Its narrowest point is at its southern opening, with a width of about 20 km (12 miles) between the islands of Lombok and Nusa Penida, in the middle of the strait.

[4] When sea levels dropped during the Pleistocene ice age, the islands of Bali, Java and Sumatra were all connected to one another and to the mainland of Asia.

Accompanied by its flora and fauna is its marine habitats which vary in water temperature, its presence of volcanic and limestone sediments, local freshwater inflow between creeks, sandy reef slopes, and strong currents.

[6] According to the results obtained from a coral reef expedition conducted by the National Museum of Natural History-Naturalis Leiden, in partnership with the Research and Development Centre for Oceanology of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (PPPO-LIPI), Jakarta, and the WWF Indonesia-Wallacea Bioregion, Bali in April 2001, the coral reef fauna of the Lombok Strait was one of the most diverse and richest in the world.

[3] When sea levels dropped during the Pleistocene ice age, the islands of Bali, Java and Sumatra were all connected to one another and to the mainland of Asia.

[8] The bacterial strains existing in Indonesian waters, including the Indian Ocean and the Lombok Strait, degrade polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

The formation of the Lombok Strait is influenced by oceanic tidal mixing, heat content of the water masses, and seasonal changes.

[10] Tidal mixing in the waters of the Indonesian archipelago is particularly intense due to the rough topography in the Lifamatola, Manipa, Ombai, and Lombok Straits, and the Sibutu Island chains.

This is because numerical simulations have shown that there is a large conversion of semidiurnal M2 barotropic to baroclinic internal tides surrounding the Nusa Penida Sill (NPS).

Climate change occurs as the Indonesian Throughflow (ITF) contributes to the contained heat content in the strait and its sea surface temperatures (SST).

The location of the strait causes the heat content of the water masses to be influenced by the monsoon season in Asia, and El-Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) which are climate phenomena.

[2] Moreover, the monsoon season from December to May causes precipitation to occur and fresh water to form at the Java Sea, which in turn, influences the salinity of the Lombok Strait.

[13] The Lombok Strait features strong semi-diurnal tides of ~90 m in amplitude with a distance of 30 km from the Nusa Penida Sill (NPS).

[14] Issues particularly affecting the Lombok Strait include: piracy, illegal fishing, human trafficking, smuggling of goods, armed robberies and terrorism.

[14] Maritime threats experienced by Indonesian waters is due to increasing economic development in the Asia-Pacific region, making Asia the most vulnerable place in the world in terms of security.

As part of the internal policy in 2019, the Lombok Strait was announced to have been intended to be established as a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA).

In response to these arising maritime issues, the Indonesian Government has proposed to establish Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas (PSSA) in its internal policy.

[16] Establishing the Lombok Strait as a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA) contributes to the growth of the tuna fishing industry.

Healthy marine resources such as tuna breeding grounds further contribute to the growth of the tourism industry, as a result of establishing the Lombok Strait as a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA).