Indian Ocean Whale Sanctuary Indian Ocean Whale Sanctuary The Indian Ocean Whale Sanctuary is an area in the Indian Ocean where the International Whaling Commission (IWC) has banned all types of commercial whaling. The IWC has at present designated two such sanctuaries, the other being the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. Repeated proposals at the IWC for a South Atlantic Sanctuary and a South Pacific Sanctuary have never reached the 75% majority needed to pass. The Indian Ocean Sanctuary was established by the IWC in 1979 after being proposed by the tiny island nation of the Seychelles, in its first meeting as an IWC member,
South Gippsland features eucalypt forests and rainforests as well as its famous beaches, and is one of the most popular holiday areas in Victoria. Linked to mainland South Gippsland via a bridge at San Remo, Phillip Island is also a major tourist destination, noted particularly for its surf beaches, nightly Penguin Parade and Grand Prix track. 12,000 years ago, South Gippsland formed part of a land bridge to Tasmania the remnants of which is the Furneaux Group of islands. A ferry operates from Welshpool to Lady Barron Island, part of the Furneaux Group. South Gippsland South Gippsland, a region of Gippsland in