HOT on the heels of the Pew Environmental Group’s proposal to close the whole of the Coral Sea to fishing and the NSW National Parks’ Associations plan to greatly expand NSW’s marine reserves (“The Torn Blue Fringe”) comes a report that the Australian Conservation Foundation, World Wildlife Fund, Pew and other green groups have combined to prepare a “Protecting Western Australia’s Big Blue Backyard” report. It proposes a vast network of marine sanctuaries from Kalbarri, 500km north of Perth, to Eucla on South Australia’s border. Mining and commercial fishing representatives have already expressed reservations on the proposed no-take zones.
By John Newbery
