I've been trying to access the dpi web page to find out more about the new marine park. Half the links a broken (inlcuding the site map) and there is no information available.

Its working now.

http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/parks_and_forests/marine_parks/great_sandy_marine_park/#maps

proposed zones:
http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/media/parks_and_forests/marine_parks/Map3

Note the large yellow zone on the inside of Fraser from Tincan north (appears as a different colour because of hashing). No commercial trawling or netting. There are only two small green zones stopping shore based rec fishing.

Fishing is banned in the green and brown zones. In addition, no commercial netting or trawling in the yellow zones and no trawling in the dark blue zones. Trolling is allowed in the brown 'buffer' zones (eg around the green zone on wolf rock).

Those morons on ausfish have five pages of 'discussion' on this so far. Five pages of bagging the government and anyone who gets off there arse and does something. No discussion of the actual proposal. No links to the site or the maps. No mention of the different zone types or where they are placed. No mention of the science behind it or how they would do it differently. The site has turned into a joke.

From a sunfish media release (don't know if any media actually published it )

Mr David Bateman Executive Officer Sunfish Queensland said that this follows a pattern of closures by the State Government to shut down & restrict access for the 600,000 local & tourist families that fish our inshore waters . This is just another “nail in the coffin” & anglers are now wondering just who is managing fisheries in Queensland – the EPA or Fisheries.

The proposal has been a long time coming & has had major input over a term of 3 Ministers & yet we end up with a mediocre proposal which lacks vision & foresight, does not address community issues & still allows environmentally destructive trawling & netting within the fragile Straits area Mr Bateman said.



Isn't trawling and netting banned in the massive yellow zone over the straights?

http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/publications?id=1507
page 48, Appendix 4

Purpose of Great Sandy Straight Area

The purpose of the Great Sandy Straight Area is to maintain existing legal use rights of current fishers (being crabbing, netting and beam trawling), and maintain overall commercial fishing effort at existing levels in the future.