Project Overview

Marine Environments in Western Australia

Western Australia’s marine environment contains the greatest diversity of ecosystems in Australia. It stretches for over 12 000 km, through some 20 degrees of latitude, from wave-battered temperate reefs dominated by kelp in the south to low energy, coral reefs and mangrove-fringed mudflats in the north.

Effective management of this diverse range of marine ecosystems requires an understanding of the different habitats found along WA’s coast and the plants and animals that are associated with these habitats. Most importantly, we need to start building an understanding of the distribution and extent of these different habitats as well as  the potential influences that human activities may have upon them.

Over the last 50 years we know that marine habitats in many parts of the world have fundamentally changed. However, most people measure the oceans’ health against their recent memories and thus the true scale of global change remains unclear. Western Australia’s marine environment is in relatively good condition compared to most places in the world. However, if we are to manage the changes that are likely to occur as our use of the marine environment continues to grow, we need a clear picture of the ocean’s depths.

Why Marine Futures?

The Securing WA’s Marine Futures project evolved out of a shared, identified need for baseline information on the WA marine environment. This was highlighted by the Natural Resource Management (NRM) regional groups, which deliver NAP and NHT programs at the regional level.

Each of the regions in WA were charged with the development of strategies to manage the natural resources in their respective areas. In order to measure the success of the regional activities, the groups set ‘resource condition targets’ or RCTs.

For example, from the South Coast Regional Investment Planning Team Strategy
 - “RCT C2 Maintain and improve condition and diversity of marine habitats, as determined at representative sites within each subregion, by 2020, with quantifiable target set by 2006.”

It was within this process that all the regions seemed to come across a common theme; they were challenged to develop measurable and accurate targets as there was very little comprehensive, ecosystem-based information available on marine resources.

Hence all the NRM regional groups, with the assistance of the Australian and state governments developed the Marine Futures project. This provided a solid, collaborative platform in which to develop the project – as the outcomes are useful for such a wide range of resource users and managers.

The Marine Futures Project

The focus of the Marine Futures project on mapping the dominant marine habitats and conducting biodiversity surveys in order to enhance and expand our understanding of the marine environment. 

First, the Marine Futures project is producing detailed maps of the seafloor at the selected sites. Each map will be state-of-the-art, and will provide information on the distribution and extent of the different habitats and the organisms associated with them. To produce these maps, the team undertakes a series of hydroacoustic, towed video and biodiversity surveys at sites scattered down the west and south coast of WA. The project expects to generate maps for approximately 1,000 km2 of WA’s marine environment.  

The habitat maps and biodiversity information will be used to develop a practical and cost-effective “how-to” guide for monitoring the condition of key marine resources based on a strong understanding of what the identified indicators tell us about the marine environment and the influence of human activities has upon marine systems.

In addition to these information outcomes, community capacity for marine resource management will be increased by the project through awareness building programmes that form a key part of the study. There will also be a focus on community participation in the priority setting and research as well as the collection of data.

These outputs will form the basis for identifying key marine indicators and supporting regional NRM groups in establishing targets for maintaining the quality of their marine ecosystems. Upon its completion in June 2008, this project will produce the first comprehensive cross-regional assessments and maps of key southern and western Western Australian marine habitats.