Bipartisan Consensus Emerges Over Australia Ocean Conservation Review
Australian senators from opposing political parties are backing expanded legal protection for the Great Australian Bight Marine Park, with calls to cover the entire 800,000-square-kilometre basin ahead of the September 30, 2026 public consultation deadline.
Harry Taruva 
Canberra – Parliamentarians from opposing political parties in the Australian Senate have unified to advocate for the expansion and heightened legal protection of the Great Australian Bight Marine Park.
The push coincides with an ongoing decade-review of national marine park networks conducted by Australia's Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, with public consultations set to conclude on September 30, 2026.
Co-Chair of the Parliamentary Friends of World Heritage for the Nullarbor and the Great Australian Bight, Senator Andrew McLachlan, called for extending the park's boundaries to cover the entire 800,000-square-kilometer basin.
"I say let's expand the current Great Australian Bight Marine Park to cover the entire basin, some 800,000 square kilometres," Senator McLachlan said.
He noted that expanding the marine reserve mechanism provides a swift legal pathway to establish mining exclusion zones that bar seismic testing and oil drilling while protecting existing commercial and recreational fishing operations.
Fellow Co-Chair Senator Karen Grogan urged public participation in the statutory review process before the official submission window closes.
"Now is the time for us to come together and have our say. The consultations are going to close at the end of September, so get on board," Senator Grogan said.
Surfers for Climate Chief Executive Officer, Josh Kirkman, stated that statutory marine park reviews represent the fastest administrative tool to protect coastal ecosystems from industrial development.
