Traditional Management Roles

ƒ DPI Fisheries – harvest fisheries, marine pests, marine threatened species, marine habitats Monitoring & managing marine biodiversity in the region ƒ OEH – pollution, oceanography, coastal erosion, oil spill response

Bob Creese ƒ Marine Parks Authority – marine conservation

ƒ NSW Maritime – boating, moorings, port functions Sydney Coastal Councils March 2013 ƒ Coastal CMAs – various support activities

ƒ Coastal councils – foreshore structures

Harvest Fisheries in NSW ƒ Commercial Fisheries – Small scale (1000 fishers, $90 M), multi-species, multi-sector, very complex management arrangements (FMA), challenging compliance

ƒ Recreational Fisheries – Large and diverse (1 million fishers, $500 M), fishing fee, simpler mgt

The NSW Marine Estate NSW MPAs ƒ 1300 km of coastline CBMP = 22,740 ha ƒ extends 5.6 km offshore SIMP = 71,100 ha

ƒ tiny part of Aust’s ocean PS-GLMP = 97,700 ha jurisdiction (13.5 million sq km)

LHIMP = 48, 000 ha ƒ 184 estuaries; various types

ƒ 6 large Marine Parks JBMP = 21,450 ha ƒ 12 small Aquatic Reserves BMP = 86,000 ha

1 Knowledge exercises 2002-10 Mapping aquatic habitats & species ƒ Broadscale biodiversity assessments • indicator for MER Estuaries (eg extent of seagrass) – 2002–2005; options for new Marine Parks in NSW • indicator for MER Marine (eg extent of kelp beds) ƒ Marine Biodiversity Decline report – 2008; initiative of former MACC • indicator for MER Invasive Species (extent of Caulerpa) ƒ Review of Marine Park Science in NSW • is an ongoing activity for OEH & DPI – 2009; lead to revised MP research framework (2010-15) • joint Seabed MappingMapping project in 2008/09 ƒ Marine Knowledge reviews • mapping provides opportunity to integrate knowledge – NR-CMA in 2007; HCR-CMA in 2010 ƒ Fisheries Resource Assessments – 2006–2007, 2009-10; status & trend in fish catch ƒ Seabed Mapping reports – Estuaries 2009; Marine 2010 ƒ MER Technical reports – Marine 2010; Estuaries 2011

Offshore habitat mapping; swath acoustics + ground-truthing What are key estuarine habitats? (DECCW component of Seabed Mapping project 2008-09) 1. Natural physical features – Deep holes – Sand bars or mud banks – Rocky reefs

Patchy Ecklonia dominated reef Sponge reef >45 m depth

Mapping Mapping subtidal rocky subtidal rocky reef habitats reef habitats in Sydney in Sydney Harbour Harbour

2 What are key estuarine habitats? What are key estuarine habitats?

2. Man-made physical features (non deliberate) 3. Man-made physical features (deliberate) – Jetties or pontoons – Artificial reef balls in Lake Macquarie – Breakwalls – Oyster racks

What are key estuarine habitats? Life in the Seagrass 4. Biological features 1. Harvested Fish – Mangrove forests - Saltmarsh – Seagrass beds - Algae

3. Protected fish

4. Introduced Caulerpa 2. Epizootic animals

C. taxifolia in Sydney area C. taxifolia in Sydney Harbour; still present but • 2000 • 2001 very patchy • Sydney Harbour 2001 • 2000

3 Estuarine macrophytes in Sydney region Estuarine macrophytes in Quibray Bay

Changes in Pittwater Extension - Historical comparisons

Seagrass in Sydney Harbour, eastern Rose Bay 1940s 2000s

Careel Bay Total changes across the 6 sites in Pittwater

1940s 2000s %Change 1940s-2000s (ha) (ha) Increase Decrease Natural vegetation 711.44 403.22 - 43.32 1940s 2000s Agricultural land 93.89 0.00 - 100.00 Residential area 113.20 506.37 347.32 Recreational area 20.22 77.30 282.30

Saltmarsh 36.03 1.45 - 95.98 Mangrove 7.40 16.32 120.54 Seagrass 220.16 157.85 - 28.30

4 Extension – predictive seagrass modelling

Fine scale mapping using helicopter imagery; 2010-

Target species/habitats for rocky shore helicopter mapping A recent example of seagrass mapping in Sydney Harbour Hormosira banksii Turfing algae Caulerpa filiformis

Pyura stolonifera Kelp (Ecklonia radiata) ‘Barrens’

Scientific Audit recommendations (egs) • Delivered February 2012 ƒ Coastal management under a new Authority • 16 recommendations; 2 principal ones ƒ All NSW marine science overseen by new independent body • Further submissions closed 30 June 2012

••NSWNSW Govt response to be ƒ More consideration of social & economic issues released March 2013 (today?) ƒ Further use of analytical tools in MP zoning • Heralds ‘different approach’ ƒ More emphasis on threat & risk assessment

ƒ Further extension of MER system

5 Threat Activities

Key philosophies Resource use Fishing (Commercial, recreational, indigenous, plus illegal, unreported and unregulated ƒ CAR system is no longer the main guiding principle Aquaculture

Dredging and spoil dumping ƒ Management responses should relate to identified Mineral, oil, gas exploration and extraction threats – ‘insurance argument’ not sufficient Shipping ƒ Community values are as important as biological Tourism considerations Land based Diffuse and point-source pollution impacts

Marine Pests and disease ƒ The entire ‘Marine Estate’ should be managed biosecurity holistically, not as discrete spatial units Marine pollution Oil spills, marine debris

Climate change Sea level rise, acidification, increased temperature, storm events

Soft-sediment Rocky reef Vegetated Unvegetated Ecological Risk Assessment - Marine Biodiversity in NSW Human Pressures Deep Salt- Shallow Intermed (>60m) Shallow Intermed Deep marsh Mangrove Seagrass Intertidal (<25m) (25-60m) Intertidal (<25m) (25-60m) (>60m) Aims Resource use Recreational Shore and fishing boat based Commercial Ocean Haul fishing 1. Identify all sources of risk from human perturbations to marine biodiversity Ocean Trawl

Ocean Trap and Line 2. Assess level of risk to marine biodiversity from the identified human Lobster

Abalone perturbations; based on literature as much as possible

Estuary General Estuary 3. Identify and prioritise issues to be addressed to reduce level of risk Prawn Trawl

Recreation and tourism Dredging 4. Recommend management action / further research to enhance ecological Aquaculture resilience to human perturbations to maintain / improve protection of MBD Land based Foreshore impacts development Sewage outfalls Based on approach of Astles et al 2009, Astles 2011 Stormwater/ catchment run- off Marine biosecurity Pollution Shipping and Comm. marine vessels incidents Climate change

Threat & Risk Assessment - Marine Biodiversity in Sydney Future mapping, monitoring and other Harbour assessments in the Sydney region, 2013 - ƒ The new approach to managing the NSW marine • Finalise report on temporal changes to estuarine estate being announced today can, and should, be macrophytes. applied to the Sydney region as much as to other • Develop framework for characterising seagrass bioregions where MPs already exist. condition • Continue mapping other habitat features – rocky reefs, bathymetry, sediments ƒ A current SIMS initiative provides an excellent • Extend biodiversity assessments platform on which to progress thinking and data collection around this approach as a “case study” • Link with offshore habitats for the Hawkesbury Bioregion. • Extend models for predicting occurrence • Assess ecological, social & economic values associated with Sydney Harbour (part of SIMS SHRP)

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