Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2016C01080:clause:1_2:p1
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2016C01080
Segment Type: clause
Provision Reference: sch 1 cl 2 (pt 1/4)
Character Range: 118488–121618

2  Description
  Edmonson Point, Wood Bay, Victoria Land, Ross Sea, was proposed as an Antarctic specially protected area by Italy on the grounds that it has outstanding ecological and scientific values which require protection from possible interference that might arise from unregulated access. The Area includes ice‑free ground and a small area of adjacent sea at the foot of the eastern slopes of Mount Melbourne (2 732 m), which is of limited extent and is the subject of ongoing and long‑term scientific research.
  The terrestrial and freshwater ecosystem at Edmonson Point is one of the most outstanding in northern Victoria Land. An exceptional diversity of freshwater habitats is present, with numerous streams, lakes, ponds and seepage areas exhibiting nutrient conditions ranging from eutrophic to oligotrophic. Such a range of freshwater habitats is rare in Victoria Land. Consequently, these habitats support a high diversity of algal and cyanobacterial species, with over 120 species so far recorded, and the stream network is the most extensive and substantial in northern Victoria Land. The volcanic lithology and substrata, locally nutrient‑enriched by birds, together with a localised abundance of water, provide a habitat for relatively extensive bryophyte development. Plant communities are highly sensitive to changes in the hydrological regime, and environmental gradients produce sharply defined community boundaries. Thus, the range of vegetation is diverse, and includes epilithic lichen communities, some of which are dependent on high nitrogen input from birds, communities associated with late‑lying snow patches, and moss‑dominated communities that favour continually moist or wet habitats. The site represents one of the best examples of the latter community type in Victoria Land. Invertebrates are unusually abundant and extensively distributed for this part of Antarctica.
  The nature and diversity of the terrestrial and freshwater habitats offer outstanding scientific opportunities, especially for studies of biological variation and processes along moisture and nutrient gradients. The site is considered one of the best in Antarctica for studies of algal ecology. These features were among those that led to the selection of Edmonson Point as a key site in the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research's Biological Investigations of Terrestrial Antarctic Systems (BIOTAS) programme in 1995–96. A coordinated multinational research programme, known as BIOTEX‑1, established study sites and made extensive collections of soil, rock, water, snow, guano, bacteria, vegetation (cyanobacterial mats, fungi, algae, lichens, bryophytes) and terrestrial invertebrates.
  The scientific value of Edmonson Point is also considered exceptional for studies on the impact of climate change on terrestrial ecosystems. Its location at approximately the mid‑point in a north‑south latitudinal gradient extending along Victoria Land is complementary to other sites protected for their important terrestrial ecological values, such as Cape Hallett (ASPA No. 106) and Botany Bay, Cape Geology (ASPA No. 154),