Australia gives ground to win Russian support for marine park AUSTRALIA has given ground on its proposed 1.6 million sq km Antarctic marine park, suggesting it be created in stages, in a bid to win crucial Russian support. The offer to stagger the creation of the vast protected marine area in Australia's section of the Antarctic follows opposition to the plan at the meeting of the global body responsible for Antarctic marine life. Environment Minister Greg Hunt said yesterday it was hoped the concession would break the deadlock on the issue at the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, meeting in Hobart. "Our ultimate objective is to make sure that both the Ross (Ice) Shelf and East Antarctica are well covered (by marine parks), but we can get there in stages," Mr Hunt said before holding discussions with commission delegates. I think that's a very important message: let not the perfect be the enemy of the good. Can we get a resolution in the next few days? It's a challenge . . . . We shouldn't be trying to get an outcome, which is clearly too much for some countries at this stage. He would not say how large the initial tranche of marine parks would be. "I would like to get the whole thing (1.6 million sq km) as soon as possible," he said. At the moment, if we can go from zero to something significant, that would an outstanding success. It's the most likely way forward. Conservation groups observing the meeting appeared resigned to further compromise on the proposals, which also include a 1.3 million sq km area of the Ross Sea. "These are very tough negotiations and there are 25 countries (and the European Union) here negotiating on a range of elements, including the size of MPAs, the duration (of the MPAs) and the strength of the reserves," said Steve Campbell, campaign director with the Antarctic Ocean Alliance. The East Antarctic MPA is sponsored by Australia, France and the EU, while the Ross Sea MPA is put forward by the US and New Zealand. Both plans have already been reduced from earlier proposals that failed to win the consensus required at the commission. It is expected the commission will reach a decision on Friday. Russia and Ukraine have led the opposition to the proposals, citing the effect they could have on toothfish and krill harvesting, and cast doubt on the legal authority of the commission to create reserves. Ten countries -- including Russia, South Africa and Uruguay -- have been legally fishing for toothfish in the Southern Ocean since 2000, while six harvest krill. As well as legal fishing, governed by quotas imposed by the commission, there are concerns about illegal fishing, particularly in the Indian Ocean sector of the Southern Ocean.