Estuaries and coasts
This program aims to understand the dynamics and function of estuarine and coastal environments (out to the continental shelf) and its links with anthropogenic activity in a multiple use management framework.
Understanding how fishing, aquaculture, introduced species, harmful algal blooms, contaminants and bio-accumulation pathways and environmental flows affect the productivity and integrity of estuarine and coastal environments underpins research activity in this program.
A core component of this program is an inter-disciplinary research capability that underpins our understanding of the impacts of climate change on marine resources ultimately providing knowledge to support decision making at community, industry and government levels.
Our Challenge
Coastal zones are under enormous pressure from population growth, pollution, extractive uses including commercial and recreational fishing and aquaculture, habitat degradation and climate change.The global challenge is to determine ways of optimally using our coasts and estuaries so as to achieve sustainable industries and coastal communities, as well as delivering inter-generational equity that ensures that future generations reap the social and economic benefits that sustainable management can deliver.
What are coastal zones and why are they important?
- Coastal zone extends to the continental shelf
- Covering approximately 8% of the world's surface area.
- Accounts for about 25% of global productivity
- Represents 90% of the world fish catch
- Major region of global biodiversity
- Provide ~14% of world animal protein
- Nearly 50 million people directly or occasionally engaged in fisheries or aquaculture
- In the last three decades, employment in the primary fisheries and aquaculture sector has grown faster than the world's population and employment in traditional agriculture
- Overall economic value estimated as ~40% of the value of the world's ecosystem services and environmental goods and services
- 70% of the world's population is adjacent to the coast
- Two-thirds of the world's cities occur on the coast
(Source: FAO and Greenfacts)
Staff List
- Jason Beard - Technical Officer
- Amanda Bates - Research Fellow
- Yvette Barry - Redmap Communications Officer
- Rebecca Brown - Redmap Communications Officer
- Christine Crawford - Senior Research Fellow
- Ruth Eriksen - Phytoplankton Taxonomist
- Stewart Frusher - Program Leader
- Elsa Gärtner - Program Support for Estuaries & Coasts
- Vanessa Lucieer - Research Fellow
- Catriona Macleod - Senior Research Fellow
- Gretta Pecl - Senior Research Fellow
- Andrew Pender - Technical Officer
- Ingrid van Putten - Research Fellow
- Lisette Robertson - Senior Technical Officer
- Jeff Ross - Research Fellow
- Jemina Stuart-Smith - Research Fellow
Current Projects
- Atlantic Salmon Aquaculture Subprogram
-Evaluation of approaches to improve sediment remediation (rate & function) under salmonid fish cages.
-Assessment of the environment impacts and sediment remediation potential associated with copper contamination from antifouling paint and associated recommendations or management.
-Clarifying the relationship between salmon farm nutrient loads and changes in macroalgal community structure/ distribution (Existing Student Support)
Staff: Catriona McLeod, Jeff Ross, Andrew Pender, Ruth Erikson - Multiple lines of evidence to identify key trophic accumulation pathways of mercury in estuarine foodwebs
Staff: Catriona McLeod, Edward Butler, Hugh Jones, Lisette Robertson, Kerrie Swadling - Tracking methyl mercury contamination pathways in key commercially and recreationally fished species
Staff: Catriona McLeod, Edward Butler, Hugh Jones, Kerrie Swadling - Tracking of Elasmobranch prey species as evidence of key trophic accumulation pathways of Mercury (Hg)
Staff: Catriona McLeod, Hugh Jones, Kerrie Swadling, Sean Tracey - A risk assessment tool for managing coastal bays and estuaries
Staff: Jeff Ross, Christine Crawford - Developing cost-effective industry based techniques for monitoring puerulus settlement in all conditions: trials in southern and western Tasmania
Staff: Stewart Frusher, Greg Timms, Rodney Treloggen - Remote sensing for marine ecology and conservation: New technology and methods for mapping Giant Kelp distribution
Staff: Vanessa Lucieer - Your Marine Values Study (Stage 1 of INFORMD2)
- INFORMD2
Climate Change Related Initiatives
Flyers
- Preparing for climate change on marine systems in Australian and IndiaExecutive Summary
- A climate change adaptation blueprint for coastal regional communities
- Networking across Global Marine Hotspots
- A Global Network of Marine Hotspots
- What is Redmap?
Project
Reports
- Risk Assessment of Impacts of Climate Change for Key Marine Species in South Eastern Australia: report part 1 & part 2
- East Coast Rock Lobster Fishery Case Study to support a 'First pass' National Climate Change Coastal Vulnerability Assessment (NCVA)
- Preparing for Climate Change on Marine Systems in Australia and India- Executive Summary
- Preparing for Climate Change on Marine Systems in Australia and India- Full Report
Related links
PhD Projects
- Aquaculture expansion (technology)
Student: Andrew King
Main supervisor: Catriona Mcleod - Multiple paternity in octopus
Student: Anneli Fügetti
Main supervisor: Gretta Pecl - Abundance, distribution and conservation value of sharks in the Galapagos Marine Reserve
Student: César Peñaherrera-Palma
Main supervisor: Jayson Semmens, Stewart Frusher - Modelling predator/prey interactions under climate change: implications for a key commercial fishery in Tasmania
Student: Felipe Briceño
Main supervisor: Gretta Pecl - Hg Bioaccumulation
Student:Hugh Jones
Main supervisor: Catriona McLeod - Life-history and population dynamics of the range extending Octopus tetricus Gould, 1852 in South-eastern Australia
Student: Jorge Ramos
Main supervisor: Gretta Pecl - DNA dietary techniques to understand lobsters role in the ecosystem
Student: Kevin Redd
Main supervisor: Stewart Frusher - Macroalgal / aquaculture interactions
Student: Luis Henriquez
Main supervisor: Catriona McLeod - Image Recognition Techniques, incorporating Deformable Shape Models, for Automated Data Collection in Fisheries Applications
Student: Mark Knights
Main supervisor: Stewart Frusher - Relationship between Fish Population and the Physical Structure of Australia's Temperate Reefs in Response to Marine Protection
Student: Matthew Cameron
Main supervisor: Vanessa Lucieer - Climate change and Northern Pacific Ecosystems
Student: Mike Litzow
Main supervisor: Stewart Frusher - Sediment monitoring & remediation (Aquaculture)
Student: Nigel Keeley
Main supervisor: Catriona McLeod - Macroalgal / aquaculture interactions (modelling)
Student: Scott Hadley
Main supervisor: Catriona McLeod - Studies on the ecology/biology of Maoricolpus roseus
Student: Tobias Probst
Main supervisor: Christine Crawford - Enhancement of lobster populations
Student: Ziya Kordjazi
Main supervisor: Stewart Frusher