❓ Mr. Blayney asks about the features of the draft management plan for Roebuck Bay Marine Park. Mr. Jacob outlines the plan's development, including the removal of commercial fishing and collaboration with the Yawuru people, while defending the absence of sanctuary zones.
AnsweredQoN 517Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
ROEBUCK
BAY MARINE PARK — DRAFT MANAGEMENT PLAN
517. Mr I.C. BLAYNEY to the
Minister for Environment:
I understand that last Friday the minister released the draft
management plan for the Roebuck Bay Marine Park. Can the minister outline the
features of this new marine park?
BAY MARINE PARK — DRAFT MANAGEMENT PLAN
517. Mr I.C. BLAYNEY to the
Minister for Environment:
I understand that last Friday the minister released the draft
management plan for the Roebuck Bay Marine Park. Can the minister outline the
features of this new marine park?
AnswerView source ↗
Mr Speaker —
Mr
C.J. Tallentire : Feature number one is that it has no sanctuary zone.
The SPEAKER : You
are getting confused, member for Gosnells. The minister is supposed to answer,
not you.
Mr A.P. JACOB : I
will address that issue in just a second, member for Gosnells.
Last Friday, I travelled up to Broome, and on the shores of
Roebuck Bay along with elders and representatives of the Yawuru people, I had
the opportunity to release, for three months' public comment, the
indicative management plans for the Roebuck Bay Marine Park. It is a long-held
aspiration in Western Australia to see a marine park over Roebuck Bay—an
aspiration held in the Broome community as well as by successive state
governments for more than a decade. I remind the house of the actions this
government has taken that have helped us reach this point, including back in
2013 when the Liberal–National government purchased the two gill net
fishing licences that existed within Roebuck Bay. The government has already
removed commercial fishing from Roebuck Bay, essentially purchasing out those
two licences. As the member for Gosnells intimated, we believe that, given that
80 tonnes of commercial fishing, along with whatever bycatch was being taken,
has now been removed from Roebuck Bay, recreational fishing can continue to be
enjoyed, and given that Roebuck Bay sits adjacent to the tourism capital of
that part of the world, Broome.
Mr C.J. Tallentire :
How many scientists said we need sanctuary zones?
The SPEAKER :
Member for Gosnells, I call you to order for the first time.
Mr A.P. JACOB :
Friday was a significant day for most in that community, and the Yawuru people
were there supporting us. I think just about everybody was happy with finally
reaching this point after more than a decade—except perhaps the member
for Gosnells and some green groups. We are in this bizarre situation in which
finally the government is delivering a management plan for Roebuck Bay Marine
Park and the green groups are protesting. I take the interjections of the
member for Gosnells. Is the member saying that if this was his government, he
would have introduced sanctuary zones where those green groups are calling for
them?
Mr C.J. Tallentire :
Thirty-two eminent marine scientists have said that we need to have a sanctuary
zone.
Mr A.P. JACOB : So
the member is saying —
The SPEAKER :
Sorry; this is not a debate. Answer through the Chair, please.
Mr A.P. JACOB : I
wonder whether the member for Gosnells would have withdrawn recreational
fishing from those areas.
Mr
M. McGowan interjected.
The SPEAKER : The
Leader of the Opposition can ask a question later.
Mr A.P. JACOB : I
will take it that that is implied, given the Leader of the Opposition's
interjection.
That raises three very interesting points for me; first of
all, the approach that in order to have any form of conservation one has to
withdraw activity and there can be no recreational fishing. Remember that this
is being done in partnership with the traditional owners, the Yawuru people,
whose long-held position has been that recreational fishing is something that
both our cultures share and it is often a bridge between our cultures. I give
credit to previous governments that had the aspiration of a marine park in
Roebuck Bay. I acknowledge that the previous government had done an amount of
work towards a marine park in Roebuck Bay, but its proposed marine park was
only about half of what this government is delivering. That proposed sanctuary zone
was not even within the boundaries of the marine park that the opposition says
it would have done! The opposition says it wanted a sanctuary zone but it was
not even putting it within the marine park. This government does not just have
aspirations; it is delivering significant achievements in the Kimberley in
Kimberley conservation. This is one of only five marine parks across the
Kimberley, backed up with an $81.5 million investment from this government. I
encourage all members to look at that great plan.
Mr
C.J. Tallentire : Feature number one is that it has no sanctuary zone.
The SPEAKER : You
are getting confused, member for Gosnells. The minister is supposed to answer,
not you.
Mr A.P. JACOB : I
will address that issue in just a second, member for Gosnells.
Last Friday, I travelled up to Broome, and on the shores of
Roebuck Bay along with elders and representatives of the Yawuru people, I had
the opportunity to release, for three months' public comment, the
indicative management plans for the Roebuck Bay Marine Park. It is a long-held
aspiration in Western Australia to see a marine park over Roebuck Bay—an
aspiration held in the Broome community as well as by successive state
governments for more than a decade. I remind the house of the actions this
government has taken that have helped us reach this point, including back in
2013 when the Liberal–National government purchased the two gill net
fishing licences that existed within Roebuck Bay. The government has already
removed commercial fishing from Roebuck Bay, essentially purchasing out those
two licences. As the member for Gosnells intimated, we believe that, given that
80 tonnes of commercial fishing, along with whatever bycatch was being taken,
has now been removed from Roebuck Bay, recreational fishing can continue to be
enjoyed, and given that Roebuck Bay sits adjacent to the tourism capital of
that part of the world, Broome.
Mr C.J. Tallentire :
How many scientists said we need sanctuary zones?
The SPEAKER :
Member for Gosnells, I call you to order for the first time.
Mr A.P. JACOB :
Friday was a significant day for most in that community, and the Yawuru people
were there supporting us. I think just about everybody was happy with finally
reaching this point after more than a decade—except perhaps the member
for Gosnells and some green groups. We are in this bizarre situation in which
finally the government is delivering a management plan for Roebuck Bay Marine
Park and the green groups are protesting. I take the interjections of the
member for Gosnells. Is the member saying that if this was his government, he
would have introduced sanctuary zones where those green groups are calling for
them?
Mr C.J. Tallentire :
Thirty-two eminent marine scientists have said that we need to have a sanctuary
zone.
Mr A.P. JACOB : So
the member is saying —
The SPEAKER :
Sorry; this is not a debate. Answer through the Chair, please.
Mr A.P. JACOB : I
wonder whether the member for Gosnells would have withdrawn recreational
fishing from those areas.
Mr
M. McGowan interjected.
The SPEAKER : The
Leader of the Opposition can ask a question later.
Mr A.P. JACOB : I
will take it that that is implied, given the Leader of the Opposition's
interjection.
That raises three very interesting points for me; first of
all, the approach that in order to have any form of conservation one has to
withdraw activity and there can be no recreational fishing. Remember that this
is being done in partnership with the traditional owners, the Yawuru people,
whose long-held position has been that recreational fishing is something that
both our cultures share and it is often a bridge between our cultures. I give
credit to previous governments that had the aspiration of a marine park in
Roebuck Bay. I acknowledge that the previous government had done an amount of
work towards a marine park in Roebuck Bay, but its proposed marine park was
only about half of what this government is delivering. That proposed sanctuary zone
was not even within the boundaries of the marine park that the opposition says
it would have done! The opposition says it wanted a sanctuary zone but it was
not even putting it within the marine park. This government does not just have
aspirations; it is delivering significant achievements in the Kimberley in
Kimberley conservation. This is one of only five marine parks across the
Kimberley, backed up with an $81.5 million investment from this government. I
encourage all members to look at that great plan.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.