__NOTOC__ Great Australian Bight Marine Park Whale Sanctuary was a

marine protected area Marine protected areas (MPA) are protected areas of seas, oceans, estuaries or in the US, the Great Lakes. These marine areas can come in many forms ranging from wildlife refuges to research facilities. MPAs restrict human activity for a conserv ...

in the Australian state of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

located immediately off the coastline of the

Great Australian Bight The Great Australian Bight is a large oceanic bight, or open bay, off the central and western portions of the southern coastline of mainland Australia. Extent Two definitions of the extent are in use – one used by the International Hydrog ...

in waters about west-northwest of the state capital of

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

. It extended from 130 degrees 45.5 minutes east at its western boundary to 131 degrees 30 minutes east at its eastern boundary, and from the coastline for a distance of . It was bounded by the

Great Australian Bight Marine National Park Great Australian Bight Marine National Park is a marine protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located west of the state capital of Adelaide city centre, Adelaide. It consists of two sections occupying the ocean immediatel ...

to its immediate west and east and its extent included the bay known as the Head of Bight. It was also part of the group of marine protected areas which are located together in waters within Australian and South Australian jurisdictions within the

and which is collectively known as the

Great Australian Bight Marine Park Great Australian Bight Marine Park is the name given to a group of marine protected areas which are located together within both Australian and South Australian jurisdictions in the Great Australian Bight and which has been in use as recently as ...

. Since late 2012, both the whale sanctuary and the national park have also been within the boundaries of the

Far West Coast Marine Park Far West Coast Marine Park is a marine park in South Australia. The park is within state waters, about from the state capital of Adelaide. The land around Far West Coast Marine Park is very much flat, bordered by the Nullarbor Plain to the north ...

. The whale sanctuary was originally proclaimed as a marine park under the ''Fisheries Act 1982 (SA)'' by the

South Australian Government The Government of South Australia, also referred to as the South Australian Government, SA Government or more formally, His Majesty’s Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of South Australia. It is modelled o ...

on 22 June 1995 to protect waters used by

Southern right whale The southern right whale (''Eubalaena australis'') is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena''. Southern right whales inhabit oceans south of the Equator, between the latitudes of 20 ...

s for breeding and calving. It was re-classified as an

aquatic reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

after the repeal of the ''Fisheries Act 1982'' by the ''Fisheries Management Act 2007 (SA)'' in 2007. It was abolished on 20 October 2016. The whale sanctuary was classified as an

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

Category Ia protected area.

References

{{Marine protected areas of South Australia, state=collapsed Aquatic reserves of South Australia Protected areas established in 1995 Protected areas disestablished in 2016 1995 establishments in Australia 2016 disestablishments in Australia Former protected areas of South Australia Great Australian Bight Whale sanctuaries

See also

References