2021 State of the Environment Report Marine Chapter – Expert Assessment – Management Effectiveness – Marine pollution

The Marine chapter of the 2021 State of the Environment (SoE) report incorporates multiple expert templates developed from streams of marine data. This metadata record describes the Expert Assessment "Effectiveness of Management – Marine pollution". 
<strong><em>A PDF of the full Expert Assessment, including figures and tables (where provided) is downloadable in the "On-line Resources" section of this record as "EXPERT ASSESSMENT 2021 - Effectiveness of Management – Marine Pollution"</em></strong>



DESCRIPTION OF THE APPROACH TO MANAGING THE PRESSURE
The most significant pollution threats to Australia’s marine environment include sediment and nutrient inputs jeopardising the ecological integrity of coral reefs, and pollution by hydrocarbons. Australia has legislation at Commonwealth and State/Territory levels which seeks to protect the marine environment from these risks, consistent with international law.
Carbon emissions and resulting ocean acidification can also be considered as an overarching pollution threat, and acidification is a pressure that has a high impact on the Australian marine environment (see acidification pressure assessment). Pollution by plastic debris is a rising concern and is addressed in details as a separate assessment (see marine debris assessment). Currently, however, acidification is not subject to a management framework under Commonwealth or State/Territory law. 
Coral reefs represent a significant resource for Australia. Recent estimates of the economic value generated by the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) exceed $6.4billion a year, supporting 64,000 jobs. Record sea temperatures as a result of global climate change have driven multiple coral bleaching events in recent years. The GBR Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) Reef 2050 Plan aims at improving the overall health and resilience of the GBR. A revised Plan is due for release in 2021. 
Australia’s offshore oil and gas industry is economically valuable, with an estimated gross value of $33b in 2018. However, oil spills have the potential to cause adverse impacts to the marine environment. Existing legislation regulates industry and substantially mitigates risks. Offshore petroleum activities in Commonwealth waters are regulated by the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA), providing leadership and consistency in monitoring, compliance and enforcement.
Australia continues to regulate shipping through the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), ensuring compliance with International Maritime Organization (IMO) standards. AMSA implemented the IMO Global Sulphur Cap in 2020, reducing sulphur content of marine fuel oils. Sulphur emissions from shipping contribute to ocean acidification.  

DATA STREAM(S) USED IN EXPERT ASSESSMENT
Peer-reviewed literature (2015-2020) 
Government and Industry reports (2015-2020)



2021 SOE ASSESSMENT SUMMARY [see attached Expert Assessment for full details]

• Approach •
Assessment grade: Partially effective
Assessment trend: Improving
Confidence grade: Somewhat adequate
Confidence trend: Somewhat adequate
Comparability with 2016: Somewhat comparable
• Outputs •
Assessment grade: Partially effective
Assessment trend: Improving
Confidence grade: Limited
Confidence trend: Improving
Comparability with 2016: Somewhat comparable
• Outcomes •
Assessment grade: Partially effective
Assessment trend: Improving
Confidence grade: Limited
Confidence trend: Limited
Comparability with 2016: Somewhat comparable



CHANGES SINCE 2016 SOE ASSESSMENT
New legislations have been implemented.

Tags: environmental management, expert assessment, marine pollution
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network