Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2018C00019:front:0:p2
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2018C00019
Segment Type: other
Provision Reference: 
Character Range: 2748–5736

threatened species and ecological communities.
  The legislative and planning framework protecting these significant values and managing use within the Planning Area sits primarily in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (the Act). This Plan regulates some matters mentioned in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Zoning Plan 2003 (the Zoning Plan), but does not otherwise affect the Zoning Plan.
  The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (the Authority) has prepared the Whitsundays Plan of Management 1998 (the Plan) to protect and conserve the values of the Whitsunday Planning Area (the Planning Area) while allowing for a range of experiences and reasonable opportunities for access and use. The Planning Area includes the marine area around the Whitsunday Island Group and the offshore Hardy Reef Unit within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. The Planning Area is geographically described in Schedule 1.
  Traditional Owners have recognised the outstanding value of the Great Barrier Reef since it formed 8,000 to 12,000 years ago. Across the Planning Area, Traditional Owners maintain their connection to land and sea country including the coast on the adjacent mainland, island areas, the Great Barrier Reef and its natural resources. The recorded sightings of Traditional Owners by James Cook in 1770 and the distinct Aboriginal rock art near Nara Inlet enrich Australia's history and heritage for this unique region.
  The Planning Area makes up 1% of the total area of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. Recognised as a significant presentation area for Great Barrier Reef world heritage values, it is a showpiece tourism destination for Queensland. Receiving more than 40% of all visitors who travel to the Great Barrier Reef, over 1,000,000 tourists visited the Planning Area in 2016.
  Visitors are attracted by the spectacular scenery of the numerous islands (most of which are State‑managed national parks), fringing inshore reefs and offshore reefs. The reefs and islands support a diverse range of animal and plant life. These include protected species such as humpback whales, marine turtles, beach stone‑curlews and Proserpine rock‑wallabies. The Planning Area and its adjacent islands hold pre‑recorded history of traditional use by Traditional Owners as well as sites of importance in the history of European presence, including several historically significant shipwrecks.
  Tourism and recreation are the major uses of the Planning Area. The Whitsundays tourism industry supports a broad range of operation types with most visitors travelling on crewed vessels including day trips and overnight sailing operations. Other tourism use includes bareboats (uncrewed), scenic aircraft flights and cruise ships. The area is very popular for recreational sailing, snorkelling, fishing and accessing adjacent islands. An indication of its popularity is the continuing growth in recreational vessel registrations for the adjacent coastal communities. The area