Marine park
Encyclopedia
- See also Marine protected areas and Marine reserveMarine reserveFor the United States Marine Corps Reserve see: Marine Forces ReserveA marine reserve is an area of the sea which has legal protection against fishing or development. This is to be distinguished from a marine park, but there is some overlap in usage...
as many areas called parks are wholly or partly marine conservation reserves.
A marine park is a park consisting of an area of sea (or lake) sometimes protected for recreational use, but more often set aside to preserve a specific habitat and ensure the ecosystem is sustained for the organisms that exist there. Most marine parks are designated by governments, and organized like 'watery' national park
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
s.
The largest marine park is the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park protects a large part of Australia's Great Barrier Reef from damaging activities. Fishing and the removal of artefacts or...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, at 350,000 km².
Although for many uses it is sufficient to designate the boundaries of the marine park and to inform commercial fishing boats and other maritime enterprises, some parks have gone to additional effort to make their wonders accessible to visitors. These can range from glass-bottomed boats and small submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s, to windowed undersea tubes.
In New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
a marine reserve
Marine reserve
For the United States Marine Corps Reserve see: Marine Forces ReserveA marine reserve is an area of the sea which has legal protection against fishing or development. This is to be distinguished from a marine park, but there is some overlap in usage...
is an area which has a higher degree of legal protection than marine parks for conservation
Conservation ethic
Conservation is an ethic of resource use, allocation, and protection. Its primary focus is upon maintaining the health of the natural world: its, fisheries, habitats, and biological diversity. Secondary focus is on materials conservation and energy conservation, which are seen as important to...
purposes.
In New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, there are planned marine parks which will stretch along the coastline of the entire state.
Americas
- Allan H. Treman State Marine ParkAllan H. Treman State Marine ParkAllan H. Treman State Marine Park is located in the City of Ithaca in Tompkins County, New York in the USA. The park is at the south end of Cayuga Lake, one of the Finger Lakes....
, United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... - Cabo Pulmo National Park, MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
- Fathom Five National Marine ParkFathom Five National Marine ParkFathom Five National Marine Park is a National Marine Conservation Area in the Georgian Bay part of Lake Huron, Ontario, Canada, that seeks to protect and display shipwrecks and lighthouses, and conserve freshwater ecosystems...
, CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... - Fort Jefferson National Monument, United States
- Half Moon Caye Natural Monument, BelizeBelizeBelize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
- Hol Chan Reserve, BelizeBelizeBelize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
- John Pennekamp Coral Reef State ParkJohn Pennekamp Coral Reef State ParkJohn Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park is a Florida State Park located on Key Largo in Florida, and includes approximately 70 nautical square miles of adjacent Atlantic Ocean waters. It was the first underwater park in the United States. The park was added to the National Register of Historic Places...
, United States - Montego Bay Marine Park, JamaicaJamaicaJamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
- Pedra da Risca do Meio State Marine ParkPedra da Risca do Meio State Marine ParkPedra da Risca do Meio State Marine Park is a marine protected area in the state of Ceará, Brazil....
, Brazil - Saba Marine Park, Saba
- Thunder Bay National Marine SanctuaryThunder Bay National Marine SanctuaryThe Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve is a U.S. National Marine Sanctuary on Thunder Bay, part of Lake Huron, within the U.S. state of Michigan. The sanctuary and underwater preserve protects an estimated 116 historically significant shipwrecks ranging from nineteenth...
, United States
Asia
- Marine National Park, Gulf of KachchhMarine National Park, Gulf of KutchMarine National Park in the Gulf of Kutch is situated on the southern shore of the Gulf of Kachchh in the Jamnagar District of Gujarat state, India. In 1980, an area of 270 km2. from Okha to Jodiya was declared Marine Sanctuary. Later, in 1982, a core area of 110 km2 was declared Marine...
, India - Marine parks in Hong KongMarine parks in Hong KongThe Marine Parks Ordinance protects and conserves the marine environment and a rich collection of aquatic animals and plants, such as corals, sea grasses and dolphins. The ordinance also provides the legal framework for the designation, control and management of marine parks and marine reserves...
:- Cape D'Aguilar Marine ReserveCape D'Aguilar Marine ReserveCape D'Aguilar Marine Reserve, designated in July 1996, is the only Marine Reserve in Hong Kong. It is located at the far south east corner of Hong Kong Island and extends to around 20 hectares of rocky coastline...
- Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park
- Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine ParkSha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine ParkSha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine Park is a marine park located on the west waters of Hong Kong. With an area of 1200 hectares, the Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine Park has lots of different sea life due to the richness of nutrients in the water...
- Tung Ping Chau Marine Park
- Yan Chau Tong Marine Park
- Cape D'Aguilar Marine Reserve
- Indonesia:
- Karimunjawa National ParkKarimunjawa National ParkKarimunjawa National Park, also Karimun Jawa National Park, is a national marine park designated in the Karimunjawa archipelago, Jepara Regency, Central Java, Indonesia. It lies 80 km north west of Jepara, Central Java in the Java Sea. The national park was formally declared as Marine...
, Java - Kepulauan Seribu National Park, Java
- Komodo National ParkKomodo National ParkThe Komodo National Park is a national park in Indonesia located within the Lesser Sunda Islands in the border region between the provinces of East Nusa Tenggara and West Nusa Tenggara. The park includes the three larger islands Komodo, Padar and Rincah, and 26 smaller ones, with a total area of...
, Nusa Tenggara - Bunaken National ParkBunaken National ParkThe Bunaken National Park is a marine park in the north of Sulawesi island, Indonesia. The park is located near the centre of the Coral Triangle, providing habitat to 390 species of coral as well as many fish, mollusc, reptile and marine mammal species...
, Sulawesi - Kepulauan Togean National ParkKepulauan Togean National ParkKepulauan Togean National Park is a largely marine national park, including the Togian Islands, near Sulawesi island of Indonesia....
, Sulawesi - Kepulauan Wakatobi National ParkKepulauan Wakatobi National ParkWakatobi National Park is a marine national park, south of Sulawesi island of Indonesia. The name of Wakatobi is an acronym of the four main Tukangbesi Islands: Wangi-wangi, Kaledupa, Tomia, and Binongko...
, Sulawesi - Taka Bone Rate National ParkTaka Bone Rate National ParkTaka Bone Rate National Park is a marine park which includes the Takabonerate atoll islands, located in the Flores Sea, south of Sulawesi island of Indonesia....
, Sulawesi - Teluk Cenderawasih National ParkTeluk Cenderawasih National ParkTeluk Cenderawasih National Park is the largest marine national park of Indonesia, located in Cenderawasih Bay, south-east of Bird's Head Peninsula. It includes the islands of Mioswaar, Nusrowi, Roon, Rumberpon and Yoop...
, Papua
- Karimunjawa National Park
- Malaysia
- Tun Sakaran Marine ParkTun Sakaran Marine ParkTun Sakaran Marine Park, also known as Semporna Islands Park, is a marine park located off the east coast of the state of Sabah in Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. It consists of the islands of Bodgaya, Boheydulang, Sebangkat, and Selakan, the sand cays of Maiga, Sibuan, and Mantabuan, and the...
- Tun Sakaran Marine Park
- Thailand
- Tarutao National Marine ParkTarutao National Marine ParkTarutao National Marine Park consists of 51 islands located in the Andaman Sea, off the coast of Satun Province of Southern Thailand. The Tarutao National Marine Park consists of two island groups: Tarutao and Adang-Rawi , which are scattered from 20 to 70 kilometers distance from the...
- Tarutao National Marine Park
Europe
- Karaburun-Sazan National Marine ParkKaraburun-Sazan National Marine ParkKaraburun-Sazan National Marine Park proclaimed in 2010 is the only national marine park of Albania. The park covers a marine area stretching along the coastlines of Karaburun Peninsula and Sazan Island near the Bay of Vlora. The marine park is long with a width varying from , and covering 12428...
, Albania - Iroise Marine Park, BrittanyBrittanyBrittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
, France - Zakynthos Marine ParkZakynthos Marine ParkThe National Marine Park of Zakynthos founded in 1999, is a national park located in Laganas bay, in Zakynthos island, Greece. The park, part of the Natura 2000 ecological network, covers an area of and...
, Greece - Kosterhavet National ParkKosterhavet National ParkKosterhavet National Park is the first national marine park of Sweden and was inaugurated in September 2009. It is located in Strömstad and Tanum municipalities in Bohuslän, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It consists of the sea and shores around the Koster Islands, however excluding the islands...
, BohuslänBohuslän' is a Swedish traditional province, or landskap, situated in Götaland on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to the west, and the county of Østfold in Norway to the north...
, Sweden - Ytre Hvaler National ParkYtre Hvaler National ParkYtre Hvaler National Park is a national park in Hvaler and Fredrikstad in Østfold, Norway. It is mostly a marine park, covering the outer parts of the skerries of the Oslofjord's east shore. To the south, the national park's border lies on the Norway–Sweden border next to Kosterhavet National...
, Norway
High seas
As of April 2008 there are no high seas marine reserves, but GreenpeaceGreenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
is campaigning for the "doughnut holes" of the western pacific to be declared as marine reserves.
They are also campaigning for 40 percent of the world’s oceans to be protected as marine reserves.
Oceania
AustraliaThe Australian Government manages an estate of marine protected areas (MPA) that are Commonwealth reserves under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act).
- Australian Whale SanctuaryAustralian Whale SanctuaryThe Australian Whale Sanctuary was established in 1999 to protect dolphins and whales from hunting. The non-contiguous zone includes the Australia's Exclusive Economic Zone , which is the area surrounding the continent of Australia and its external dependencies such as Christmas Island , Cocos ...
- Ashmore Reef Marine National Nature Reserve
- Cartier Island Marine Reserve
- Cod Grounds Commonwealth Marine Reserve
- Coringa-Herald National Nature Reserve
- Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs Marine National Nature ReserveMiddleton ReefMiddleton Reef is a coral reef in the Tasman Sea. It is separated by a deep oceanic pass some 45 km wide from nearby Elizabeth Reef, forming part of the Lord Howe Rise underwater plateau. Middleton Reef is around 220 km from Lord Howe Island and 555 km from the coast of New South...
- Great Australian Bight Marine ParkGreat Australian Bight Marine ParkGreat Australian Bight is a marine national park in South Australia and in Western Australia, 918 km west of Adelaide.The area extends from West of Ceduna to the Western Australian border an additional area of a wide strip that extends to off-shore, forming a large T shape.The total area of the...
(Commonwealth Waters) - Great Barrier Reef Marine ParkGreat Barrier Reef Marine ParkThe Great Barrier Reef Marine Park protects a large part of Australia's Great Barrier Reef from damaging activities. Fishing and the removal of artefacts or...
- Heard Island and McDonald Islands Marine Reserve
- Lihou Reef National Nature Reserve (Coral Sea Island Territory)
- Lord Howe Island Marine ParkLord Howe Island Marine ParkLord Howe Island Marine Park consists of the waters 3 nautical miles off Lord Howe Island, Balls Pyramid and a New South Wales state marine park. The waters 3 to 12 nautical miles from Lord Howe Island and Balls Pyramid were declared a federal marine park on 21 June 2000, see Lord Howe Island...
(Commonwealth Waters) - Macquarie Island Marine Park
- Mermaid Reef Marine National Nature Reserve
- Ningaloo Marine Park (Commonwealth Waters)
- Shark Bay Marine ParkShark Bay Marine ParkShark Bay Marine Park is located at Shark Bay World Heritage Site, Western Australia, over north of Perth. It is the site of the world's largest seagrass meadows, with a total of twelve species of seagrass in the park....
- Solitary Islands Marine Reserve (Commonwealth Waters)
- South-east Commonwealth Marine Reserve Network
New South Wales
These are referred aquatic reserves declared under the Fisheries Management Act 1994
- Barrenjoey Head (Hawkesbury RiverHawkesbury RiverThe Hawkesbury River, also known as Deerubbun, is one of the major rivers of the coastal region of New South Wales, Australia. The Hawkesbury River and its tributaries virtually encircle the metropolitan region of Sydney.-Geography:-Course:...
) - Boat Harbour (Kurnell)
- Bronte-Coogee
- Bushrangers Bay (Shell Harbour)
- Cabbage Tree Bay (ManlyManly, New South WalesManly is a suburb of northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Manly is located 17 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the local government area of Manly Council, in the Northern Beaches region.-History:Manly was named...
) - Cape Banks (La PerouseLa Perouse, New South WalesLapérouse is a suburb in south-eastern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburb of Lapérouse is located about 14 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district, in the City of Randwick....
) - Cook Island (Tweed Heads)
- Long Reef
- Narrabeen Head
- North (Sydney) Harbour
- Shiprock (Port HackingPort HackingPort Hacking is an Australian estuary, located in Southern Sydney, New South Wales and fed by the Hacking River and several smaller creeks, including Bundeena Creek and The Basin. It is a ria, a river basin which has become submerged by the sea...
) - Towra Point (Botany BayBotany BayBotany Bay is a bay in Sydney, New South Wales, a few kilometres south of the Sydney central business district. The Cooks River and the Georges River are the two major tributaries that flow into the bay...
)
Micronesia
- Enipein Pah, near Pohnpei
New Zealand
- Hauraki Gulf Marine Park
- Mimiwhangata Marine Park
- Tawharanui Marine ParkTawharanui PeninsulaTawharanui Peninsula is a finger of land projecting into the Hauraki Gulf from the east coast of the much larger North Auckland Peninsula of New Zealand. It separates Omaha Bay to the north from Kawau Bay and Kawau Island to the south...
Papua NG
- Papua Barrier Reef
Philippines
- Tubbataha reef
Samoa
- American Samoa National Park