7.5 Assessment summary — Existing protection and management

Paragraph 54(3)(f) of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (Cth) requires ‘… an assessment of the existing measures to protect and manage the ecosystem …’ within the Great Barrier Reef Region.

Paragraph 176(3)(d) of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Regulations 2019 (Cth) requires ‘… an assessment of the existing measures to protect and manage the heritage values …’ of the Great Barrier Reef Region.

The assessment was undertaken by independent, expert assessors based on the six elements of the management framework:

  • understanding of context
  • planning
  • financial, staffing and information 
  • inputs
  • management systems and processes
  • delivery of outputs
  • achievement of outcomes.

These elements are assessed across the 14 management topics (Section 7.1).