Recent datasets

Stereo Baited Remote Underwater Video Stations (BRUVS) were deployed and retrieved across targeted shallow seabed environments within and adjacent to the proposed Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (CMR) in the Timor Sea. The survey concentrated on shelf habitats (< 200m) of the Oceanic Shoals CMR and included potential biodiversity hotspots such as pinnacles, banks and shoals.

Towed video surveys were carried out in targeted shallow seabed environments within the proposed Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (CMR) in the Timor Sea. The survey concentrated on shelf habitats (< 200m) of the western part of the Oceanic Shoals CMR and included potential biodiversity hotspots such as pinnacles, banks and shoals. In total, 52 towed video transects were collected at depths of between 31 and 129 metres.

Stereo-Baited Remote Underwater Video Stations (BRUVS) were deployed and retrieved in targeted shallow seabed environments within the proposed Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (CMR) in the Timor Sea. The survey concentrated on shelf habitats (< 200m) of the western part of the Oceanic Shoals CMR and included potential biodiversity hotspots such as pinnacles, banks and shoals. In total, 56 stereo-BRUVS were deployed between 31 and 77 metres for one hour according to a regular random sampling design, with minimum spacing of 400 m to ensure independence among samples.

Stereo-Baited Remote Underwater Video Stations (BRUVS) were deployed and retrieved in targeted shallow seabed environments within the proposed Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (CMR) in the Timor Sea. The survey concentrated on shelf habitats (< 200m) of the western part of the Oceanic Shoals CMR and included potential biodiversity hotspots such as pinnacles, banks and shoals. In total, 56 stereo-BRUVS were deployed between 31 and 77 metres for one hour according to a regular random sampling design, with minimum spacing of 400 m to ensure independence among samples.

Towed video surveys were carried out in targeted shallow seabed environments within the proposed Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (CMR) in the Timor Sea. The survey concentrated on shelf habitats (< 200m) of the western part of the Oceanic Shoals CMR and included potential biodiversity hotspots such as pinnacles, banks and shoals. In total, 52 towed video transects were collected at depths of between 31 and 129 metres.

This dataset contains hillshading derived from the Digitial Elevation Model (DEM) dataset: Australian bathymetry and topography grid, June 2009 version 4 by Geoscience Australia. This dataset also contains the original DEM converted to a GeoTiff. The hillshading was produced using the gdaldem tool. The rest of this documentation is based on the metadata of the Australian bathymetry and topography grid itself. This grid is available from GA at http://dx.doi.org/10.4225/25...9B6581B9A .

This project will enable reduced DIN exports from cane lands by developing and promoting a tested framework for commercial insurance businesses to underwrite risk of nitrogen practice change in sugarcane farming. We will work with insurance, other relevant businesses and, potentially, government to determine the methods and precision for assessing risk.

This project will scope opportunities for water quality credit trading, and develop trading frameworks for managing nitrogen and sediment along the Reef coast. The objective is to determine whether trading in water quality credits can cost-effectively offset emissions increases from future economic expansion, whilst ensuring that end-of-catchment pollution loads stay within designated nitrogen and sediment limits. The project will also estimate how revenues from credit trading could potentially stimulate rural economies and create jobs by incentivising innovative business opportunities.

In pursuit of delivering multiple benefits across multiple ecosystems such as freshwater estuaries, wetlands and reefs, this project will work in partnership with industry, extension, NRM, research and government organizations to develop and deploy an irrigation system that is automatically controlled by remotely accessing feedback from the IrrigWeb decision support tool. Irrigweb provides optimal irrigation schedules on a paddock-by-paddock basis by linking information about climate, soils and management regimes.

State and Federal agencies are funding many GBR wetland system repair projects (Mungalla wetlands $1.2M; Reef Trust/Greening Australia $4M; Restoring Burdekin Coastal Ecosystems $837K; Roundhill Creek wetland/FHA $65K, Babinda Swamp Constructed Wetland ~$1.97M). The problem is no scientific data evaluates their success; this project partners with NRMs to fill this R&D gap. Using advanced scientific hydrological and ecological techniques we will generate data to evaluate repair efforts, providing surety to government funding agencies.

Report cards are used at various levels to summarise and communicate complex information on GBR health. The effectiveness of Reef Plan is communicated through the annual Reef Report card. In the Reef Report Card, marine water quality is reported using a metric, developed in 2009, based on satellite remote sensing of near surface concentrations of chlorophyll and total suspended solids. This provides a wide spatial and temporal coverage of marine water quality.

This project will derive ecologically relevant targets (ERTs) for water quality and sediment loads by: 1) defining seagrass desired state targets; 2) calculating water quality guidelines (light); and 3) calculating ERTs for terrestrially sourced sediment loads. Historical and new data collections will be used to derive ERTs via statistical models and eReefs (RECOM), and the seagrass sub-model in eReefs will be used to test ERTs.

This project addresses the urgent need to understand and monitor the aesthetic value of the Great Barrier Reef. Focusing on the fast-changing underwater systems of the Reef, this research will use advanced technology (including eye tracking and heart rate measurement) to elicit what environmental and experiential attributes contribute to aesthetic value. A Big Data platform using artificial intelligence will be created to assess large volumes of visitor supplied imagery and to map aesthetic value across space and time.

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This project extends project 2.1.3 which contains an analysis of communications to land holders for the Reef Trust Tender – Burdekin and The Reef Programme concerning readability, message framing, message tone and visual imagery, factors that significantly impact on message acceptance, engagement and adoption of recommended behaviours. The analysis identified that: 1. Material is written in too complex language; 2. Message tone may be a barrier; and 3. Visual imagery may have unintended effects.

A key criteria for inscription of the Great Barrier Reef as a World Heritage Area is Criteria (VII) – exceptional natural beauty & aesthetic importance. Our project will work across social and ecological disciplines to identify, for the first time, indicators that will enable managers to measure and monitor aesthetic values for the GBRWHA.

This project will deliver two outcomes: (i) understanding of how water quality (WQ) exposure affects the ability of corals to resist and recover from bleaching, (ii) a modelling framework to identify management options that would mitigate the effects of warming on reefs exposed to WQ pressures. Using SeaSim experiments and field data, we examine which WQ parameters (nutrients/light/turbidity) affect corals’ thermal tolerance, and assess how temperature and WQ exposure histories affected coral bleaching and recovery during the 2016 bleaching event.

Over 50 land-sourced pesticides have been detected in waters of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) and its catchments. Previous studies on the risks posed by pesticides have focused on five priority PSII herbicides. However, other pesticides are increasingly being used, for which there are few fate, persistence and toxicity data. In order to improve water quality guidelines and assessments of the potential risks posed by these “alternate” pesticides to GBR and its catchments we will quantify their toxicity to freshwater and marine species.

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Crown-of-thorns starfish (COTS) management requires decisions be made about where to invest control effort in order to achieve regional scale objectives, e.g. to modify COTS spread or to facilitate coral recovery. However, no objective basis for choosing sites exists, beyond their economic importance, meaning that achieving these important goals is largely left to chance.

This study uses evaluation of past investments to demonstrate effectiveness, and enable improved targeting, of riparian remediation works for reducing streambank erosion to achieve improved water quality outcomes within the Great Barrier Reef.

Alluvial gullies have been shown to be major sources of fine sediment and nutrients to the GBR lagoon, and yet to date there is no accepted practice as to how these major pollution sources can be stabilised and rehabilitated.