Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2025L00071:body:0:p5
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2025L00071
Segment Type: other
Provision Reference: 
Character Range: 15085–18185

with the Commonwealth. Local government functions and services are provided by the Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands.
The Director of National Parks is required to prepare management plans for Australian marine parks. In recognition of the importance of the marine environment, Commonwealth marine areas, including marine park areas, are listed as matters of national environmental significance under the EPBC Act.
This plan complements a range of Commonwealth, state and territory laws, as well as international conventions and agreements that relate to protection of the marine environment (Schedule 1). Some of the ways in which the Australian Government protects the marine environment through national environmental law are management plans for Australian marine parks; recovery plans for threatened species; and threat abatement plans for key threats, such as invasive species and marine debris.
Effective management of Cocos (Keeling) Islands Marine Park will be achieved by working in partnership with local communities, marine park users and other government agencies. In particular:
      * a locally based Community Advisory Committee will be established to advise on the implementation of this plan (Section 3.3 (Community advisory committee))
      * the Director will build on existing relationships with the Shire of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, research institutions and government agencies with relevant responsibilities in IOT waters, including DITRDCA, the Western Australian Department of Water and Environment Regulation, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, the Department of Defence, Australian Border Force and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

      2.0 Cocos (Keeling) Islands Marine Park
Image: 'Above and Below' Cocos (Keeling) Islands (Mitch McNear)

    2.1           About Cocos (Keeling) Islands Marine Park
Cocos (Keeling) Islands Marine Park covers 467,054 km2 of the Indian Ocean surrounding Cocos (Keeling) Islands  nearly the entirety of Australia's waters around this remote external territory. It protects a diversity of pelagic and seafloor features, with water depths from 0 m to over 6,000 m. The marine park is assigned 2 International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) categories across 4 zones: a large 'green' National Park Zone (IUCN II) covering the entirety of the islands' offshore waters, 2 small green zones protecting important inshore habitats, and a 'yellow' Habitat Protection Zone (Cocos (Keeling) Islands) (IUCN IV) covering most of the islands' inshore waters. Green zoning provides a high level of protection – for example, mining and fishing are not allowed. Yellow zoning also provides significant protection, while allowing locally important activities like recreational fishing to continue. The active port area over the northern half of the southern atoll lagoon and the seawalled shorelines of Home Island and West Island were not incorporated into the marine park, ensuring certainty for activities and infrastructure critical for community services and the operation of the islands, such as the