Tailor Made Holidays in The Great Barrier Reef: In the News

Calls for Coral Sea to be protected: 17-09-2007

It is hoped that the Australian government will take steps to protect the Coral Sea from fishermen.

Campaigners have raised concerns that the region's large shark population could prove tempting to illegal fisherman looking to sell on shark fins for large amounts of money. However, conservationists want the 780,000sq km of sea to be awarded full environmental protection to help prevent any further damage to the shark populations and their natural habitat.

Dr Gilly Llewellyn, a spokesperson for conservation charity WWF, explained: "Sharks are increasingly rare in our oceans today. These are the sort of lions and tigers of the sea and unfortunately they are prized for their shark fin, which commands a high price in the Asian marketplace."

She added: "So illegal fishers looking for sharks for their fin are becoming increasingly bold. Without formal protection for the Coral Sea we are afraid it might be vulnerable to that in the future."

It is estimated that the total value of Coral Sea tourism is worth around $11.2 million per year.


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