From Chinamans to Balmoral Beach, Sydney
A community working to establish Wyargine Aquatic Reserve in the waters around Chinamans Beach, Wyargine Point and Balmoral in Sydney. This Marine Protected Area would help to conserve and restore marine biodiversity and support science, recreation and education for future generations.
We're working towards an Aquatic Reserve that protects waters from Chinamans Beach, Wyargine Point and Balmoral Beach.
This is an early diagram of of the intended Reserve. The final boundaries of the proposal will be informed by scientific advice, including from the Sydney Institute of Marine Science (SIMS).
We are seeking protections that are consistent with other successful Reserves in NSW waters, like Cabbage Tree Bay Aquatic Reserve in Manly.
Our message is simple: protecting this part of Sydney Harbour is about protecting the very thing that makes it special in the first place.
At the end of the day, people love this place because of its natural beauty and life. Establishing an Aquatic Reserve is simply about giving back to the environment that has given so much to our community, and making sure it remains healthy and full of life for generations to come.
We know these waters are home to turtles, dolphins, rays, octopus, many species of fish, and seabirds. This marine life isn’t theoretical - it’s already here.
We also know that in 1980, Edwards Bay and most of Chinamans beach was covered in seagrasses. In less than 50 years, we have denuded the harbour seabed around Balmoral. Seagrass underpins the marine ecosystem because it provides habitat for species like seahorses, shelter and nursery grounds for young fish and improves water quality.
In simple terms, protecting some of the waters around Edwards Bay, Wyargine Point, Rocky Point and Chinamans Beach will help ensure these ecosystems can recover, continue to support marine species, and sustain a healthy harbour for future generations to enjoy.
This proposed Aquatic Reserve could also help the Australian Government to meet its "30 by 30" biodiversity targets.
In October 2022, Australia's environment ministers agreed to work together to reach the national 30 by 30 target. In June 2025, the Environment Minister Murray Watt committed to ensuring 30% of Australia’s marine environment is highly protected by 2030.
There have been no new Aquatic Reserves established in NSW since 2002.
When we protect marine life, we also protect the industries, communities and cultures that rely on it across the State for generations to come.
The purpose of marine Aquatic Reserves is to protect marine biodiversity, habitats, and ecosystems from environmental damage or over-exploitation, often acting as "living museums" for research, education, and public appreciation. Acting like national parks in the ocean, Aquatic Reserves set aside areas for marine life to be protected from extractive activities like commercial and recreational fishing, while remaining open for other activities like swimming, snorkelling and scuba diving.
Marine sanctuaries are backed by Australia’s marine science community as a tried and tested way to protect biodiversity, restore fish populations and provide resilience to ecosystems.
An Aquatic Reserve, especially a no-take zone, gives marine life a safe place to live, feed, and breed without pressure. When fish and other species can grow to full size and reproduce safely, they produce more young, and those young spread beyond the reserve into surrounding areas.
This is called the “spillover effect,” and it actually helps increase fish populations outside the reserve. That means aquatic reserves don’t just protect marine life - they strengthen the broader ecosystem, including areas where fishing is allowed. In the long term, this leads to more stable and sustainable fish populations, which benefits both nature and the community.
The role of sanctuary zones in the marine environment
Source: Creating a world class Marine Protected Area system - David J. Booth and Giglia A. Beretta
NSW's coastline is renowned for its spectacular natural beauty, rich biodiversity, and world-class surf breaks. Beneath the waves, coral reefs, kelp forests, seagrass meadows, and seaweed-dominated rocky reefs support an incredible diversity of marine life, from tiny invertebrates to iconic species like dolphins, turtles and fish. These ecosystems are not only critical for marine biodiversity, but also underpin recreational activities such as surfing, diving, and fishing, as well as local economies reliant on tourism and sustainable fisheries.
Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), including sanctuary zones like Aquatic Reserves, play a central role in safeguarding these ecosystems. Sanctuary zones, where no extractive activities (including fishing) are permitted are particularly important for allowing habitats to recover and thrive. Despite this, many sanctuary zones in NSW are small, fragmented, or inadequately enforced, leaving critical areas of the coast exposed to ongoing threats and impacts.
Edwards Beach, Mosman. Supplied: Imogen Brennan
