should be limited to the extent it is consistent with these principles.
The reserve management principles under the EPBC Regulations that apply to the category national park (IUCN category II) are as follows.
-The Reserve or zone should be protected and managed to preserve its natural condition according to the following principles.
-Natural and scenic areas of national and international significance should be protected for spiritual, scientific, educational, recreational or tourist purposes.
-Representative examples of physiographic regions, biotic communities, genetic resources and native species should be perpetuated in as natural a state as possible to provide ecological stability and diversity.
-Visitor use should be managed for inspirational, educational, cultural and recreational purposes at a level that will maintain the reserve or zone in a natural or near natural state.
-Management should seek to ensure that exploitation or occupation inconsistent with these principles do not occur
-Respect should be maintained for the ecological, geomorphological, sacred and aesthetic attributes for which the reserve or zone was assigned to this category
-The needs of indigenous people should be taken into account, including subsistence resource use, to the extent that they do not conflict with these principles
-The aspirations of traditional owners of land within the reserve or zone, their continuing land management practices, the protection and maintenance of cultural heritage and the benefit the traditional owners derive from enterprises, established in the reserve or zone, consistent with these principles should be recognised and taken into account.
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