Management Plans

The new Yawuru Nagulagun Roebuck Bay Marine Park announced October 7, 2016 © Kandy CUrran

The much anticipated Yawuru Nagulagun Roebuck Bay Marine Park and Yawuru Birragun Conservation Park was announced in Broome on October 7, 2016. The parks signify a major milestone in the conservation and management of Yawuru sea country, including the world’s most productive tropical intertidal mudflats, which are the feeding grounds for migratory shorebirds (gamirda-gamirda).

The ten year marine park plan covers 78,840ha from Gantheaume Point to Cape Villaret. The Yawuru Nagulagun Marine Park

Celebrating a marine park on Yawuru sea country, which includes the world’s most productive tropical intertidal mudflats – the feeding grounds for migratory shorebirds (gamirda-gamirda).

will be jointly managed by Parks and Wildlife and the Yawuru Registered Native Title Body Corporate, providing a boost for conservation, tourism and jobs for Yawuru people to manage their sea country. The Class A Marine Reserve has seven management programs with prioritised strategies.

The Birragun Conservation Park covers 19,120ha of land outside Broome townsite and includes parts of the Roebuck Bay Ramsar site and National Heritage area. The conservation park will be jointly managed for conservation, recreation and traditional and customary Aboriginal use, by Parks and Wildlife and Yawuru Body Corporate.

Congratulations to the Yawuru people who worked collaboratively with Parks and Wildlife to develop management plans for the Yawuru Nagulagun Roebuck Bay Marine Park and and conservation parks in Broome.

The Nagulagun Roebuck Bay Marine Park and Birrigun Park plans can be viewed here»

Yawuru Nagulagun Roebuck Bay Marine Park Contact

Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (08) 91955500
Nyamba Yawuru Buru (08) 9192 9600

HISTORY OF PLANNING UNDERTAKEN BY ROEBUCK BAY WORKING GROUP (RBWG)

RECOGNISING Roebuck Bay was without management plans to protect it into the future, Roebuck Bay Working Group (RBWG) formed in Broome in 2004 with the objective of developing a values based community driven planning process to protect, restore and maintain Roebuck Bay into the future. The RBWG, which now has 32 members, won a State Coastal Award in 2007 for proactive community based management planning work.

2004 Designing an integrated planning process, foremost with Yawuru and the community
2004 Raising awareness of shorebird conservation and protection
2005 Mapping community values for Roebuck Bay
2006 Developing a Roebuck Bay Issues Paper
2008 Providing input for a Roebuck Bay Ecological Character Description
2009 Producing a Lyngbya Contingency Plan for Roebuck Bay »
2009 Producing Roebuck Bay Interim Management Guidelines »
2009 Developing Roebuck Bay Key Values and Management Issues »
2009 Producing a Management Plan for the Northern Shores of Roebuck Bay »
2009 Producing a Preliminary Draft Roebuck Bay Ramsar Site Management Plan »
2011 Yawuru people (Traditional Owners) develop a Cultural Management Plan, the foundation for planning for Yawuru coastal conservation estates and Roebuck Bay Marine Park.

INTERIM MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES
RBWG developed Interim Management Guidelines to protect Roebuck Bay and its unique cultural and natural values into the future.

COMMUNITY BASED PLANS FOR ROEBUCK BAY