Conservation And Climate Change Adaptation In The Australian Marine Environment

The Importance of the Australian Marine Environment

Discuss about the Conservation and Climate Change Adaptation.

The environmental assessment report of Australian environment 2016 provides that the environmental policies as well as the management practices in the country to have achieved great improvements. However, there are areas where the environmental conditions are very poor and deteriorating including the regions of the coastal areas as well as the growth areas within an urban environment where the environment is exposed to great human pressure (Deacon & Parker, p. 45, 2015). It has also been reported that the extensive land use zone of Australia and especially where grazing is considered to be a major threat to biodiversity. However, the management of these increased pressures has been called to reduce the impact caused by the drivers of environmental change and therefore the government, as well as other agencies, is encouraged to keep the impacts within limits as a way of creating a sustainable environmental future. If these drivers are managed then they can be harnessed to achieve environmental benefits. On the centrally if not well managed they can generate pressures that have immediate and long-term consequences to the environment (Haward& Vince, p. 14, 2014). This report, therefore, seeks to provide an understanding of the state of the Australian Marine environment by looking into various aspects of environmental concerns that will help us understand where the marine environment headed to and mechanisms which can be put into place to bring solutions aimed at improving the state of the marine environment.

The Australian marine environment is the world largest marine jurisdiction which means that the marine environment contributes greatly to the growth of the Australian economy. It is estimated to cover 13.86 square kilometers and acts as a home to a diverse array of Australia marine species in which many have been found to occur nowhere else in the world. The marine environment is composed of the oceans and the surrounding environments (Speed, p. 12, 2017).  These have been found to contribute 85 percent to the lifestyles of the Australian people living close to the oceans.  The marine environment has been found to be very important and essential to the cultural practices of the indigenous communities living near the oceans. It has been estimated that by the year 2029 to 2030 the value of economic resources extracted from the oceans is expected to double with many industries in the marine sector expected to contribute to an estimate of $ 100 billion each year to the overall Australian economy. However, the marine environment is subject to many varied environmental pressures which are mostly driven by the increasing economic activities involving the use of ocean resources, climate, and human-driven environmental changes (Perrings, p. 283, 2016). Such activities causing environmental pressure include the increase of commercial fishing as well as the oil and gas exploration.

Environmental Pressures Facing the Australian Marine Environment

However, these pressures have been reported to decrease due to economic pressures and management practices and frameworks which have improved and put in place to ensure future sustainability and environmental protection. The recent improvements in marine environment management have also been attributed to the effective use of the traditional marine resources and recreational fishing. But the Australian marine environment has continued to experience increasing pressure associated with climate change as well as the marine debris due to limited management practices related to climate impact assessments and debris management initiatives (Marshall & Hendon, p. 582, 2014).

 The western and eastern waters of Australia has been reported to experience great impacts of climate change resulting in the increased spread of coral breaching, lots of kelp forests, invertebrate mortalities as well as habitat destruction.  Therefore it is considerably or sufficiently to say that the current outlook of Australian marine environment to be mixed or neutral given the current pressures as well as the management practices and frameworks which have been established to mitigate the pressures. However many management plans related to the management of Australia marine environments have been found to currently not supporting the building resilience of marine ecosystems. This calls therefore for the development of effective mechanisms aimed at improving the state of the marine environment.

The Australian marine environment has since past been experiencing some environmental pressures as well as the current climatic and human-oriented pressures. It has therefore been experiencing a broad range of environmental pressures that have affected the habitat and species as well as the environmental health. However, these pressures and their impacts have been found to affect largely the regions of the East and Southwest as well as the north and the North West regions which have been found to be near pristine condition (Kraska, p. 465, 2014). Waste disposal on the oceans had been the worst pressure affecting the Australian marine environment however it has been overtaken by exploitation of the ocean’s resources which are extracted from the marine environment or the oceans. The present day to day pressures on the Australian marine environment has been found to be interacting with some of the past environmental activities. And most of the current pressures on the marine environment have been attributed to the population growth and the increased economic activities.

These pressures can be categorized through a range of activities including dumping wastes, pesticides and herbicides which bring harmful toxic to the oceans and hence affecting the lives of the ocean species. There is also a report on increased marine debris and especially on the east and south-east of the Australia ocean waters. The increase of the country’s economic activities, on the other hand, has led to the search for new energy resources and therefore the generation of marine renewable energy has also increased pressure on Australia Marine environment as well as the impact resulting from the exploration and production of marine oil gas (Townsend, p. 7, 2017). The pressure has also been attributed to the continued use of traditional marine resources and the continued use of the marine resources for commercial and recreational fishing activities. The pressures have also resulted from climate change as mentioned above as well as by climate and system variability. It is therefore important for the management of the Australia marine environment to ensure that these pressures are handled for them to realize the sustainable marine environment in future.

The Risks to the Australian Marine Environment

Australians believe that life began in their oceans and therefore the management and conservation of the marine environment is important and translates equally to the conservation of human life on earth. The marine environment in Australia has experienced a number of risks associated with the various pressures resulting from climate change and economic activities. It is also believed that as the ecosystems decline meeting the needs of a growing human population will become an even greater challenge. The marine environment is, therefore, facing great risks of overfishing, global warming, and industrial pollution. Overfishing has been increased due to the continued use of traditional fishing methods and lack of effective management practices and even lack of effective policies to control the fishing practices. The increased global warming has greatly contributed to climate change in the coastal areas of Australia which have adversely affected the economic activities of the company (Pendred et al., p. 100, 2016). The industrial pollution and waste disposal have increased due to the increased marine industries and their increased activities which have led to the deterioration of the marine environment and therefore affecting the life of the marine species as well as of the community living around the place.

The Great Barrier Reef in the Australian south oceans is reported to be at risk of coral bleaching and therefore has led to a reduction of economic activities. The coral triangle, as well as its people, has also been reported to be at risk of overfishing activities and unsustainable resource use. Such practices have led to the mismanagement of natural resources which are relied upon by the majority of the people living around as their source of livelihoods (Brooks, p. 480, 2014). The Antarctic region has also been facing consequences of tackling dangerous climate change which has threatened this wilderness. The government of Australia, as well as other environmental management agencies, has been working towards the implementation of effective environmental strategies. These management strategies have been found helpful in reducing the impact of the pressures and the risks posed to the marine environment (Leslie et al., p. 78, 2015). Therefore the current management practices in Australia have greatly helped in improving the state of Australian marine environment. Both the state and the federal governments have put in place economic pressures and management frameworks to ensure the future sustainability and environmental protection.

The Australian marine environment is headed to a brighter future as evidenced by the existing management practices. The greatest goal of the Australian environmental agencies is to create sustainable environmental management practices. To achieve this government has set forth an Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS). This institute is, therefore, working towards the generation and transfer of knowledge aimed at supporting the protection and sustainable use of marine environments (Leslie et al., p. 480, 2015). The institute aims to achieve this through increased innovation and conducting world-class research which will help in creating a better understanding of the challenges facing the marine environment. The institute generates new knowledge that directly contributes to national priorities and to a better understanding of issues facing global marine environments.

Conservation and Management of the Australian Marine Environment

Through improved research, the institute aims at an understanding of tropical marine ecosystems and processes. Such knowledge will contribute to the great preparedness of the management teams to be prepared to tackle the challenges resulting from ecosystems. The research has also contributed to the understanding of the responses of tropical marine systems to respond to global environmental changes. Such initiatives, therefore, have in improving the management practices as well as developing effective strategies to help in marine conservation and environmental management (Walton et al., p. 117, 2014). The institute has also led to the development of supportive and sustainable development tropical marine base. The institute has helped in promoting partnerships as well as collaborations with other environmental agencies such as commonwealth. The government has also increased their investments in developing environmental management strategies.Australia

The Australian federal and state governments have put in place various mechanisms aimed at improving the state of the marine environments. One of the strategies or mechanisms put in place is to strengthen the effectiveness of environmental policies. Most of the pressures affecting the industry have been associated due to lack of effective policies governing the management of marine environment (Davey & Gillespie, p. 138, 2014). To achieve this government as well as other environmental agencies have adopted a partnership approach aimed at promoting substantial efforts to enhance the monitoring and evaluation of environmental management policies and practices. This can also be achieved by setting environmental standards, expanding the use of economic instruments and integrating these instruments into the general partnership approach.

Another mechanism developed is aimed at integrating environmental concerns into economic decisions. This is because most economic practices have contributed to the degradation of the Australian marine environment. Prioritizing economic goals at the expense of environment has led to the increased pressure on the marine environment (Bhat et al., p. 55, 2014). Increase in economic production activities improves the economy or the GDP of the nation while on the other hand; it leads to increased environmental degradation. The integration of environmental concerns into economic decisions will help in creating a balance between economic goals and sustainable environmental goals.

The other mechanisms developed to provide solutions to marine environmental management are fostering sustainable development.  This has been done through the provision of funds aimed at promoting environment protection such as those made available through the heritage trust and activities funds aimed at integrating environmental considerations into state or federal policies. Such policies will, therefore, contribute to improved marine environmental protection. Lastly is the integration of environmental concerns in the mining industry and promoting international environmental cooperation (Abad Castelos, p. 227, 2014). The mining industry has really contributed to the deterioration of the marine environment and its management will significantly lead to improved and sustainable environmental practices. International cooperation has helped in the promotion of sustainable environmental practices providing international environmental standards which can be used as benchmarks for environmental management practices. It also provides useful information and innovation solutions which can be used to bring more changes to the industry.

The above mechanisms and practices, as well as strategies, have greatly contributed to improved management of the marine environment in Australia.  According to the Australian report on the state of the marine environment, it outlined several improvements which have been achieved so far and have led to substantial environmental conservation changes. There wastes disposal into the Australian oceans have been reported to reduce compared to the rates reported in 2011 (Korpela, p. 192, 2016). The management practices have also improved leading to the increase in revenue collection resulting from improved fishing activities as compared to the previous state where overfishing was becoming a threat. Management practices have contributed to the growth of sustainable management practices in the industry. The bleaching of the coral barrier reefs in the south-east of the oceans has also reduced due to effective management practices and government efforts in integrating the mining activities which largely contributed to the degradation of the reefs (Maron et al., p. 402, 2015). However, more efforts are still required as well as increased international cooperation in order to achieve the long-term goals of attaining sustainable environmental marine practices.

Conclusion

Environmental management practices have therefore become an important responsibility of any business or any sector in achieving its long-term goals and developments. The Australian marine environment contributes greatly to the growth of the country’s economy. The marine sector supports the livelihood of many Australian populations and the communities living near the coastal areas. The promotion of sustainable marine environments is the responsibility of all the stakeholders involved in the industry. The development of effective management practices is important in improving the current state of the marine environment and calls for partnerships as well as international cooperation in improving the state of marine environment in Australia.

Abad Castelos, M 2014, ‘Marine Renewable Energies: Opportunities, Law, and Management’, Ocean Development & International Law, vol. 45, no. 2, pp. 221-237. Available from: 10.1080/00908320.2014.898926. [23 October 2017]

Bateman, S, & White, M 2015, ‘Compulsory Pilotage in the Torres Strait: Overcoming Unacceptable Risks to a Sensitive Marine Environment’, Ocean Development & International Law, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 184-203. Available from: 10.1080/00908320902864797. [23 October 2017]

Bhat, M, Bhatta, R, &Shumais, M 2014, ‘Sustainable funding policies for environmental protection: the case of Maldivian atolls’, Environmental Economics & Policy Studies, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 45-67. Available from: 10.1007/s10018-013-0070-x. [23 October 2017]

Brooks, MR 2014, ‘The Changing Regulation of Coastal Shipping in Australia’, Ocean Development & International Law, vol. 45, no. 1, pp. 67-83. Available from: 10.1080/00908320.2014.867191. [23 October 2017].

Davey, M, & Gillespie, J 2014, ‘The Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Marine Protected Area: valuing local perspectives in environmental protection’, Australian Geographer, vol. 45, no. 2, pp. 131-145. Available from: 10.1080/00049182.2014.899025. [23 October 2017]

Deacon, RT, & Parker, DP 2015, ‘Encumbering harvest rights to protect marine environments: a model of marine conservation easements’, Australian Journal of Agricultural & Resource Economics, vol. 53, no. 1, pp. 37-58. Available from: 10.1111/j.1467-8489.2007.00429.x. [23 October 2017].

Green, AL, Fernandes, L, Almany, G, Abesamis, R, McLeod, E, Aliño, PM, White, AT, Salm, R, Tanzer, J, &Pressey, RL 2014, ‘Designing Marine Reserves for Fisheries Management, Biodiversity Conservation, and Climate Change Adaptation’, Coastal Management, vol. 42, no. 2, pp. 143-159. Available from: 10.1080/08920753.2014.877763. [23 October 2017]

Haward, M, & Vince, J 2014, ‘Australian Ocean Governance—Initiatives and Challenges’, Coastal Management, vol. 37, no. 1, pp. 1-16. Available from: 10.1080/08920750802475368. [23 October 2017].

Kopela, S 2016, ‘Port-State Jurisdiction, Extraterritoriality, and the Protection of Global Commons’, Ocean Development & International Law, vol. 47, no. 2, pp. 89-130. Available from: 10.1080/00908320.2016.1159083. [23 October 2017]

Kraska, J 2014, ‘Governance of Ice-Covered Areas: Rule Construction in the Arctic Ocean’, Ocean Development & International Law, vol. 45, no. 3, pp. 260-271. Available from: 10.1080/00908320.2014.929462. [23 October 2017].

Leslie, H, Sievanen, L, Crawford, TG, Gruby, R, Villanueva-Aznar, HC, & Campbell, LM 2015, ‘Learning from Ecosystem-Based Management in Practice’, Coastal Management, vol. 43, no. 5, pp. 471-497. Available from: 10.1080/08920753.2015.1051424. [23 October 2017]

Leslie, H, Sievanen, L, Crawford, TG, Gruby, R, Villanueva-Aznar, HC, & Campbell, LM 2015, ‘Learning from Ecosystem-Based Management in Practice’, Coastal Management, vol. 43, no. 5, pp. 471-497. Available from: 10.1080/08920753.2015.1051424. [23 October 2017]

Maron, M, Gordon, A, Mackey, BG, Possingham, HP, & Watson, JM 2015, ‘Conservation: Stop misuse of biodiversity offsets’, Nature, vol. 523, no. 7561, pp. 401-403. Available from: 10.1038/523401a. [23 October 2017]

Marshall, A, & Hendon, H 2014, ‘Impacts of the MJO in the Indian Ocean and on the Western Australian coast’, Climate Dynamics, vol. 42, no. 3/4, pp. 579-595. Available from: 10.1007/s00382-012-1643-2. [23 October 2017]

Pendred, S, Fischer, A, & Fischer, S 2016, ‘Improved Management Effectiveness of a Marine Protected Area through Prioritizing Performance Indicators’, Coastal Management, vol. 44, no. 2, pp. 93-115. Available from: 10.1080/08920753.2016.1135272. [23 October 2017

 Perrings, C 2016, ‘The economics of the marine environment: A Review’, Environmental Economics & Policy Studies, vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 277-301. Available from: 10.1007/s10018-016-0149-2. [23 October 2017].

Speed, L 2017, ‘Fishing the waters of life: Zane Grey’s White Death , exploitation film and the Great Barrier Reef’, Studies in Australasian Cinema, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 5-17. Available from: 10.1080/17503175.2017.1308906. [23 October 2017]

Townsend, K 2017, ‘Human Impacts On The Marine Environment Of Queensland’, Geodate, vol. 30, no. 4, pp. 3-8

Walton, A, White, AT, Tighe, S, Aliño, PM, Laroya, L, Dermawan, A, Kasasiah, A, Hamid, SA, Vave-Karamui, A, Genia, V, De Jesus Martins, L, & Green, AL 2014, ‘Establishing a Functional Region-Wide Coral Triangle Marine Protected Area System’, Coastal Management, vol. 42, no. 2, pp. 107-127. Available from: 10.1080/08920753.2014.877765. [23 October 2017]