Marine Bioregional Planning

Australia’s marine bioregional planning program is designed to provide a clearer focus on the protection, conservation and sustainable use of Australia’s marine environment.

The Marine Bioregional Planning program is part of the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities  (SEWPaC) portfolio and aims to provide a clear framework for coordinating conservation and sustainable management of the Commonwealth marine environment including the development of new networks of Marine Protected Areas.

The Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities (SEWPaC) is currently implementing marine bioregional planning in five regions across Australia: North, East, South-east, South-west and North-west.

Our role

As the Marine Bioregional Planning Process has potential to have significant impact on the future operating environment of Commonwealth fisheries, AFMA is taking an active role as it progresses. AFMA’s involvement is outlined in the document AFMA Strategy for Engaging in the DEW Marine Bioregional Planning Process (206kb).

To help keep industry and other stakeholders informed of Marine Bioregional Planning processes in relation to the management of Commonwealth Fisheries, AFMA provides information as part of the environment update to each Management Advisory Committee and provides a regular update in our fortnightly newsletter AFMA Update.

Documents

Further information

For further information on how the implemention of regions is progressing as well as expected completion dates, please visit the Marine Bioregional Planning page on the SEWPaC website for more information

If you wish to discuss AFMA’s involvement in this process and how it impacts Commonwealth fisheries please contact Environment on 1300 723 621.