Australia plans to create a marine reserve the size of Spain

Australia plans to create a marine reserve nearly the size of Spain around a remote island halfway to Antarctica, the government announced Sunday.

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According to this proposal, the existing marine park of Macquarie Island will triple its extension to a total of 475,465 square kilometers under protection.

It is an area similar to the surface of Spain or Cameroon and clearly larger than Japan or Paraguay.

This protection will imply that the area will be “completely closed to fishing, mining and other extractive activities”, according to the Minister of the Environment, Tanya Plibersek.

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The macquarie island lies halfway between Australia and Antarctica and is home to royal penguins, sea lions and a science center.

“Macquarie Island is an exceptional place. It is a remote natural paradise, a critical breeding area for millions of birds, seals and penguins,” Plibersek said.

Environmental groups backed the plan, fearing the area could be subject to seabed mining or unsustainable fishing.

Source: Elcomercio

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I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.