The prospect of the Gulf of Carpentaria being declared a protected marine park is causing some deep concerns in the north.
While no detailed plans have yet been put forward, Carpentaria Mayor Fred Pascoe says the Federal Government has pledged to ‘protect’ the Gulf and that could mean fishing would be restricted, keeping away grey nomads in their thousands.
The mayor says Karumba and Normanton depend on vibrant fishing and tourism sectors, both of which would be impacted if a marine park goes ahead.
“We’ve heard rumours up here that the whole of Cape York is going to be heritage listed,” Councillor Pascoe told the ABC. “You can certainly bet your bottom dollar that the ‘whole’ is going to be a huge marine park … ordinary everyday Australians up here are having trouble sleeping.”
Sounds pretty dramatic. But clearly Councillor Pascoe feels the stakes are very high.
“They have already said very clearly that there will be a marine park in the Gulf but now the State Government has also indicated that it will also create a marine park in its waters,” he told the national broadcaster. “That will certainly have a big impact on recreational fishing, on tourists, grey nomads … the 80,000 to 100,000 people that we get up every year.”
