Securing the protection of the Indian Ocean Territories Marine Parks  

​​The Australian Government is working with the Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands communities to secure the protection of the Indian Ocean Territories Marine Parks for the next generation with the release of the parks’ first ever management plans.

These two globally significant Australian marine parks are more than twice the size of Germany and cover an area of 744,070 km2.

They are home to spectacular coral reefs, over 680 fish species and marine megafauna and threatened or migratory species, such as whale sharks, manta rays, and marine turtles, as well as tens of thousands of seabirds.

​​The plans are informed by local community knowledge at Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, scientific research and evidence, along with more than 20,000 public submissions received during the preparation of these management plans.

The plans set out the conservation and management priorities and actions for these marine parks over the next decade. They have a strong focus on:

• protecting, researching and monitoring park biodiversity and habitats, including enhancing climate change resilience and adaptation 
• community stewardship, including by supporting and recognising the traditional practices of Malay and Chinese communities and establishing local advisory committees, to guide the implementation of the plans 
• implementing the zoning that was co-designed with local communities during the process to create the parks, with large offshore green zones, where fishing isn’t allowed, and inshore yellow zones, which enables small scale fishing 
• management rules aimed at protecting park values, while simplifying administrative processes for local communities and other park users.