Dorinda Cox (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise also to speak on the High Seas Biodiversity Bill 2026. Protecting our oceans matters deeply to me, as a Western Australian senator representing a state that's shaped by the Indian Ocean.

I want to begin with a story about maambakoort, what we call our sea country in Noongar language. Our ancestors tell of a time when those coastlines were very different, when the sea sat further out and when the ocean floor was dry ground. They speak of families travelling across that coastal plain, moving with the seasons, crossing country all the way to Wadjemup, what we now call Rottnest Island. Then the water began to rise. Over generations, maambakoort covered the low lying plains. It separated Wadjemup from the mainland. It reshaped the edge of the world that people knew. These stories held and passed down the changing climate of a transforming coastline, and today geological science confirms that around 9,000 to 10,000 years ago sea levels rose dramatically, flooding that coastal plain of the south-west coast.

There is the story of the mamang, the whale. The mamang carries spirits back to country, and ceremony welcomes them home. Then there is the Wagyl, our rainbow serpent, our creator. He is the great serpent of the Nyitting, the Dreaming. The Wagyl carved the rivers and the wetlands inland as it travelled across country before moving back towards the ocean.

Sea country is alive with meaning. It connects past and present. It reminds people that land and ocean are part of one system. They are connected by movement, by story and by responsibility. For countless generations, Noongar families moved with that responsibility. People move when certain fish run, they harvest when particular winds shift and they read the ocean as a calendar. This understanding—that the ocean is dynamic, cyclical and interconnected—is something modern policy is still catching up to.

On Noongar country, the rising sea reshaped the land. The whale carries that spirit between worlds. The Wagyl links our rivers to the ocean, and the seasons guide when to move, when to fish and when to wait. It is a reminder that the ocean has always required stewardship, and that is not new.

Protecting the ocean is not just an environmental policy; it is a cultural responsibility, an economic responsibility and an intergenerational responsibility. Australia has a long history of looking after our ocean, and we are recognised around the world for our ocean management. Protecting Australia's marine biodiversity and ensuring fishing remains sustainable is a priority for the Albanese Labor government. We are committed to managing 100 per cent of our oceans sustainably. More than half of our oceans are already protected under strong environmental laws. Twenty-four per cent of our waters are in highly protected no-take areas, and we are working towards having 30 per cent of our ocean in highly protected areas by 2030.

We are, in fact, not standing still. This government is commencing consultation on reviews of five Australian marine park network management plans, covering 44 Australian marine parks. These reviews are the best opportunity for us to achieve our protection targets. These will be informed by genuine First Nations engagement, stakeholder consultation and the best available science, ensuring that protection and sustainability go hand in hand. We are supporting action on critical marine ecosystems like the Great Barrier Reef. We are protecting threatened marine species, we are removing ghost nets from northern Australia and we are developing Australia's first ever sustainable ocean plan. And that is just our domestic work. Our oceans don't stop at our maritime borders. Around 60 per cent of the global ocean lies beyond national jurisdiction in what we call the high seas, yet only around one per cent of those areas are currently protected.

Our marine ecosystems are interconnected; our fish stocks migrate; currents connect habitats across entire ocean basins. The health of the Indian Ocean off Western Australia is influenced by what happens far beyond a line on a map. If we want our domestic efforts to succeed, we must work with other nations to protect the open ocean, and that is what this legislation is about. The High Seas Biodiversity Bill gives effect to Australia's obligations under the United Nations High Seas Biodiversity Treaty.

Australia signed the treaty on the first day it opened for signature back in 2023. It has now entered into force internationally. Australia requires enabling legislation before we can ratify, and this bill provides the framework. It is important that we act swiftly. The first conference of the parties is expected in August this year, and Australia is currently co-chairing that preparatory commission. If we want to shape how international marine protected areas are established and managed, we must ratify in time to participate as a full party.

This bill creates the domestic framework for Australia to recognise and comply with those protections. It also establishes rules for marine genetic resources and introduces an environmental impact assessment process for Australia's activities on the high seas. This is responsible governance. This is accountability. This is ensuring that our international commitments are backed by domestic law.

For a maritime nation like Australia, and particularly for my home state of Western Australia, strong global ocean governance matters. The Indian Ocean connects us to Africa, to Asia and to our Pacific neighbours. We are highly regarded internationally for our ocean management. Ratifying this treaty will allow us to continue that leadership, not just protecting our own coastline but working cooperatively across the global commons.

When we talk about protecting seas, we are talking about protecting the same ocean that shapes our weather, feeds our communities, supports our industries and defines our way of life. We are talking about ensuring that future generations can stand on those same beaches and feel the Fremantle Doctor, see the dolphins at Monkey Mia and know that we acted when it mattered. This bill is about stewardship, it is about sustainability, it is about cooperation and it is about honouring our responsibility to the ocean that sustains us.