Australian Marine Conservation Society and Humane Society International has welcomed greater protection for Australian sea lions in Western Australia.
The establishment of exclusion zones will prohibit the use of gillnets by fishing operations in areas near established sea lion colonies. Gillnets are hung in the water to catch sharks but are invisible to sea lions, which become trapped and drown in the nets.
Australian sea lions are endangered and unique to Australian waters, but their numbers continue to decline. As a result the species is likely to be upgraded from a Vulnerable to an Endangered listing under Australian environment laws.
There are 10,000 – 12,000 Australian sea lions left in the wild. The majority occur in South Australia with only 2,000 living in the waters off Western Australia.
Australian sea lions in WA are particularly at risk, as they mostly live in small and isolated colonies. In some small colonies, the death of a single female sea lion can be detrimental to the survival of that colony.
AMCS and HSI understand that gillnet exclusion zones will be put in place around each Australian sea lion colony on the 29th June. The net free zones will range from 6-33 kilometres around each colony, offering better protection for Australian sea lions over 17,000kms2 of their range in Western Australia.
“The protection from fishing impacts offered to WA’s Australian sea lion colonies through these exclusion zones is essential to prevent the extinction of this highly vulnerable species. The McGowan Government has recognised the critical importance of protecting one of Australia’s most endangered and iconic marine animals, the Australian sea lion” said Alexia Wellbelove, Senior Program Manager at Humane Society International.
“These gillnet exclusion zones are essential to prevent the extinction of a species that gets caught in gillnets fishing off the western and southern WA coastlines. We welcome the efforts of the WA Government and Minister Kelly to get these protected areas in place after a decade of inaction on the issue,” Wellbelove said.
“The Australian public expects that their seafood does not come at the expense of endangered ocean wildlife. Most Western Australians would want to know that their fish and chips don’t cause the deaths of our unique Australian sea lions. These closures are necessary to have any hope of recovering Australian Sea Lions from the brink of extinction” said Tooni Mahto, Marine Campaign Manager at the Australian Marine Conservation Society.
“We look forward to continuing to work with the WA Government over the next three years to ensure that greater monitoring and management measures are implemented to help understand the full impact of fishing on this important species. We need to ensure that every effort is being made to help recover WA populations,” Mahto said.
Ryan Fritz
Ryan Fritz started The Advocate in 2014 to provide not-for-profits and charities another media platform to tell their worthwhile hard news stories and opinion pieces effortlessly. In 2020, Ryan formed a team of volunteer journalists to help spread even more high-quality stories from the third sector. He also has over 10 years experience as a media and communications professional for not-for-profits and charities and currently works at Redkite, a childhood cancer charity.
