Recreational fishers and commercial guides fear being locked out of some of Western Australia's most pristine waters under state government plans to protect the Exmouth Gulf as a marine park.

Premier Roger Cook said last week the conservation area would encompass all 2,600-square-kilometres of the gulf , with 30 per cent to be designated as no-catch sanctuary zones.

Andy Sutton has fished in the Exmouth Gulf for 22 years, where he leads sport and fly-fishing tours.

He said the lack of detail around the 30 per cent figure was "unnerving".

"We can lose a lot out of this, and it's all going to depend on where this 30 per cent is," Mr Sutton said.

He believes smaller charters were overlooked in the three years of advisory work by the Exmouth Gulf Taskforce, which counted international p

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