Indian Ocean - South-East Asian Marine Turtle Memorandum of Understanding

Australian study focuses on turtle protection

8 Nov 2006

Eighty Mile Beach between Port Hedland and Broome, in northern Western Australia, will be the location for a major research project on turtles.

The results of the two-week study by the group Conservation Volunteers Australia will be used to produce management plans to protect the turtles' long-term survival.

Volunteers will mainly monitor the flatback turtle, which is listed as a vulnerable species.

The project is being backed by the state's Department of Environment and Conservation and mining company Rio Tinto.

The group's Greg Wood says ultimately the project will be used to gauge environmental change, using the turtles as an indicator.

"You have to have that baseline data so that ... climate change, the effect on turtles is something that we will be able to measure if we've got this baseline data," he said.

Source:	http://www.abc.net.au
Actual link:	http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200611/s1783824.htm

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