Objectives

The broad objectives of the Ecosystem Assessment Program Plan 2014-2018 are to:

• Monitor and report on the condition and trend of key habitats in NSW estuarine, marine and fresh waters
• Improve our understanding of key aspects of ecological connectivity in marine and freshwater ecosystems
• Identify, measure and monitor ecological resilience in NSW marine and freshwater ecosystems
• Investigate priority areas identified by the assessment of threat and risk in the marine estate

Current projects

Current projects in the  Ecosystem Assessment Program Plan are listed below within each of the four research themes; marine estate condition monitoring and evaluation, freshwater condition monitoring and evaluation, ecological connectivity, and ecosystem resilience.

Marine estate condition monitoring and evaluation projects

• Monitoring of fish assemblages on intermediate depth reefs
• Anthropogenic impacts on shallow rocky reefs
• Monitoring of sessile assemblages on deep rocky reef using AUV’s
• Functional responses of rocky reef communities across continental scales
• Improving prediction of rocky reef ecosystem responses to human impacts
• Spatial and temporal variability of macrophytes

Freshwater condition monitoring and evaluation projects

• North coast fish monitoring program
• NSW MER – Riverine Theme
• Murray Darling Basin Plan survey 2014-2018
• Basin Plan Environmental Outcomes Monitoring (BPEOM)
• Koondrook-Perricoota Forest TLM icon site condition monitoring
• Barmah-Millewa Forest TLM icon site condition monitoring
• Monitoring the Australian bass fishery in NSW: “Bass Catch”

Ecological connectivity projects

• Effect of marine park zoning on the abundance of Pagrus auratus (snapper) on rocky reefs
• Evaluation of the effectiveness of the Tallowa Dam Fishway
• North coast fish monitoring program

Ecosystem resilience projects

• Ecological resilience of temperate coastal and marine ecosystems

Further information

Research Leader - Marine Ecosystems, Alan Jordan Ph: (02) 4916 3926

A/Research Leader - Freshwater Ecosystems, Craig Boys Ph: (02) 4916 3851