National Strategies and Policies

• National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development
• Inter-Governmental Agreement on the Environment
• Commonwealth Coastal Policy
• National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity
• Australia's Oceans Policy
• Regional Marine Planning
• Natural Heritage Trust
• Extension of the Natural Heritage Trust
• Marine Protected Areas
• National Wetlands Program
• Framework for Marine and Estuarine Water Quality Protection
• Coastal Catchments Initiative
• Framework for a National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management
• Integrated Oceans Management
• Further Information

South Australia's coastal, estuarine and marine programs are influenced by a number of national strategies and policies.

National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development

The strategy of ecologically sustainable development (ESD) emerged as part of Australia's response to the commitment for sustainable development made through the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) and the United Nations Conference on the Environment and Development (UNCED).

The National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development was released in 1992. It established the following principles:

• Decision-making processes should effectively integrate both long- and short-term economic, environmental, social and equity considerations.
• Where there are threats of serious or irreversible environmental damage, lack of full scientific certainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation.
• The global dimension of environmental impact of actions and policies should be recognised and considered.
• The need to develop a strong, growing and diversified economy that can enhance the capacity for environmental protection should be recognised.
• The need to maintain and enhance international competitiveness in an environmentally sound manner should be recognised.
• Cost-effective and flexible policy instruments should be adopted, such as improved valuation, pricing and incentive mechanisms.
• Decisions and actions should provide for broad community involvement on issues that affect them.

Inter-Governmental Agreement on the Environment

The Inter-Governmental Agreement on the Environment (IGAE) came into effect in 1992. It provided the Australian, State and Territory Governments with the following principles of environmental management:

• International competitiveness should be maintained and enhanced in an environmentally sound manner, with a commitment to the principles of ecologically sustainable development (ESD).
• Environmental considerations should be integrated into all government decision-making, and this should include the proper and cost-effective examination of matters that significantly affect the environment.
• Conservation of biological diversity and ecological integrity should be fundamental considerations in decision-making.
• The precautionary approach should be applied in decision-making.
• Inter-generational equity should be provided through ensuring that the health, diversity and productivity of the environment is maintained or enhanced.
• There should be improved valuation, pricing and incentive mechanisms to achieve environmental goals.

Commonwealth Coastal Policy

The Commonwealth Coastal Policy, which was agreed inter-governmentally in 1995, provided Australian, State and Territory Governments with the following principles for the management of coastal resources:

• The coastal zone needs to be managed within a framework of multiple-use management.
• The impact of decisions on economic, environmental, social and cultural values should be identified and determined before decisions are made, taking account of long-term and cumulative impacts.
• A precautionary approach should be used in decision-making.
• The marine environment should be monitored to ensure assessments are accurate, and monitoring should trigger further management actions if impacts differ significantly from those predicted.
• A user-pays principle should be applied to access and development costs, including the equitable application of economic instruments and the need for special consideration of 'existence value' and disadvantaged groups.
• Natural physical processes, biological diversity and biological processes should be safeguarded and maintained.

For more information visit the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage website: http://www.deh.gov.au/coasts/publications/coastal-policy/index.html.

National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity

The National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity was agreed to by the Australian, State and Territory governments in 1996. It provided goals, principles and objectives consistent with the international Convention on Biological Diversity 1992. It emphasised a multiple-use management approach through the development of integrated national policies on a bioregional basis, with improved mechanisms for coordinating and integrating the different levels of government, industry and the community.

The biodiversity strategy specifically identified the need to establish a comprehensive, representative and ecologically viable system of marine protected areas, with protected areas being classified by the World Conservation Union (IUCN) as ranging from strict nature reserves through to areas managed mainly for sustainable use.

Australia's Oceans Policy

Australia's Oceans Policy was released by the Australian Government in December 1998, with the theme, 'Healthy oceans: cared for, understood and used wisely for the benefit of all, now and in the future'. It has set in place the framework for integrated and ecosystem-based planning and management for all of Australia's marine jurisdictions.

State and Territory Governments have played an important part in ensuring the effective implementation of Australia's Oceans Policy. Specific actions on which commitments have been made include:

• commencement of regional marine planning
• improved understanding of the marine environment, including environmental baseline surveys and sustainability indicators, monitoring and improved assessment of the impacts of commercial and recreational activities - all targeted to support regional marine plans
• accelerated development and improved management of marine protected areas
• support for national mandatory standards for marine and estuarine water quality
• support for the development of a single national ballast water management system
• trials to treat acid sulfate soil problem areas.

For further information visit the National Oceans Office website: http://www.oceans.gov.au/the_oceans_policy_overview.jsp.

Regional Marine Planning

At the core of Australia's Oceans Policy is the development of regional marine plans, based on large marine ecosystems, which will integrate sectoral commercial interests and conservation requirements. In developing regional marine plans, the Australian Government has sought the participation of relevant States and Territories, to ensure, as far as possible, the integration of planning and management across State and Commonwealth waters.

The objectives of regional marine planning are:

• to ensure continuing marine ecosystem health
• to safeguard marine biological diversity
• to promote diverse, strong and sustainable marine industries
• to provide increased certainty and long-term security for all marine users
• to ensure the establishment of a representative system of marine protected areas.

The first Commonwealth regional marine plan developed under Australia's Oceans Policy is the South-east Regional Marine Plan, which was released on 21 May 2004.

For more information visit the National Oceans Office website: http://www.oceans.gov.au/regional_marine_plan_overview.jsp.

Natural Heritage Trust

The Natural Heritage Trust (NHT) was set up by the Australian Government to help restore and conserve Australia's environment and natural resources.

The first phase of the Natural Heritage Trust (NHT1) lasted from 1996-97 to 2001-02. A major development relating to coast and marine management during this phase was the Coasts and Clean Seas initiative. Coasts and Clean Seas consisted of a number of programs including Coastcare, the Clean Seas Program and the Marine Species Protection Program.

For more information about the programs of the first phase of the Natural Heritage Trust visit the NHT website: http://www.nht.gov.au/nht1/index.html.

Extension of the Natural Heritage Trust

In the May 2001 Budget the Australian Government extended the funding for the Natural Heritage Trust to 2006-07. In the 2004 Federal Budget, funding for the Natural Heritage Trust was extended to 2007-08. As part of this extension, the Government consolidated the twenty-three NHT1 programs to four NHT2 programs - Landcare, Bushcare, Rivercare and Coastcare.

• Coastcare invests in activities that contribute to protecting coastal catchments, ecosystems and the marine environment.
• Landcare invests in activities that contribute to reversing land degradation and promoting sustainable agriculture.
• Bushcare invests in activities that contribute to conserving and restoring habitat for the native flora and fauna which underpin the health of the landscape.
• Rivercare invests in activities that contribute to improved water quality and environmental conditions in river systems and wetlands.

The four programs do not represent discrete funding sources. Natural Heritage Trust investment is made through regional natural resources management plans and investment strategies, and the Australian Government Envirofund.

For more information about the extension of the Natural Heritage Trust visit the NHT website: http://www.nht.gov.au/extension.html.

For information about the Australian Government Envirofund visit the NHT website: http://www.nht.gov.au/envirofund/index.html.

For information about natural resources management plans and investment strategies in South Australia, visit the Natural Resources Management section of the Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation website: http://www.nrm.sa.gov.au/nrm/index.html.

Marine Protected Areas

The Commonwealth Marine Protected Areas Program helps to coordinate the establishment of the National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas (NRSMPA) across Australia's Commonwealth, State and Territory jurisdictions.

The primary goal of the NRSMPA is to establish and manage a comprehensive, adequate and representative system of marine protected areas to contribute to the long-term ecological viability of marine and estuarine systems, to maintain ecological processes and systems, and to protect Australia's biological diversity at all levels.

Each jurisdiction has its own laws and processes for establishing and managing marine protected areas. The Commonwealth, States and Northern Territory have developed independent processes for establishing representative systems of marine protected areas in the marine areas for which they are responsible.

For more information about the Commonwealth Marine Protected Areas Program visit the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage website: http://www.deh.gov.au/coasts/mpa/index.html.

For information about the South Australian Marine Protected Areas Program see Marine Protected Areas.

National Wetlands Program

The National Wetlands Program was funded through the first phase of the Natural Heritage Trust. It promoted the conservation, repair and wise use of wetlands and the conservation of migratory waterbirds across Australia. For more information visit the Natural Heritage Trust website: http://www.nht.gov.au/nht1/programs/nwp/.

The extension of the Natural Heritage Trust will fund activities that meet Australia's obligations under international agreements such as the Convention on Wetlands, the Convention on Migratory Species, and the Japan-Australia and China-Australia Migratory Bird Agreements (JAMBA and CAMBA). For more information visit the Australian Government Department of environment and Heritage website: http://www.deh.gov.au/water/wetlands/index.html.

The priorities of the National Wetlands Program were drawn from the Wetlands Policy of the Commonwealth Government of Australia, which was published in 1997. The Wetlands Policy provided strategies to ensure that the activities of the Commonwealth Government promoted the conservation, ecologically sustainable use and enhancement, where possible, of wetlands functions. The policy formed an essential platform for the development of a national framework of wetland policies and strategies. An Implementation Plan for the Commonwealth Wetlands Policy was developed in 1999 to ensure actions were addressed in an effective manner and within appropriate timeframes. For more information visit the Australian Government Department of Environment and Heritage website: http://www.deh.gov.au/water/wetlands/publications/policy.html.

Framework for Marine and Estuarine Water Quality Protection

The Framework for Marine and Estuarine Water Quality Protection was produced in 2002 as a nationally consistent approach to protecting the marine environment from the effects of land based pollution, therefore contributing to meeting Australia's obligations under the Global Program of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-Based Activities (GPA).

For more information visit the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage website: http://www.deh.gov.au/coasts/pollution/cci/framework/index.html.

Coastal Catchments Initiative

The Coastal Catchments Initiative, which began in 2002, aims to achieve target reductions in pollutant discharges to coastal water quality hotspots. This will be through the development and implementation of water quality improvement plans, prepared in accordance with the Framework for Marine and Estuarine Water Quality Protection .

For more information visit the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage website: http://www.deh.gov.au/coasts/pollution/cci/index.html.

Framework for a National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management

The State of the Environment Report (2001) noted that while there have been continued efforts to improve coastal management, coastal zone condition has not been significantly improving and against a number of criteria continues to decline. Pressures on coastal resources are increasing at a rate exceeding the time necessary for damaged environments to stabilise and be repaired.

The Framework for a National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management has been developed to encourage more active rehabilitation, protection and improvement of coastal zone assets through proactive planning and management. The framework was endorsed by the Natural Resources Management Ministerial Council in October 2003, and will integrate with the Regional Marine Planning Program to form a comprehensive natural resources management approach under the Natural Heritage Trust.

The next step is the development of an implementation plan that seeks nationally cooperative outcomes within nominated timeframes. These actions will build on existing coastal management initiatives at the Australian, State and Local Government level.

For more information visit the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage website: http://www.deh.gov.au/coasts/publications/framework/index.html.

Integrated Oceans Management

In the context of Australia's Oceans Policy, the National Oceans Office is working cooperatively with State and Territory Governments to develop a national approach to integrated oceans management (IOM). The aim of the IOM initiative is to improve coordination across sectoral management activities - including decision-making and implementation - within and between spheres of government.

The development of the IOM initiative has drawn significantly on the way issues in the South-east Regional Marine Plan were identified and analysed. In the future, an IOM approach will be used to analyse issues and develop strategies for priorities identified during the scoping phase of regional marine plans.

IOM is also a way of facilitating better coastal management. The National Oceans Office will be seeking to ensure effective linkages exist between the IOM process and integrated coastal zone management. The two processes will become more strongly linked over time with possible integration of coast and oceans management activities.

Further Information

For further information about the coastal and marine legislation, policies and programs that are developed and implemented by the Australian Government, visit the Coasts and Oceans website: http://www.deh.gov.au/coasts/.

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