South Australia is taking a lead role in the recovery of the endangered Australian sea lion with a new national committee to meet for the first time in Adelaide today.
The team will assist the Australian Government to create and adopt a new recovery plan to guide conservation actions through to 2033.
About 80 per cent of Australia’s sea lion population lives in SA waters and the Malinauskas government is committed to ensuring appropriate protections are in place for the vulnerable mammal.
The status of Australian sea lions was reassessed in 2020 from vulnerable to endangered under the Environment, Protection and Biodiversity and Conservation Act 1999 – indicating an increased risk of extinction. The ocean mammal is listed as vulnerable in South Australia under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972.
Sea lions were commercially hunted for oil and leather during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Unlike other pinnipeds hunted during that time, the population has not recovered. Unique to SA and WA waters, there are estimated to be fewer than 12,000 sea lions in existence and there is evidence the population remains in decline.
The national recovery team is being led by SA’s Department for Environment and Water. It includes the Conservation Council of SA, Western Australian Department of Biodiversity and Attractions, the Australian Marine Conservation Society, the science community and Aboriginal representatives.
The recovery team will play an important role in prioritising on ground actions and ensuring there is a coordinated approach to sea lion management. The committee will meet quarterly thereafter.
It will support the Commonwealth to develop the updated recovery plan for adoption by the Federal Minister for the Environment and Water later this year.
Minister for Climate, Environment and Water Susan Close says “The Australian sea lion is a popular marine species, particularly in SA waters where most of the population that are still in existence are found.”
“They are a unique feature of our seas and coastline, which is why the state government is taking the lead on protecting and regenerating Australian sea lion numbers.”
“The national recovery team is being led by SA and will play a critical role in creating a coordinated plan to support the recovery of Australian sea lions over the next decade.”
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