Newsletter June 2007

Hi NPA~Marine Supporters,

As the effects of climate change become more apparent, we will benefit greatly by already having healthy ecosystems which are more resilient to future changes.

What we do today, will determine how healthy our oceans are for tomorrow.

As we celebrate NPA's 50th year, NPA~Marine is proud of its achievements and its growth. We now have the start of a sanctuaries network as well as being able to offer you a multitude of diverse opportunities to help protect, restore and explore NSW oceans.

But real protection of NSW oceans is still in its infancy. We need your ongoing support to keep the momentum going and help us achieve more success over the coming years.

Grey Nurse Shark

Talk by DPI
As part of NPA~Marine's Let Lucy Live campaign, supporters gathered together in mid June to learn about the Department of Primary Industries (DPI)'s Grey Nurse Shark research. Presented by DPI project officers, topics discussed included the population estimates, key threats, levels of current protection and future research.

DPI spoke about less than 500 sharks remaining along the east Australian coast, the high rates of hooking of these sharks, the low reproductive rate of the sharks and the fact that current levels of protection are not preventing deaths.

A full summary of the event and research discussed will shortly be posted on the Let Lucy Live website. Those who signed up for the event will also be emailed this summary.

Fundraiser by Nature Conservation Council of NSW
NPA~Marine has been working with the Nature Conservation Council of NSW (NCC) on the campaign to protect the critically endangered Nurse Shark. NCC has recently undertaken a legal appeal to help protect their key habitat sites. NCC's fundraiser will support the court case which is completely funded by individual contributions.

Join Mikey Robins at Cocktails Under the Sea, a magical night with live music, drinks and canapes at the Sydney Aquarium to celebrate marine life. Have fun bidding on great items such as shark dives, spa packages, photographs by Ron and Valerie Taylor and gourmet dinners while supporting efforts to protect the critically endangered Great Nurse Shark. Tickets include all night food and drinks and $10 credit towards auction items.

Where: Reef Theatre, Sydney Aquarium
When: August 22, from 7-10pm
Tickets: $35.
RSVP: Call the Nature Conservation Council of NSW to reserve your ticket 02 9279 2466 or email ncc@nccnsw.org.au

Sanctuaries

On World Oceans Day, June 8th, over 260 scientists from 24 countries, signed up to the European Scientists' Consensus Statement on Marine Reserves.

They recognized that rather than just protecting certain species or placing restrictions on fisheries catches, we need to take a holistic approach to safeguarding our most important marine areas, through establishing marine sanctuary networks.

The statement also highlighted the role sanctuaries can play in the face of climate change. It stated sanctuaries 'enable the development of more natural, extended population age structures that promote resilience to overfishing and are important for maintaining the integrity of marine ecosystems in the face of climate change.'

With the 6.5% sanctuary protection of NSW oceans lying far from World Conservation Union (IUCN)'s recommendation of a minimum 20 - 30%, NPA~Marine continues to push the NSW Government forward in progressing our vital sanctuaries network.

More information on the NPA~Marine website

HarbourKeepers & CoastKeepers

HarbourKids
This month HarbourKeepers presented HarbourKids, a project to help schoolkids learn how to look after Sydney Harbour.

HarbourKids provides workshops, colouring sheets and stickers whilst our interactive HarbourKids webpages will soon be available to offer learning opportunities and fun games on our HarbourKeepers website.

This project is supported by the City of Sydney Council. For more information please visit the HarbourKeepers website.

World Environment Day
On June 5th, NPA~Marine celebrated World Environment Day, the 3rd year anniversary of HarbourKeepers and the 2nd anniversary of CoastKeepers.

To celebrate, a team of HarbourKeepers divers, including some from Sydney Aquarium, leapt into the water in front of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge to undertake a clean up dive. The dive found a collection of rubbish including a traffic cone, fencing and lot of bottles. It was a good way to highlight the great work our volunteers have done in over 100 events to keep Sydney Harbour clean and healthy.

Illawong Clean up
CoastKeepers has taken on a regular clean up site at Illawong Bay in the Ku-ring-gai National Park. This event is at the request of the National Parks and Wildlife Service and involves divers removing rubbish, debris and fishing line that could harm local marine life and habitats.

New HarbourKeepers Site
HarbourKeepers volunteers can now participate in regular foreshore clean up and bush regeneration activities in the shadow of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House.

The events, at the Hermitage Foreshore Reserve near Vaucluse, are conducted with the support of the National Parks and Wildlife Service. The inaugural event involved a corporate team from Macquarie Advisor Services who swapped their suits for gardening gear to remove litter and non-native plants.

Website
Have you checked out our new look HarbourKeepers and CoastKeepers websites yet??

Visit www.harbourkeepers.org.au and www.coastkeepers.org.au to learn more about protecting, restoring and exploring Sydney Harbour and the NSW marine and coastal environments and for details of how to get involved!!

Jobs at NPA!

NPA Fundraiser
NPA is still seeking a paid full-time fundraiser to oversee the key parts of its fundraising efforts. Based in Sydney this role is responsible for overseeing the major donors and bequest program, supporting staff in program areas raise targeted funds and overseeing general fundraising activities.

Previous experience in fundraising for the not-for-profit sector is highly desirable but not essential.

More information is available on the main NPA website

Donations
The end of financial year is approaching so now is the best time to make a contribution to assist our work. NPA~Marine relies on donations and fundraisers to enable its work to continue.

All donations over $2 are tax-deductible and we'll send you out a receipt that you can send off with this year's tax return. You can make a donation online, fill out the donation section on our membership form or make a contribution over the phone by calling (02) 9299 0000.

Or how about making a regular donation by joining us as an NPA~Marine Partner. Partners give a regular gift to support our marine conservation campaigns and on ground projects plus you're entitled join our leading bushwalking program, receive our National Parks Journal, participate in our NPA Branch nights and a a whole range of discounts on products and services around NSW!

Our membership forms are available online or you can simply call us on (02) 9299 0000

Thanks for your support

Nicky

Nicky Hammond
Marine Program Manager