Heard Island and McDonald Islands Marine Reserve proposed proclamation and proposal to prepare a draft management plan

Over the past 20 years scientific research has shown that highly protected areas are more resilient to climate change than those that are less protected. Climate change poses significant threats to biodiversity, particularly cold-adapted species in the sub-Antarctic region. The warming of the Southern Ocean and changes in weather patterns are beginning to have real impacts on Heard Island and McDonald Islands (HIMI) and the surrounding marine environment. Changes in water temperature and food availability can impact the breeding patterns and life cycles of cold-adapted species.
The draft proclamation for expansion of the marine reserve surrounding HIMI does not provide adequate protection for areas at highest risk from climate change, in particular the nearshore shallow waters of the shelf and associated habitats and reduces the likelihood that this marine reserve, under the new zoning, can mitigate climate change impacts. The nearshore shallow waters of the shelf are where we are already seeing warming. Over the last decade, summer temperatures have increased across most of the HIMI EEZ, with the greatest increases in the shallow shelf areas.
A CSIRO project indicates that threatened and endangered species associated with the fisheries at HIMI have high sensitivity to climate change, with some seabirds and seals predicted from available data to decline by 20 to 25% due to climate change. Proposed protection for shelf habitats and the associated habitats that provide important nursery and foraging areas for listed species is inadequate to mitigate these predicted future trends.

While the proposed additions to the marine reserve provide a small increase in protection of shelf habitats between 300 and 500m such that 48% will be highly protected (IUCN Category I and II), this may not be enough to give local species populations sufficient survival probability over the longer term as the HIMI Shelf is already experiencing rapid warming. Additional expansion of the existing Sanctuary Zone (IUCN 1a) is needed to maintain the resilience of biota in this area under increasing climate change. Inclusion of the entire shelf area would provide the greatest opportunity for shelf biota and food webs to adapt to climate change.
The inner southern shelf surrounding HIMI comprises shallow water benthic environments in water depths shallower than 100 m, including high diversity, structurally complex communities and the second highest number of site-restricted taxa, i.e. those species that have nowhere else to go. The outer southern shelf also contains important habitats at depths up to 500 m depth where mackerel icefish aggregate in large densities and is of greatest importance to nearshore foraging by fur seals and seabirds such as black-browed albatross and macaroni penguins, especially during the reproductive phase in early summer. The lack of a significant expansion of areas of high protection (IUCN 1a and IUCN II) in shallow waters of the marine reserve reduces the likelihood that this marine reserve redesign can mitigate the effects of climate change on this marine environment.
In finalising the design of the HIMI Marine Reserve, we seek further extensions of the highly protected zone (IUCN Category I or II) to include more of the nearshore shallow waters of the shelf as an important mechanism to improve resilience of the biodiversity to climate change.

Climate change poses a significant threat to long term resilience and needs to be accounted for in the reserve design, as indicated in answer to the previous questions.

Delaying action until detailed scientific studies confirm the extent of climate change impacts in unstudied areas is a decision to neglect insurance coverage for future risks. Taking proactive measures now will help safeguard against potential threats and uncertainties from climate change.