The Great Australian Bight is one of the most pristine ocean environments left on Earth, supporting vibrant coastal communities, jobs and recreational activities.
The Bight sustains wild fisheries and aquaculture industries worth around $440 million per annum (2012–13) and regional tourism industries worth around $1.2 billion per annum (2013–14).
Flanked by the Nullarbor and the longest continuous sea cliffs in the world, the Bight is a haven for whales, fish, birds, marine mammals, plants life and an array of invertebrate ecosystems.
The area has unique nutrient upwellings which provide critical habitat for countless species including some of the last remaining colonies of endangered Australian sea lions.
Scientists estimate around 85% of the species that live in the Great Australian Bight are found nowhere else on Earth.
What happens to the environment of the Bight affects the diversity of the marine world on a global scale.
