Seagrass-Watch Magazine Issue 47 - March 2013 | Page 34

northern
Australia

Torres
Strait

Shipping
channels
Article by Helen Taylor
Photography by Helen Taylor
& Skye McKenna

Torres Strait was created as an island
archipelago approximately 9,000 years
ago on a land bridge connecting Australia
with Papua New Guinea(1). It comprises
247 islands, eighteen of which are
permanently inhabited. The region has
long been recognised for its ecological
complexity and biodiversity: 6.2% of the
area is tidally inundated flats which
include ecologically important coral reefs,
seagrass meadows and sand cays. These
coastal marine habitats are important to
island communities for subsistence as well
as having strong cultural and spiritual
value. Despite the remote location of the
Torres Strait region, pollution, particularly
associated with shipping activities,
threatens the viability of the habitat,
wildlife and in turn, the way of life for the
local communities.

The ports and shipping industry is an
essential component of Australia's trade
and underpins the viability of many of
Australia's export and import industries.
The Torres Strait is a vital economic link,
being the only connection between the
Arafura and Coral Seas. Two major
shipping lanes transit the region: the Great
North East (GNE) Shipping Channel and
the Prince of Wales (PoW) Shipping
Channel. These channels have been
identified as being the first and second
most high-risk to local marine
environments in Queensland(2).
They were ranked as such because the
channels contain significant navigation
risks as they weave their way through the
shallow water maze of reef and island
habitats. At their narrowest, these
channels are only a few hundred metres

wide and are bordered by a high diversity
of economically and ecologically
important habitats. In these areas there is a
heightened risk of shipping accidents,
including collisions and groundings of
vessels, which may result in oil, fuel and
chemical spills. Many marine habitats such
as seagrass, algae, mangroves and coral
reefs are vulnerable to oil and fuel spills,
particularly when they occur in intertidal
areas. In many instances, however, there is
a lack of detailed information on the
marine habitats that occur adjacent to
these shipping lanes.
Approximately 3,000 voyages are
undertaken by shipping vessels through
the GNE channel each year, making it a
high use passage in Queensland waters(3).
Of these vessels passing through the Torres
Strait, the majority are oil and product

Papua New Guinea

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habitat assessment sites 2005-2012
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