Though the many marine species are unaware of it, at the three-nautical-mile-limit of State waters, they leave Western Australia and enter Commonwealth waters.

Beyond the three-nautical-mile State boundary, Australia's marine environment is managed by the Commonwealth government, which is preparing a ‘marine bioregional plan' for Commonwealth waters in the ‘south-west marine region'. This stretches all the way from Kangaroo Island in South Australia to offshore Shark Bay.

As this is happening at the same time as the south coast regional marine planning process, close contact is being maintained between the State and Commonwealth governments to ensure maximum integration of the two planning approaches.

Further information about the Australian Government's marine bioregional planning can be obtained from the Department of Environment and Water Resources website.