New $10 million marine hospital and conservation hub for Sea World Foundation

The Queensland Government is delivering $10 million in the Budget for a first-of-its-kind Sea World Foundation Wildlife Hospital on the Gold Coast, equipped to rescue and treat all marine life and open to the public allowing visitors to witness the lifesaving work.

In a fresh start for wildlife protection and ecotourism, the Sea World Foundation Wildlife Hospital will be equipped to rescue and treat marine life from dolphins, sharks, seals and whales to birds and other sick or injured sea animals.

Village Roadshow Chief Executive Clark Kirby said the project would allow the Sea World team to have an even greater impact on Australian marine life advising “for more than 30 years, Sea World has been at the forefront of marine rescue and rehabilitation efforts around Australia.

“The state-of-the-art marine hospital and conservation hub will allow our specialised veterinary and marine animal experts to help more animals, and educate the millions of guests who visit Sea World on conservation efforts to minimise impacts on the environment.

“Last year alone, we rescued more than 400 individual marine animals, ranging from whales, dolphins, dugongs, turtles, seabirds and sea snakes, and with animal rescues on the rise, this new facility will greatly expand our capabilities.”

Equipment to treat the larger, dolphin-sized marine mammals onsite and to this scale will make the facility the first of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, with rescue vessels docked at the hub allowing rapid deployment to ailing marine life.

The $10 million commitment is part of a $39.6 million rollout to support new and expanded Wildlife Hospital Network facilities, increasing capacity to provide specialist care to sick and injured native wildlife in Queensland.

QLD Minister for the Environment and Tourism Andrew Powell said the commitment would enable the Sea World Foundation to continue its marine conservation work and noted “combining conservation and education, we’ll be saving more animals while giving the public an opportunity to witness our veterinarians and marine scientists at work.

“The marine hospital will also create a unique ecotourism experience for the Gold Coast, a sector in which our Destination 2045 20-year tourism plan has set a clear goal to become a world leader.”

More information on Sea World Foundation 

Image. Turtle rescue. Credit: Sea World Foundation