__NOTOC__ Investigator Marine Park is 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 conse ...

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 in the state's coastal waters in its west adjoining the west coast of

Eyre Peninsula The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north. Originally called Eyre’s Peninsula, it was named af ...

and islands in the

Investigator Group The Investigator Group is an archipelago in South Australia that consists of Flinders Island and five island groups located off the western coast of the Eyre Peninsula. It is named after by her commander, Matthew Flinders when he explore ...

respectively to the south-east and south-west of the town of Elliston. The marine park was established on 29 January 2009 by proclamation under the ''Marine Parks Act 2007''. The Investigator Marine Park consists of four parts which extend from ‘median high water’ to the edge of coastal waters. The first part extends along the coastland of Eyre Peninsula from Point Drummond in the south-east to just south of Elliston in the north-west including Cap Island, the second part surrounding

Flinders Island Flinders Island, the largest island in the Furneaux Group, is a island in the Bass Strait, northeast of the island of Tasmania. Flinders Island was the place where the last remnants of aboriginal Tasmanian population were exiled by the colo ...

and the Topgallant Islands and the third and fourth parts respectively surrounding the Ward Islands and the

Pearson Isles Pearson Isles (also called the Pearson Islands, Pearson Group and Pearson Archipelago) is an island group located in the Australian state of South Australia about to west south-west of Cape Finniss on the west coast of Eyre Peninsula wit ...

. The marine park is divided into zones to managing the marine environment to ensure varying degrees of “protection for habitats and biodiversity” and varying levels of “ecologically sustainable development and use” as follows: #Three “sanctuary zones” which adjoin the coastline near Sheringa and surround the Topgallant Islands and Pearson Isles, and where “the removal or harm of plants, animals or marine products” is prohibited, #Six “habitat protection zones” of which three are located in the part of the marine park adjoining the coastline with the remaining three zones occupying the remainder of the parts which surround islands in the Investigator Group, and where “activities and uses that do not harm habitats or the functioning of ecosystems” are only permitted, #Three “general managed use zones” which are located in the part of the marine park adjoining the coastline and where “ecologically sustainable development and use” is allowed. As of 2016, the marine park has been classified under International Union for Conservation of Nature system of protected area categories with the “sanctuary zones” being

IUCN Category II IUCN protected area categories, or IUCN protected area management categories, are categories used to classify protected areas in a system developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The enlisting of such areas is part ...

, the “habitat protection zones” being

IUCN Category IV IUCN protected area categories, or IUCN protected area management categories, are categories used to classify protected areas in a system developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The enlisting of such areas is par ...

and the “general managed use zones” being IUCN Category VI.

References

External links

Investigator Marine Park webpageInvestigator Marine Park webpage on the Protected Planet website
{{Marine protected areas of South Australia, state=collapsed Marine parks of South Australia IUCN Category II IUCN Category IV IUCN Category VI Protected areas established in 2009 2009 establishments in Australia Great Australian Bight

See also

References

External links