Approval of the Pulu Keeling National Park Management Plan 2015-2025 (Cth)

COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

APPROVAL OF THE PULU KEELING NATIONAL PARK MANAGEMENT PLAN 2015-2025

I, BOB BALDWIN, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment, acting pursuant to section 370 of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, hereby approve the Pulu Keeling National Park Management Plan 2015-2025.

Dated this …20… day of …August…, 2015

BOB BALDWIN

……………………………………………………… Bob Baldwin Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment

Pulu Keeling National Park

MANAGEMENT PLAN 2015-2025

© Director of National Parks 2015 ISBN 978-0-9807460-5-1 This work is copyright. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission from the Director of National Parks. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to: Director of National Parks Parks Australia GPO Box 787 Canberra ACT 2061 Director of National Parks Australian business number: 13051 694 963 This management plan sets out how the park will be managed for the next 10 years under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. A copy of the plan is available online at: environment.gov.au/topics/national-parks/parks-australia/publications

Foreword Pulu Keeling National Park is one of the Australian Government's smallest national parks; nevertheless, it is a place of considerable international conservation significance. As an isolated coral atoll in an almost natural state, its relatively pristine environment is a valuable biological asset and an increasingly scarce feature in the tropics. The park was established on 12 December 1995 and comprises North Keeling Island and its surrounding marine waters within a roughly rectangular boundary, framing 2,602 hectares of land and sea. The park is a Commonwealth reserve under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) and is managed in accordance with the Act and the regulations made under it. Pulu Keeling National Park is an internationally recognised seabird rookery and is listed as a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention. It supports one of the world's largest populations of the red-footed booby, Sula sula. It is also home to the endemic Cocos buff-banded rail, Gallirallus philippensis andrewsi, which is listed as endangered under the EPBC Act, and the Cocos angelfish, Centropyge joculator, which is endemic to both Christmas and Cocos (Keeling) Islands. The park supports at least 26 species of crabs, including several species of hermit crabs (terrestrial and aquatic), the red spider crab (Schizophrys aspera), swimmer crabs (Thalamitoides quadridens) and the coconut or robber crab (Birgus latro), which was formerly abundant on the southern atoll but is now rare or absent (Bunce 1988). Green turtles (Chelonia mydas), listed as vulnerable under the EPBC Act, nest on North Keeling Island and hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) occur in the waters of the park. Three other of the world's seven marine turtle species visit from time to time. Two species of dolphin are regularly seen in the park, which has a healthy fish fauna with substantial populations of butterfly fish and sharks. Pulu Keeling's forests and other native flora are examples of the original vegetation of the region and include a number of species no longer found elsewhere in the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. This third management plan for Pulu Keeling National Park has been prepared in accordance with the EPBC Act and through the engagement of and consultation with the local community, as well as off-island stakeholders (including scientists and researchers) and the broader Australian public. This includes two publicly advertised opportunities to provide written comments towards the development of the plan. The plan takes into account the comments arising from these consultation activities and will guide the conservation and management of this small, unique and significant national park for the next 10 years.Pulu Keeling National Park will be managed to preserve its flora, fauna and marine environment, ensuring that the park's ecological condition is maintained, while providing some opportunities for limited and controlled visitor access.