Sunshine Coast marine turtle conservation plan
Find out how our Sunshine Coast marine turtle conservation plan will set us on the right track to help save one of our most beloved marine animals.
Making tracks together
The plan’s goal is to support the recovery of self-sustaining populations of marine turtles on the Sunshine Coast.
It will take steps to reduce threats to marine turtles, such as light pollution, and strengthen support of the dedicated community volunteer programs.
It focuses on nesting and hatchling success of the critically endangered loggerhead and vulnerable green turtle populations, the 2 species that arrive every year to lay their eggs on our Sunshine Coast beaches.
Our efforts to help these species recover will also have a flow on benefit for all other marine turtle species found in the coastal waters of the Sunshine Coast.
View the Sunshine Coast marine turtle conversation plan part A (PDF, 5.06MB) and part B (PDF, 2.93MB).
View the digital versions online - part A and part B (Flipbook).
Learn more about the plan and how we will do this
Steps to get there
The implementation plan outlines the steps to accomplish the desired outcomes above. It:
- prioritises the activities
- identifies who is responsible for each activity
- sets the timing, any costs and other resources needed
- will be updated annually.
Background to the plan
A strong partnership across the region led to the plan’s development with Sunshine Coast Council, Councillors, Kabi Kabi First Nation Peoples, Queensland Government, an independent Technical Advisory Panel and community leaders of TurtleCare, Coolum and North Shore Coast Care and Bribie Island Turtle Trackers volunteers all collaborating on the plan.
It supports efforts by the Queensland and Australian governments to stop the decline of marine turtle populations and will guide council decision making to achieve future conservation and management goals for nesting marine turtles and hatchlings within the Sunshine Coast local government area.
It was endorsed at the August 2023 ordinary meeting of council.