Gippsland Research, Education and Discovery Centre: Feasibility Study

Prepared by: Lance Lloyd, Michelle Graymore, Jessica Reeves, Adam Trewarn Faculty of Science and Technology, Federation University

Status: Final Version: 5 Date: 24/12/2015

Table of Contents

1. Introduction ...... 4

1.1. Background ...... 4

1.2. Lakes Catchment ...... 5

2. Summary of Literature Review ...... 7

2.1. Environmental scan ...... 7

2.2. Knowledge Gaps ...... 8

2.3. The role of Citizen Science in Gippsland Lakes...... 10

2.3.1. What is citizen science? ...... 10

2.3.2. What citizen science initiatives are there in Gippsland Lakes? ...... 10

2.4. Models used for research and education centres and hubs ...... 12

2.5. Stakeholder Survey Summary Results ...... 14

2.5.1. Biggest environmental challenges for the Gippsland Lakes Region ...... 14

2.5.2. Biggest social challenges for the Gippsland Lakes Region ...... 14

2.5.3. Biggest economic challenges for the Gippsland Lakes Region ...... 14

2.5.4. What are the three main challenges? ...... 14

2.5.5. Local, state and national policies or strategies ...... 15

2.5.6. Education and Training Gaps...... 15

2.5.7. About the Centre? ...... 17

3. Rationale for a Centre ...... 20

3.1. Principles for a Centre ...... 20

3.1.1. Partnerships ...... 20

3.1.2. Coordination ...... 20

3.1.3. Identifying Knowledge Gaps ...... 20

3.1.4. Research ...... 21

3.1.5. Knowledge Sharing ...... 21

3.1.6. Citizen Science ...... 21

3.1.7. Education ...... 21

3.1.8. Employment Pathways ...... 21

3.1.9. Tourism ...... 21

3.2. Objectives of a Centre ...... 22

4. Alternative Models of a Centre ...... 24 4.1. Online Presence only ...... 24

4.2. One Physical Location and an Online Presence ...... 25

4.3. Multiple Physical Locations and Online Presence ...... 26

4.4. New Facility Purpose Built (with Online Presence) ...... 27

4.5. Evaluation of Options ...... 27

5. Conclusions ...... 29

5.1. Recommendations ...... 29

5.2. Next Steps ...... 30

6. References ...... 32

7. Appendices ...... 33

Appendix 1: Environmental Scan for the Gippsland Lakes 2012-2015 ...... 34

Appendix 2: Education or discovery centres ...... 50

We acknowledge the Gunaikurnai people, traditional owners and custodians of the land and waters of the Gippsland Lakes region, and pay our respects to their Elders past and present. In particular, we pay tribute to the Brayakaulung, Brabralung, Krauatungalung, and Tatungalung clans, whose custodianship is a vital part of the heritage, knowledge and future management of the Gippsland Lakes. 1. Introduction This report is part of the project, Gippsland Lakes Centre of Excellence Feasibility Study, funded by the Gippsland Lakes Ministerial Advisory Committee (GLMAC) through the Gippsland Lakes Environment Fund and Catchment Management Authority (East Gippsland CMA). The Feasibility Report outlines the information gathered about the feasibility of a research, education and discovery centre focused on the Gippsland Lakes region, through stakeholder consultation and an environmental scan and literature review. A draft report was presented to stakeholders at a regional workshop in November 2015 to refine the options proposed for a centre and help define the next steps for the proposed centre. Thus, this report also contains the recommendations for a proposed Gippsland Lakes Research, Education and Discovery (RED) Centre, as well as the next steps for the development of this proposed centre.

1.1. Background The role of the Gippsland Lakes Ministerial Advisory Committee (GLMAC) was to advise the ministers on the implementation of the Gippsland Lakes Environmental Strategy (GLES) and on the coordination of government to maintain a healthy Gippsland Lakes, and raising public awareness and understanding of the Lakes. Thus, to help them achieve these aims, the GLMAC felt that there was a need to have a research and training vehicle, such as a Research, Education and Discovery Centre, that:

• connects research on the Lakes and the region with the local community

• provides opportunities for community to be involved in the research and environmental monitoring

• develops pathways for local youth to get excited about the Lakes, and the potential for employment, they provide through schools programs connected to researchers

• provides educational opportunities in environmental science, aquatic science, social science, and land and water management.

The Gippsland Lakes Ministerial Advisory Committee (GLMAC) was due to cease operation on 30 June 2015, but its term has now been extended for a period of up to five years. The committee’s name has been changed to the Gippsland Lakes Coordinating Committee (GLCC) and its Terms of Reference revised to reflect the work that has already been completed by the GLMAC and to provide a more targeted focus on improving the environmental condition of the Gippsland Lakes.

Federation University (FedUni) was approached, as the university in the Gippsland Lakes region located in Churchill, to develop a feasibility study for a Research, Education and Discovery Centre for the Gippsland Lakes that could provide such services to the region. FedUni are well placed to take a lead on developing a centre due to our location and our commitment to high quality research addressing the environmental, social and economic health of the Lakes to support the long-term sustainability of the Lakes and its community. Further, we are committed to fostering economic and social advancement through the provision of high quality education, training, and research in the region.

There is already a significant amount of research occurring in the Gippsland Lakes region by a number of universities (e.g. RMIT, University and Monash University), Department of Environment, Water, Land and Planning (DEWLP), Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources (DEDJTR), Fisheries Victoria, Museum Victoria and others. Thus, a Research, Education and Discovery Centre will not only carry out research to fill the knowledge gaps, but look to bring together research being carried out by others and connect it to the local community and help provide opportunities for local schools and communities to be involved in research. It will also coordinate education opportunities in the region, working in partnership with other institutions, industries, communities and local government and incorporate a strong element of direct community participation and social enterprise. Further, it will aim to inspire pathways for young people into education and work in and around the Gippsland Lakes.

In partnership with the GLCC, researchers and the Gippsland community, including local government and industry, this Centre would act as a leading resource for the research and training required to address the environmental, social and economic needs of the Gippsland Lakes community.

This project will assess the feasibility of the proposed Gippsland Lakes Research, Education and Discovery Centre through consultation with local community, including GLCC, East Gippsland and West Gippsland Catchment Management Authorities, Fisheries Victoria, DEWLP, DEDJTR, Commonwealth Department of Environment, Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation, local industries (including tourism), businesses (i.e. One Harvest, VegCo, GippsDairy, Patties Pies, Esso, GDF SUEZ Hazelwood), Landcare Network, Field and Game, Fishcare, WaterWatch and other community organisations, schools, Federation Training and other universities working in the region, and others identified through stakeholder analysis.

The objectives of this Feasibility Study were to:

• Identify the knowledge gaps and the potential for new or extended research areas

• Identify demand for a Centre of Excellence focussed on research and educational pathways for the Gippsland Lakes and its community

• Determine the scope for the proposed Centre;

• Provide recommendations on the feasibility of a Gippsland Lakes Centre of Excellence, including role, functions, structure, cost and funding options

This Feasibility Study provides clear and compelling rationale for the development of Research, Education and Discovery Centre, so that it can be established with a strong research, education and community engagement profile, making it evidently viable and able to ‘hit the ground running’ as a major regional development venture.

1.2. Gippsland Lakes Catchment The Gippsland Lakes are a series of coastal of King, and Jones Bay and fringing stretching from Sale Common in the east to Lakes Entrance, including Lake Tyers, covering an area of 60,000 hectares (see Figure 1). The lakes and wetlands are connected to the Southern Ocean through a narrow, artificially maintained channel at Lakes Entrance (EPA, 2015). The catchment contains the drainage basins of the Tambo, Mitchell, Thomson, La Trobe, Avon, Nicholson and Macalister rivers. The Lakes support a diversity of wetlands with high conservation values listed under the . The region also provides habitat for resident and migratory waterbirds, many fish species and the rare Burrunan dolphin (EPA, 2015). There are also important Aboriginal cultural and heritage sites and values in the Catchment ranging from landscape features to burial grounds and middens.

The catchment includes the urban areas of Sale, Traralgon, , Morwell, Warragul, Lakes Entrance, Licola and Omeo, as well as other small towns and localities. The economy includes agriculture, commercial and recreational fisheries, tourism and industry including extensive coal mining and power generation in the east and the . As a consequence, the catchment has been extensively cleared, particularly in the west. This has resulted in issues with nutrient loads and algal blooms in many parts of the catchment.

With a range of different ecosystems, management organisations, industries, and communities with a stake in the health and functioning of the Gippsland Lakes, the audience for a centre in the region will include all the management agencies with a role in the management of the region, local government, businesses and industries located in the region, community groups, schools and other education providers, as well as the Gunaikurnai people.

Figure 1: Map of the Gippsland Lakes (top) and catchment (bottom). (Source: EGCMA, 2015; EPA, 2015)

2. Summary of Literature Review

2.1. Environmental scan The types of research uncovered in the environmental scan include research focused on understanding the value community places on the local environment, community perceptions of different aspects of the environment, citizen science programs, climate change impacts and perceptions, as well as research focused on the environment itself. The purely environmental research includes water quality issues, such as sediment and nutrients and their management on farm, algal blooms and factors that cause them, , wetlands, biodiversity issues such as fish, seagrass, water rats, birds and dolphins and vegetation. A summary of each research project is provided in Appendix 1, as well as a link to the research report, if available.

The environmental scan shows that in recent years there has been some focus on understanding community values and perception of the Gippsland Lakes environment and its health, environmental remediation strategies and stewardship and climate change. These cover many aspects of the Gippsland Lakes and their catchment from public perception of a ‘healthy ’, community enjoyment within the environment, to the lived values of the region and how they might impact climate change adaptation and rising sea levels. There also appears to be some push to ensure community values are considered in future planning for the region. Further, there are a number of different citizen science programs being used to collect information more widely than would be possible with traditional research approaches. These programs also contribute to building scientific knowledge and skills, and a broader appreciation of the environment in the wider community.

Whilst there is a continued focus, in some capacity, on the overall health of the Gippsland Lakes and their catchment, it appears that much of the environmental related research being undertaken has shifted from quality assessment (pre-2012) to source identification, factors influencing algal blooms, management strategies, remediation and risk assessment. Yet, there are still significant gaps in knowledge relating to contaminants within the system. There is little to no current data available on the concentrations, chemical form, source and risk these contaminants may present in the region. Although there are some previous biological studies on heavy metals levels in bream and the local Burrunan dolphin populations.

It is interesting to note that through the process of developing this environmental scan it was difficult to access a lot of the information with many published journal articles not available to the general public. While many reports published by local stakeholders, such as the Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) and councils can be found on their respective websites they still require some searching to find. In addition, there are a number of other research projects being carried out in the region that we could find no reference to publically. Thus, there are some gaps in this environmental scan. This lack of readily available information means that members of the community, including managers and industry, who are interested in knowing more about the major challenges for the region and what they might do to help, would have significant trouble locating the information, if they could indeed access it at all.

Furthermore, this lack of readily available information has also lead to significantly fragmented research within the region. Many projects appear to be completed independent of one another even when there are obvious links between projects. Thus this environmental scan points to the need for a more coordinated approach to research in the region that would ensure that related projects work collaboratively to ensure a more comprehensive building of knowledge to address the major challenges for the region.

Another significant finding from this environmental scan is there appears to be a lack of public awareness and knowledge on the current state of the Gippsland system, or the region’s fauna and flora. This highlights the need for a mechanism to help raise local community’s knowledge of the Gippsland Lakes and their associated biodiversity. Thus, this environmental scan demonstrates the need to have a knowledge hub with associated community awareness and citizen science programs where research and other local knowledge can be shared between community, industry and businesses and research organisations. This will help the community to become be more connected to, and help build their knowledge about, the Lakes and their catchments. This will also enable people to find ways where they may be able to help contribute to maintaining their health into the future, either through citizen science programs or using the findings of research as a basis for developing management strategies for their property, business or council area.

Although, there have been some attempts to create online knowledge bases relating to the Gippsland Lakes region, many of these have become out-dated and fragmented as they do not have access to all the research conducted in the region. The most comprehensive knowledge base related to the Gippsland Lakes region is the ‘Love our Lakes’ website (www.loveourlakes.net.au). While this is an example of a somewhat effective online knowledge and community engagement base, it still has substantial gaps in what research it contains and you are not able to search the site effectively. Thus, it is important to have a continuing dedicated online knowledge base that provides access to all the research that is occurring in the region, as this, combined with community awareness and citizen science programs, would dramatically increase the knowledge and engagement of the whole community.

2.2. Knowledge Gaps The environmental scan demonstrated that although there has been significant inroads into filling some of the major knowledge gaps identified in the Gippsland Lakes Environment Strategy in 2012, there are still some significant gaps in our knowledge about the Lakes and their catchment. Further, it became apparent from the stakeholder consultation that although some of these knowledge gaps have been filled, to some extent, awareness of these gains in knowledge is limited. Thus, they still represent gaps in the community’s knowledge.

The key knowledge gaps for the region identified here include:

• the social, economic and ecological impacts of algal blooms,

• salinity management options and their social, economic and ecological impacts,

• levels of contaminants, their chemical form, source and risk they present in the region,

• sediment and nutrient movement, cycling, and management options,

• ecological impacts of climate change and associated extreme weather events,

• effects of stormwater and human waste on water quality of the Lakes, and

• key wetland habitats and fauna.

It has to be noted that for many of these issues, the knowledge gaps have closed somewhat since the GLES was published. For example, there is now a large body of work on the factors that influence blue-green algal blooms, particularly Nodularia spemigena Mertens blooms, as well as on sediment and nutrient cycling related to these blooms. However, there still appears to be a knowledge gap in how this information can be used to improve management of nutrients in the Gippsland Lakes and thus, how to better manage or reduce algal blooms. Thus, in this report, we have identified these issues as a gap in knowledge; however, the gap may have moved from knowing about the issue to how to translate this knowledge into management actions that are effective in addressing the problem.

A recent literature review on the water quality of the Gippsland Lakes by the Environmental Protection Authority of Victoria, identified significant gaps in knowledge around the water quality of Lake Reeve and the fringing wetlands (EPA, 2015). They suggested that the information currently available is insufficient to understand trends and conditions in these wetlands.

Other gaps in our understanding of the Gippsland Lakes and their catchments and their role in the community were also identified (see Figure 2). For example, the role of that the health of the Lakes play in community resilience, including social and economic resilience, and the impacts of climate change related extreme weather events on community health and wellbeing and economic development are both areas where there are gaps in knowledge for the Gippsland Lakes region.

Figure 2: Knowledge gaps in the Gippsland Lakes region related to the environment and community

Further, there are a number of gaps related to local environmental knowledge including:

• community perceptions and values of the Lakes, their catchment, and their condition and the influence on management,

• public awareness of the local environment and its condition,

• use of local knowledge (including Indigenous knowledge) in decision making,

• role of knowledge of the local environment and threatening process on private land management practices and community behaviours that influence the Lakes condition,

• role of local environmental knowledge on career aspirations and pathways,

• impact of citizen science programs on community local environmental and scientific knowledge and participation in natural resource management processes in the region.

All the knowledge gaps identified here need to be addressed to help ensure the health and functioning of the Gippsland Lakes system in to the future to enable the Gippsland Lakes community can continue to enjoy the Lakes region. This is also vital for the Lakes system to continue to support the community’s quality of life and continued economic development and to increase community engagement in the monitoring and management of the Lakes system. 2.3. The role of Citizen Science in Gippsland Lakes

2.3.1. What is citizen science? Citizen science is a where community members are involved in gathering scientific information for a range of different projects from bird surveys to monitoring water quality (Bonney et al., 2009). Projects which use citizen science have a number of benefits. They provide concerned citizens with the opportunity to collaborate with researchers to monitor or track or respond to environmental issues (Conrad and Hilchey, 2011). At the same time the provide researchers with access to places that they might not be able to access including private land as well as providing more data from a larger number of places, and more frequently, than a group of researchers could have collected by themselves (Dickinson et al., 2010). Thus, it has increased the scale of ecological field studies enabling continent- wide centralised monitoring efforts and large coordinated field experiments, as well as large longitudinal studies (Dickinson et al., 2010).

Citizen science gets people out into environment and inspires people to appreciate nature and scientific research (Cohn, 2008). It also increases the community’s scientific literacy, providing people with scientific skills and knowledge, increases environmental democracy and knowledge sharing, enables people to be involved in local environmental issues and increases social capital connecting people in the local community and building leadership and problem solving skills (Conrad and Hilchey, 2011). Thus, citizen science helps build skills and knowledge in the community and empowers people to be more engaged in local issues and decision making. It also provides useful data for scientific discovery and decision making. Many large scale projects around the world would not be possible without citizen scientists (Cohn, 2008).

2.3.2. What citizen science initiatives are there in Gippsland Lakes? For Gippsland Lakes, citizen science can contribute to addressing vital knowledge gaps. Consequently, there are already a number of citizen science initiatives in action in the Gippsland Lakes region. These include the recent Museum Victoria ‘Summer of Wildlife’ where community were invited to participate in bioscans in different locations around Gippsland to help build an understanding of the biodiversity in these locations, Bug Blitz which engages school children and their teachers in science in the field and encourages students to share their learning and discoveries via art, and Birdlife Australia which enables community to be involved in bird surveys in their local area (see Table 2 for further initiatives).

To raise awareness of these opportunities and provide community members and schools with further opportunities to be involved in citizen science programs, a centre could provide a space for advertising programs and connecting interested people and schools to the scientists involved. It could also provide a space for citizen science groups to meet and store their equipment. A virtual hub (website) will also provide a portal for both contributing and accessing information.

Table 1: Citizen science initiatives located in or providing opportunities for the Gippsland community

Citizen science Description Who Where initiative

Bug Blitz Bug Blitz encourages, promotes and Bug Blitz Across Gippsland Lakes supports a three stage learning process: i.e. Sale, Heyfield, 1. Field science 2. Holistic studies Rosedale, Longford, theme in the school 3. Student's sharing Yarram, Licola their learning and discoveries via The Arts. One program is Mountain to the Sea which encourages people to share their discoveries online in BowerBird

Museum Victoria Three weekends of scientific discovery Museum Victoria Lakes Entrance, Summer of Wildlife where citizen scientists could team up Paynesville, Eagle Point, with scientists and experts to participate Sale Common, Stratford in surveys of the region’s wildlife and Nyerimilang

EnviroStories Supports students to learn about their PeeKdesigns Across regional Victoria, local area and encourages them to write including in schools in East a story about it. Gippsland such as Lakes Entrance, Paynesville and Gippsland Grammar (Bairnsdale Campus).

EstuaryWatch A community based estuarine Estuarywatch and Coal Creek and monitoring program with West West Gippsland Estuary Gippsland CMA that focuses on water CMA quality and events such as mouth openings enabling community to load photos and data information

WaterWatch A community engagement program Waterwatch and Various locations across connecting local communities with river West Gippsland Gippsland health and sustainable water CMA and East management issues including water Gippsland CMA quality and biological monitoring

CoastCare Community helping to maintain our DELWP Various locations across marine and coastal environment, Gippsland through activities such as monitoring native shorebirds and animals, presenting education and awareness raising sessions and other activities

Birdlife Australia East Conducts birding outings and surveys Birdlife Australia Across East Gippsland Gippsland and runs several birding camps for East Gippsland members and community

SeaSearch A community-based monitoring program Parks Victoria Looking for more locations for the marine national parks and currently, has been at sanctuaries. There are a range of activities for individuals, schools and groups on the shore and in the water

Great Victorian Fish A weekend fish count enlisting Victorian National Focus on different locations Count snorkelers and divers to record fish Parks Association and species each year, species and abundance in Marine and Parks such as Bunurong Marine National Parks Victoria National Park

FeralScan Community program to map various Invasive Animals Open to community across feral animal sightings including rabbits, CRC Australia to record Mynas, wild dogs and foxes. sightings

2.4. Models used for research and education centres and hubs There are different models that have been used for centres or clusters that focus on research and education in a specific region, system type or issue in Australia that could be used in the Gippsland Lakes region. The three main models are education or discovery centres, research clusters and cooperative research centres (CRCs). An overview of the role and focus, structure and funding models are described for each in Table 3.

The most common education focused model is the education or discovery centre (see Appendix 2 for a list of these). These offer education at a variety of levels, from school programs, VCE subjects, short courses to tourist experiences, such as tours and walking programs. These centres often have research embedded in them and can include monitoring programs utilising volunteers or citizen science programs. The most common funding model for these is government funded, often the Department of Education, but also through industry, philanthropic, and research and development corporations (i.e. Fisheries RDC). In both and there are 25 Department of Education centres (see www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/env_ed/centres and education.qld.gov.au/schools/environment/outdoor), while there are only six specialist science centres in Victoria. Currently, Victoria is lacking an education centre with a catchment to coast focus, particularly in Gippsland, supported by state government, so there is some opportunity for a Gippsland Lakes Centre to fill this void.

For Research Clusters and CRCs, formal education plays a smaller role. They both provide informal knowledge sharing functions with their industry partners and the wider community, as well as provide more formal education opportunities to postgraduate students through research degrees.

Research clusters are a common model used in Europe, with the European Union supporting the establishment of a range of clusters focused on regions and specific sectors. These clusters are partnerships between industry and research institutions that provide a favourable space for innovation, knowledge sharing and exchange, to fill knowledge gaps around a specific region, sector or issue. They are funded by all levels of government initially (over several years) with the aim that they will be self-sustaining based on project income once established. The idea being that having initial funding from government produces stability in funding enabling research to be developed and driven by industry to fix specific issues. There are a few research cluster examples in Australia, such as the CLLAMMecology Research Cluster (which closed in 2009) and the Wine Innovation Cluster.

The Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) model is similar to the Research Clusters model, in that they are a partnership between industry and research institutions. However, they were funded through both government and industry funds over a specific time frame, which in some cases was able to be extended. This has led to the demise of many CRCs, but some have found industry support that has enabled them to become a self-sustaining entity after the government funding had ceased (for example eWater CRC which is now a publically owned not-for-profit organisation).

Table 2: Models for research and education centres or cluster

Type Role and focus Structure Funding model

Education or Education and training at multiple levels (i.e. Physical location with Many in discovery school programs, tourist focused tours or labs, teaching areas, Queensland and centres programs, short courses), some embedded often with café, visitor New South Wales research and monitoring centre and gift shop funded by and associated Department of natural areas or trails Education; others depending on focus of funded through Focus: Marine, Estuary, Biodiversity, Wetlands, the centre volunteers, Indigenous heritage, Conservation, Sustainability philanthropy, industry (Safcol Tuna and FRDC) and Lottery West

Research Sector specific, regional concentrations of Physical location, or Funded by Clusters industry and research institutions linked to locations, where national, state and provide a favourable environment for innovation, industry and research local government knowledge sharing and exchange, fill knowledge institutions to begin and then gaps collaborate to fill become self- knowledge gaps. Can sustaining by be co-located on focusing on research institute specific projects Focus: a range of fields and industries. campuses. within the region or Examples: The Future Ocean industry (http://www.futureocean.org/en/cluster/index.php) and the Great Lakes Integrated Sciences + Assessments Centre (http://glisa.umich.edu/home) and the CLLAMMecology Research Cluster and Wine Innovation Cluster (http://www.wineinnovationcluster.com/) in Australia

Cooperative Brings together researchers in public and private A number of physical Funded by national Research sectors with the end users linking researchers locations co-located government with Centres with industry and government. Filling gaps in on research partner knowledge and sharing knowledge with industry (CRCs) institutions, industry contributions; partners, and enables industry to set the research directions. Education of postgraduate research institutions Stability of funding students are partners in the provides certainty CRCs with activities for the research are managed by a partners in management team particular and also Focus: Sector, system type or issue focused. and Board to for the end-user Examples: CRC for Water Sensitive Cities, maximise the national partners Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC and Antarctic benefits Climate & Ecosystems (ACE) CRC

2.5. Stakeholder Survey Summary Results A targeted stakeholder survey was used to gather stakeholder input into the feasibility study to determine if there was an appetite for a Research, Education and Discovery Centre in the Gippsland Lakes region, and if so, what the stakeholders felt such a centre should provide for the region. The stakeholders were asked what they thought were the biggest challenges for the region related to the Gippsland Lakes and their catchments, what gaps there are in education, what they would like a centre to do, what it should look like and how they might contribute to such a centre. In particular, the questionnaire focuses on whether stakeholders think a regionally based research or education centre would be a good idea, and if so what its role and functions should be. The survey was sent to over 200 stakeholders, with 23 responses across a range of organisations including education, community groups, fisheries and marine, environmental management, agriculture, tourism and local government. Discussions with key stakeholders supported the findings of this survey. A summary of the results is provided here.

2.5.1. Biggest environmental challenges for the Gippsland Lakes Region The respondents gave a wide range of opinions about what the biggest challenges are for the environment in the Gippsland Lakes regions from salinity issues to vegetation loss, overfishing and risks of fracking and mining. The most common response was impacts of inappropriate urban and business development and related population growth. This was followed by the impact of climate change on the lakes, sea level rise, extreme weather events and adaptation. Other issues mentioned were inflows into rivers and streams, impact of tourism and boating, fire reduction burns, overfishing, introduced species such as European Carp and marine species and general water quality.

2.5.2. Biggest social challenges for the Gippsland Lakes Region The respondents felt that there were a number of big social challenges related to the Gippsland Lakes. A lack of employment opportunities for young people and Indigenous people, unemployment, under employment and lack of skilled jobs were the most common challenge mentioned. The other commonly raised issue was a lack of knowledge in the community about the Lakes and associated lack of interest in the Lakes.

2.5.3. Biggest economic challenges for the Gippsland Lakes Region Many different economic issues were raised by the participants. The most mentioned issue (a third of respondents) was the lack of funding available for monitoring, research, restoration or protection of the Lakes system. The second most mentioned issue was the region’s dependence on tourism as the main economic activity, and the issues that this produces for small business that have a high throughput during peak tourism times, but struggle at other times of the year.

2.5.4. What are the three main challenges? Climate change impacts, water quality and pollution and loss of species or habitat were the three main challenges chosen by respondents with nine or more responses (see Figure 3). Nutrients and sediment loss and air pollution did not receive any votes by the respondents. Stream flows Economic development Public transport Social Inclusion Inequality Waste Management Cost of living Employment more generally Mental health issues Loss of species or habitat Crime Air pollution Health issues Algal blooms Nutrients and sediment loss Lack of training or education opportunities Jobs for youths Climate change impacts Water quality and pollution 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 Number of responses

Figure 3: What are the three main challenges for the region? (n=23)

2.5.5. Local, state and national policies or strategies Sixteen people provided information about local, state and national policies or strategies that relate to the Gippsland Lakes. The covered areas such as fisheries, environmental health, health and medical services, environmental protection, water, agriculture, education, employment, regional development and planning (see Figure 4). By far, environmental policies or strategies were mentioned the most, including National Landcare Program, Regional Catchment Strategies, Ramsar Convention, strategies related to the Victorian Coastal Council and the Gippsland Coastal Board, Parks Victoria Management Strategy, Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act, EPBC and the National Parks Act.

18 16 14 12

10 8 Count 6 4 2 0

Figure 4: What local, state and national policies or strategies are you aware of that relate to the Gippsland Lakes? (n=16)

2.5.6. Education and Training Gaps Overall, more than a third of respondents felt that there were gaps in training and education pathways in the region related to the Gippsland Lakes and their catchment at all levels of education (see Figure 5). That is primary school, secondary school, TAFE, short courses and tertiary levels. More than fifty percent of respondents felt there was a lack of information about the pathways for careers related to the Lakes and their catchment, while nine people felt there was a lack of opportunities for secondary school children to learn about the local environment and a lack of TAFE level courses.

14 12 10 8 6 4

Number of of Number responses 2 0 Primary school Secondary TAFE level Short courses Pathways for Tertiary level Other children to learn school children courses related related to land careers related courses related about the local to learn about to land and and water to the Lakes and to land and environment the local water management their catchment water environment management management

Figure 5: What do you think are the main gaps in training and education pathways for careers related to the Lakes and their catchment? (n=23) Note: each option was ‘a lack of…’

Fifteen people highlighted specific education and training gaps they had identified in the region. These covered short skills workshops and courses, community awareness programs, school programs, TAFE and university level programs. There were some comments about the gaps in education brought about by the closing of TAFE’s locally and the reduction in programs. However, the specific gaps mentioned were:

TAFE/University courses:

• seafood production and seafood biology

• hydrology

• environmental and conservation programs, i.e. diploma of conservation management

• coastal engineering and coastal processes

• agricultural science with an environmental conservation component

• work placements for TAFE and university students

Short courses:

• in-house training for all agencies

• short skills workshops on weed management, such as biosecurity, cleaning vehicles, weed identification and use of chemicals

• impacts of climate change (could be community-based)

• alternative power sources (could be community-based)

• research and on-ground tools and methods for conservation management and rehabilitation

Community-based awareness programs: • natural resources and the environment and the need to look after them both

• catchment management

• public health risks, i.e. with blue green algae

School related:

• professional development for teachers in environmental science/management

• issues with the cost of transport being a barrier, therefore need local sites for environmental education

• full day a week environmental program for field trips with a small group of students to not disrupt other classes, funding excursions and including more students an issue, and ability for other schools to timetable a full day.

Overall, almost all participants were positive about the concept of a centre on the Lakes to fill the gaps identified above. They felt they would get many things from the Centre (Figure 6) including a place to get research questions answered, to identify issues for the region, to get information on the Gippsland Lakes and to provide and share knowledge and data about the Gippsland Lakes.

Other

A place to go to get your research questions answered

A place to get further education

To find out more information about education and training opportunities To find out more information about career pathways available in the region

Use it help identify issues for the region

Share knowledge, stories and photos with others

Provide data and knowledge about the Gippsland Lakes region

Get information on the Gippsland Lakes region

0 5 10 15 20 Number of responses

Figure 6: How would you like to interact with a centre? (n=23)

2.5.7. About the Centre? The most preferred option for what the Centre should look like, with over fifty percent of respondents, was ‘a building with resources and people’ (see Figure 7). ‘A virtual knowledge hub with one physical location’ being the second most preferred option. The least preferred option was ‘a virtual knowledge hub’.

Other

It should be a virtual knowledge hub with multiple locations around the region

It should be a virtual knowledge hub with one physical location

It should be a number of buildings located around the region with people and resources

It should be a building with resources and people

It should be a virtual knowledge hub

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 Percent

Figure 7: What should the Centre look like? (n=23)

By far ‘discovery centre’ was seen to be the best name descriptor with over 40% of the vote (Figure 8). While ‘centre of excellence’ was the next most preferred name with over 20%. ‘Hub’, ‘Cluster’ and ‘Centre’ are not favoured as names with two or fewer people picking these are their favoured name.

45 40

35 30 25 20 15

Percent of respondents 10 5 0 Hub Centre of Discovery Centre Cluster Centre Other Excellence

Figure 8: Which of the following words do you think best describe the place you have envisaged while answering this survey? (n=19)

‘Research’ and ‘education’ were the two functions most favoured by the respondents, with all bar one participant choosing both of these options (Figure 9). This was followed by ‘training’ and ‘knowledge sharing’ with 19 and 18 respondents respectively. While around half of respondents felt ‘discovery’ and ‘innovation’ would also be key roles for the Centre.

One other suggestion worthy of note was a focus on community engagement and input with the idea of a network hub as a ‘physical manifestation of broader collaboration by all key groups’.

25

20

15

10

Number of respondents 5

0 Research Education Training Knowledge Discovery Innovation Other sharing

Figure 9: Which of the following words do you think describe what the 'Centre' you envisage will do? (n=23)

The majority of people felt that ‘Gippsland Lakes’ should appear in the name (Figure 10). While ‘land and water’ was also favoured by over half of the respondents, as were ‘catchments’ and ‘ecosystem’. The least favoured options where ‘marine’ and ‘coastal’.

20 18

16 14 12 10 8 6

Number of respondents 4 2 0 Gippsland Lakes Land and water Marine Ecosystem Catchments Coastal

Figure 10: Which of the following words do you think best describes the focus of the 'Centre' you envisage? (n=23)

With the responses in mind, we are suggesting the proposed centre be called the Gippsland Lakes Research, Education and Discovery (RED) Centre. The stakeholders at the workshop in November and other presentations around the region agreed that this is a suitable name for the proposed centre.

3. Rationale for a Centre Our work with stakeholders, and reviews of existing centres around Australia, has led to a series of objectives and principles for a Gippsland Lake Research, Education and Discovery Centre (Gippsland Lakes RED Centre), which are described in the following sections.

3.1. Principles for a Centre Nine principles have been identified that should be used to establish the elements and objectives for a centre. These include:

o Partnerships

o Coordination

o Identifying Knowledge Gaps

o Research

o Knowledge Sharing

o Citizen Science

o Education

o Employment Pathways

o Tourism

3.1.1. Partnerships Partnerships should be at the core of the Centre’s operation. These partnerships need to be developed between and amongst, industry, community, schools, indigenous groups, researchers, higher education providers and volunteers. A board, selected from key stakeholders, could manage the Centre with a principal role of identifying and establishing partnerships.

3.1.2. Coordination Coordination of research is critical for the Centre to achieve its objectives. It should coordinate research but also could coordinate other aspects relating to the education and discovery elements of the Centre. This is important, especially for research as the lack of coordination in the past has meant that research inputs and outcomes have not been optimised and local managers have not had ready access to all the data and information that was available from this research. The research coordination would go across as much as possible all the research, data gathering and investigations commissioned by the partners in the Centre. This should be beneficial not only for the regions managers but also researchers as they should be able to get access to extensive local knowledge and interactions. Knowledge transfer will need to be coordinated in both directions.

3.1.3. Identifying Knowledge Gaps Identifying knowledge gaps and new research projects is ultimately an important role that a local centre can perform. This would occur through community consultation and stakeholder workshops to get inputs and agreement. The Centre would act as a knowledge broker, connecting community, agency and industry knowledge gaps with higher education researcher and citizen science solutions. 3.1.4. Research Research is a core function of this Centre, although detailed and extensive research projects may not be possible in the early operation of the Centre as the coordination role in the first year of operation would take precedence. However, it is imagined that the Centre’s direct role in research will expand over time as funding and expertise grows. A key role of the Gippsland Lakes RED Centre would be to act as a coordinator of projects between research institutions and the broader community. Further, the Centre would offer shared research facilities with researchers across our partners and others to further facilitate and coordinate research in the region, and providing a research base for the Gippsland Lakes. This would also allow visiting researchers to contribute to Centre activities and provide information sessions to the public and stakeholders.

3.1.5. Knowledge Sharing Knowledge sharing will be an important function. The Centre will allow researchers from other locations to present their work in the region to assist its uptake locally. The Centre will allow the community and other researchers to access information collated and stored by the Centre. It will also provide a space for community, industry and business to share their local knowledge with each other to build a comprehensive repository of information about the Gippsland Lakes region. This will occur via informal discussions, seminars, community conferences, local databases and through an accessible and interactive website.

3.1.6. Citizen Science While citizen science is not a central role for the Centre, it could provide a “home” for citizen science groups (Frog Watch, WaterWatch, etc.) where equipment and records could be stored, opportunities can be advertised, meetings held and training could take place. Provision could be made on the Centre’s website to host the databases these groups collect. This would benefit the Centre’s work as well as those groups of citizen scientists. Further, these programs operating out of the Centre would allow some coordination and integration with school programs.

3.1.7. Education Another core function of the Centre is education. The investigations undertaken by this project has identified multiple gaps in the education area. The Centre would develop programs with schools, TAFE and University partners to meet local educational needs and allow local students to have pathways for best-practice secondary, post-secondary and tertiary courses within the region. Further, the Centre could support Summer-school programs (at Secondary and Tertiary level) to allow students to gain intensive and specialist education and experience, and make the most of the range of living laboratories located in the Gippsland Lakes region.

3.1.8. Employment Pathways By demonstrating the linkages between the Lakes Ecosystem, interconnection with the catchment and the industries (including tourism) of the region, the Centre will provide obvious pathways for students to gain education that results in employment within the region (and elsewhere). The linkages created with industry partners will be one mechanism for this as will be the training and education courses the Centre provides. Providing some citizen science and green tourism opportunities may allow for seasonal (initially) employment for young people and others which may represent a pathway to further employment opportunities.

3.1.9. Tourism While the Centre may not in itself be a tourism centre, it has the potential to the “first port of call” for visitors to the region to discover the Lakes, its catchments and the industries it supports. The Centre’s core functions may not include undertaking tourism activities but over time, the information sharing and discovery aspects of the Centre’s operation will itself become a tourist attraction. Visitors from the region and elsewhere will increasingly use the Centre as part of their experience within the region. This may generate spin-off enterprises in the tourism area which may utilise some facilities at the Centre under some form of agreement, providing an additional income source for the Centre.

3.2. Objectives of a Centre A Gippsland Lake Research, Education and Discovery Centre (Gippsland Lakes RED Centre) would have multiple objectives in terms of the outcomes and benefits it would achieve and how it would operate. These include:

o The Centre would focus upon the Gippsland Lakes and its catchments, as well as all the natural resources, communities and industries that this area supports.

o The Centre’s role in Research would be to coordinate existing research, identify future research needs and proactively seek funds to create new collaborative research projects focussed on the Gippsland Lakes system.

o Education would be achieved through programs developed with schools, TAFE and University partners to collaboratively develop courses to meet local educational needs and allow local students to have pathways for best-practice secondary, post-secondary and tertiary courses within the region. The Centre needs also to support, through training opportunities, the economic activities in the Lakes, namely, tourism, fishing (commercial and recreational), maritime safety, marine engineering, boating, Oil and Gas sectors, Ports and economic development.

o Discovery will be achieved through use of the region’s living laboratories and development of materials, courses and activities that will translate the research learnings of the Centre (and other research) to be accessible to a wide range of users from managers, through citizen scientists, school children and the broader public. This may also include eco-tourism, green experiences, and citizen science opportunities for visitors.

o A sense of place should be created, through the provision of at least one physical location for researchers, educators and the community to meet, work and share information.

o Extension of the reach of the place through the use of an interactive website which would allow online collaboration, collation and sharing of information and data as well as informing participants and the wider community about progress and news.

o The Centre will have a high level of community engagement and local agency involvement and partnerships. Local buy-in will be essential for the long term success of a Centre, so a significant number of local agencies, businesses and organisations should be involved and actively supporting its establishment and ongoing operations. This engagement should take place through some representation on a board of management and regular stakeholder forums.

o Indigenous knowledge sharing and education should form an important part of the Centre facilitated by strong partnerships with local indigenous groups and individuals. The Gunaikurnai have already expressed their wish to have a presence at the Centre.

o The Centre will be a long term project building from a core operation to a larger entity, through staged growth, over time through a mix of foundation funding, partnership funding and project funding.

o The Centre will have a broad range of activities, functions and funding to ensure its long-term viability. o The Centre should create jobs at the Centre and also within the community to provide support to the Centre and other knowledge and environment industries. In addition, it will inspire children to follow career pathways in natural sciences and within their region.

4. Alternative Models of a Centre Four alternative models are considered for a Centre to assess which model best meets the objectives and principles established earlier in the project. These include:

1. Online Presence only

2. One Physical Location and an Online Presence

3. Multiple Physical Locations and Online Presence

4. New Facility Purpose Built (with Online Presence)

Please note that the costings in this section are indicative only. These are provided to allow comparisons between options. The preferred option will be fully costed in the subsequent business case.

4.1. Online Presence only One option is the use of only an online presence (Option 1). The Love our Lakes website (www.loveourlakes.net.au and www.facebook.com/loveourGippslandLakes) forms a good basis for an excellent online presence. The website would need to contain a knowledge base, provide webinars, user guides and information sessions. To ensure it is interactive and helps build a community around the Gippsland Lakes, the website will also be a portal for people to contribute and access information, pose questions and raise issues that need addressing.

Examples of interactive websites are:

• http://spatial.federation.edu.au/

• www.ccmaknowledgebase.vic.gov.au/soilhealth/

• www.hulballarat.org.au/

• http://virtualsonglines.com.au/about/

• www.sense-t.org.au/

• http://www.bowerbird.org.au

To help with searchability of the website and to also enable people to find and add information about a particular location in the region, the portal will be GIS linked. Facebook and other forms of social media may be linked to the website to help promote the Centre and to alert people to new content and upcoming events.

The costs for implementing a GIS enabled and searchable (such as the Corangamite CMA Soil Health website www.ccmaknowledgebase.vic.gov.au/soilhealth) are about $30K. A more interactive site with more extensive graphical interface the costs are likely to be closer to $50K (sites similar to www.hulballarat.org.au/). Either online presence would need an annual maintenance cost of $2-3K per year maintenance, which would include a user guide, help desk, and selected additional functionality.

This option would also need some regular inputs from an educator or communicator to keep the website up to date, develop webinars, user guides, educational information for schools, information sessions and social media. This may mean an addition $20K-$30K per annum in costs to provide regular and updated content. The advantages of this option are that the online presence will provide a means to share and access knowledge, data and information about the Gippsland Lakes region, thus producing a one-stop-shop for information on the Lakes for managers, businesses and community groups. It could also provide information for schools and even tourists.

The disadvantages of this option are that there is no physical presence in the region, and thus, no central research or education centre for the community and limited activities in the region. Consequently, this option alone will not fill the demand for having a research and education centre focused on the Lakes. Nor will it provide two-way community engagement, or provide a space for indigenous sharing and education. It is also unlikely to lead to any new jobs in the region.

Thus, it is a feasible option but will only meet some of the objectives required. We consider the online presence to be a minimum component to each of the physical options.

4.2. One Physical Location and an Online Presence The SEAMEC facility at Lakes Entrance makes a logical location for a One Physical Location AND Online Presence option (Option 2) but other locations could be selected. The existing facilities at SEAMEC are under-utilised and the location is ideal for many activities proposed for the Centre. Further, this location would allow collaboration and integration with existing programs at SEAMEC and ForestTech.

A single location would need two staff to be located onsite, including a senior researcher/academic and an administrator/communicator/assistant to help run the programs proposed for the Centre.

The senior researcher would have the standing and expertise to provide coordination of existing research, as well as identifying future research needs working with local managers and the community. Over time the researcher and collaborators can proactively seek funds to create new collaborative research projects on the system. Specific programs might include a:

• Scientist in Residence program for visiting or paid scientists

• Lakes as a Living Laboratory program – a field program to utilise the range of aquatic habitats to undertake research and trials with local schools, a summer science camp and other activities

• The facilities could also be used as a location base for University research and teaching programs.

The education objectives would be achieved through programs developed with schools, such as a “science in school” programs. Collaboration with TAFE and University partners would be undertaken to develop courses to meet local educational needs and allow local students to have pathways for secondary, post-secondary and tertiary courses within the region.

The staff and partners could develop extension materials, courses and activities to translate the research learnings of the Centre (and other research) to be accessible to a wide range of users from managers, through citizen scientists, school children and the broader public.

A physical location would allow a meeting places for researchers, educators and the community enhancing options for community engagement and local agency partnerships. An indigenous meeting place could be developed to enhance indigenous knowledge sharing and education of the community. A physical location literally enhances the visibility of the project and the research – both within the local community and to visitors.

Programs would start small concentrating on coordination and dissemination of information before expanding research, teaching options and a broad range of activities, functions and external funding.

The online presence would have the same aspects as Option 1. The costs of this option are higher than Option 1 but it will provide many more benefits and outcomes. The costs would include the salaries for the two staff ($500K/yr based on full-time) and operating costs ($50K/yr), signage ($10K) as well as the website as in Option 1 ($50K). Funding needs to be for at least 5 years to allow the Centre to establish itself and becoming self-funding through provision of services, research and education.

Thus, the advantages of this option is that it will use infrastructure that is currently underutilised, provide a space for research and education programs, as well as indigenous and other knowledge sharing, have a level of community engagement and create some jobs in the region.

The disadvantages are that there will only be one location, limiting engagement with the wider Gippsland Lakes community, a limited number of jobs will be created and the amount of research and education programs will be limited by the small number of staff.

4.3. Multiple Physical Locations and Online Presence The aspects of this option is similar to Option 2 but requires various locations, which would lead to higher costs with additional staff required and higher operational costs. The multiple locations could be established at existing facilities at:

• Lakes Entrance (SEAMEC)

• Paynesville

• Churchill (FedUni)

• Traralgon (associate with WGCMA or visitor information centre)

• Bairnsdale (associated with EGCMA or visitor information centre)

• Sale (Port of Sale)

It is likely that at least one extra staff member will be required to allow for a regular presence at each location. It is also possible that each location could have a different focus (location dependent) building on a similar core operation or also developed from small level (Kiosk or Outreach Centre) to large Centre (SEAMEC). For example, the base Centre at SEAMEC would focus on the whole Lakes system, while a smaller kiosk or outreach centre at Sale, for instance, could focus on wetlands. Locations for the kiosks should be identified through consultation with the community, including Local Government and community groups to ensure that they will have community buy-in.

The small kiosks at some locations could be low cost and staffed by volunteers from a variety of partner community groups. The Y Water Discovery Centre (www.ywatercentre.com.au/) began operation as a small low cost operation and through a great deal of volunteer input and funding has expanded to become a major centre in the Goulburn Valley. While this is not a model for the Gippsland Lakes RED Centre, it could be a model for the outlying information kiosks.

With this option could be a bus to ferry school groups to the Centre or kiosks or other living laboratory sites for a range of science programs, including a fleet of kayaks for water-based investigations. Transport has been identified as one of the limitations for schools to participate in such programs.

The costs of this option are higher than Option 2 with additional staff costs ($750K/yr), additional operating costs (depends upon how many locations are chosen) and additional signage ($20K). However, the addition of small kiosks could be a staged process.

The advantages of this option are that there will be the ability to engage more widely with the Gippsland Lakes community with the multiple locations around the region. It will also be able to focus different locations on different aspects of the Lakes catchment, such as wetlands, mountains, coastal and marine. It will provide a larger number of jobs and volunteer opportunities. In addition it will be able to have a wider range of research and education programs, as well as a broader range of activities and functions compared to one location. Also having a number of locations will mean that more community groups will be able to make use of the space.

The disadvantages of this option is the higher cost involved with having multiple locations and a larger staff base. However, the cost of space for the Centre and kiosks can be minimised by co-locating with other organisations and by making use of spaces that are crown-owned and training volunteers to staff the kiosks in a part-time capacity.

4.4. New Facility Purpose Built (with Online Presence) This option would be similar to other options in operation but a new purpose built facility would be constructed to accommodate a growing Centre and all the functions required. The capital cost of this option would be very large (millions of dollars), additional staffing costs would be required including laboratory technical staff, a business manager and communication specialist, making this the highest cost of all options. A suitable location would also need to be identified. Paynesville could be an option here, as a more central location, growing population centre and focus on activity on the Lakes.

The advantages of this option are, if resourced sufficiently, it could have the largest variety of outcomes, with the potential for a range of collaborative research programs, education through, summer science programs on-site, courses at various levels through a partnership model, and research students. Further, this new facility could be linked to other sites around the region, as described in the Option 3. However, with existing facilities being under-utilised, this is potentially a high-risk option.

The main disadvantage of this option is the cost of building, maintaining and resourcing a new centre. Also, as already mentioned, it has a higher risk than the other options.

4.5. Evaluation of Options The various options meet the key objectives to various degrees but the Single Location and Online option provides the highest number of objectives met with only a moderate cost (Table 3). However, the Multiple Locations and Online option, although more costly, will provide a higher level of achievement of the objectives due to its wider reach and higher number of staff. This will enable a higher level of engagement, wider number of activities and functions, a higher level of research coordination and activity and education collaboration, as well as more jobs created. To reduce the costs of this option, it might be possible to use volunteers to man the kiosks/outreach centres at first, and then these may build into paid positions with time given popularity and funding availability.

Table 3: How each proposed model meets objectives for a Centre.

Objectives Option

Single Multiple New Online Location location and Building and and Online Online Online

Cost Low Moderate High Very High

Focus upon the Gippsland Lakes ** *** *** ***

Research coordination, identification and ** *** *** facilitating new research

Education collaboration with all levels of ** *** *** education

Information disseminated to managers, ** *** *** *** citizen scientists and the broader public

A sense of place is created *** *** ***

Extension of the reach of the place ** *** *** *** through the use of an interactive website

High level of community engagement ** *** **

Indigenous knowledge sharing and *** *** *** education

Long term project with staged growth ** ***

Has a broad range of activities, functions ** *** ** and funding

Job creation (direct and indirect) ** *** *** Legend: * = low level of achievement; ** = moderate level of achievement; *** = high level of achievement

5. Conclusions

5.1. Recommendations From the stakeholder consultation through the surveys, discussions and the stakeholder workshop there is a lot of support for a centre focused on the Gippsland Lakes with a role in research, education and sharing and translation of knowledge.

The option that has the most support from stakeholders is a main location with a significant online presence and a number of smaller, kiosk or outreach centres around the region. The most favoured place for the main centre is SEAMEC in Lakes Entrance where there are laboratories and offices that would be suitable for the Gippsland Lakes RED Centre. This Centre would take a holistic focus, looking at the whole catchment and its communities.

The online presence would consist of a spatial knowledge management system that contains knowledge on the Gippsland Lakes that can inform management actions, planning, school lessons, and community group actions. This system would enable sharing of information from a range of partners, including a platform for webinars, data entry and a GIS based searchable database.

The kiosks or outreach centres will be identified through consultation with community and centre partners to ensure community support and buy-in. These will be developed in a staged approach to reduce initial costs and also ensure the long-term viability of the Centre. During the stakeholder workshop, it was felt that one such location could be Sale at the new Port of Sale development. This kiosk could focus on wetlands, as there are many wetlands located in this part of the catchment.

In keeping with the Gunaikurnai ‘Whole of Country Management Plan’, Indigenous knowledge sharing and education will be embedded into the Centre, in full consultation with the Gunaikurnai Traditional Owner Land Management Board and Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation. The cultural identity of the Gunaikurnai is intertwined with the land, rivers and lakes of the Gippsland region and this connection will be honoured and celebrated at the Centre and outreach kiosks.

The role of the RED Centre would be to:

• Coordinate and conduct research in the region in collaboration with other research organisations

• To disseminate research findings through the online knowledge base, and through community forums, research seminars and webinars

• To provide education pathways for people that could lead to jobs in the region

• To provide education programs, in partnership with other education providers, focused on the Gippsland Lakes and connected careers.

• To inspire local youth to aspire to careers in the region connected to the Lakes through coordination of school programs, Summer Schools and living laboratory experiences

It is recommended that an initial term of at least five years of funding should be sort to ensure the Centre’s viability and sustainability in the short-term as it builds capacity and support. After this time it would be expected that the operations would have become self-sufficient.

The RED Centre as described here, will help GLCC meet its objectives in terms of improving, enhancing and protecting the Gippsland Lakes and their catchment through enabling access to data and information on the current condition of the Lakes, as well as on the current knowledge on how to best address the issues impacting on the health of the Lakes. The Centre will also enable GLCC to raise research questions that can be either addressed by researchers within the Centre or through collaboration with other researchers at other institutions, or if more appropriate passed on to other researchers. Furthermore, the RED Centre could provide staff development opportunities through a range of education programs developed in partnership with other training organisations.

In addition, the presence of the RED Centre will enhance job opportunities and environment and local industry-based career paths in the Gippsland Lakes region. The RED Centre can also facilitate targeted training to support these opportunities, such as fisheries, maritime safety, marine technology and design and emergency management. The presence of the RED Centre will also be a focal point for tourism, providing both a richer experience for visitors to the region and further job opportunities within the host town/s.

5.2. Next Steps Through the first 3-6 months of 2016, a business case and business plan will be developed for the preferred model of the RED Centre. This will be led by FedUni, but will also have active input from a representative advisory group, comprising key stakeholders in the Gippsland Lakes region. We will meet with the Committee for Gippsland and the Gunaikurnai Land and Water Aboriginal Corporation at the earliest possible opportunity in 2016 to discuss their involvement, as well as continued discussion with the GLCC. Funding is being sought from the remaining funds from the GLEF for the completion of this task. The business case will include:

• The vision and objectives for the RED Centre

• A description of the functions and activities the Centre will undertake

• Key stakeholders, including partners, collaborators, funders and clients

• S.W.O.T analysis of the Centre proposal and the market

• Business plan including funding sources, key objectives and functions, start-up costs for establishment and first five years and projections for long-term sustainability of the Centre.

The governance structure for the RED Centre will need to be determined and approved by the GLCC and other partners. Options for governance include:

1. Incorporated Sole Proprietary Entity: Within this organisational structure essentially FedUni establishes a company to manage and run the Centre. Within this model all the organisations that are party to the current GLCC agreement would become clients of the RED Centre.

2. Unincorporated Partnership: Within this organisational structure essentially all the organisations that are party to the current agreement would become partners and have equal share in the funding and liabilities of the RED Centre.

3. Incorporated Partnership: Within this organisational structure only key organisations would be responsible for funding and liabilities. The RED Centre operations would be outsourced in the main to FedUni as a service agent manager, with all profits put back into the RED Centre.

Option one presents a high risk to FedUni and possible alienation of other stakeholders, including University partners. Option 2 is more inclusive, but management and decision making may become cumbersome. Option 3 presents both an inclusive and representative option, but with agility in having one agency, FedUni, providing the function of service agent manager (see Figure 11). This is the preferred option.

GLREDC Board

Business Operations and running of GLREDC outsourced to FedUni.

Community Education Research Team Engagement/ Citizen Science

Figure 11: Preferred governance model for the RED Centre.

Adopting a similar model to the Westernport Biosphere program, the RED Centre would register as a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee and in turn, apply for deductible gift recipient status. For this we would need to set up a separate trust independent committee that can exercise the control of how the funds are spent. In the first instance, a representative board comprising the partners and key stakeholders in the region would be established. A core Board of Management, similar to that of the Murray-Darling Freshwater Research Centre, comprising of people with expertise from the partners, and other key stakeholders where there are expertise gaps, as well as a broader advisory panel, will be formed once the RED Centre was well established.

Various funding sources have been identified, particularly for the initial infrastructure and establishment costs. These include several schemes through Regional Development Victoria: Regional Jobs Fund and Regional Infrastructure Fund for Rural Development and Visitor Economy. We will also approach the Department of Education for development of schools programs and funding of the bus and kayak fleet. Once DGR status has been attained, we will also approach philanthropic organisations to support community programs, such as the Hugh Williamson, Foundation for Rural and Regional Development, Helen Macpherson Smith Trust, Norman Wettenhall Foundation and the Ian Potter Foundation.

The funding model for the ongoing business plan will likely include a component of annual fee for major users of the RED Centre, such as local government authorities, businesses and education institutions. We will also seek sponsorship from major businesses in the region, such as ESSO, AGL, Australian Paper, Devondale-Murray Goulburn and Gippsland Ports.

The vision, partners, stakeholders and clients, governance, functions and activities, costs and funding sources, as well as other required steps to establishment of the RED Centre will be examined and documented in the business case now underway.

6. References Bonney, R., Cooper, C.B., Dickinson, J., Kelling, S., Phillips, T., Rosenberg, K.V., Shirk, J., 2009. Citizen Science: A Developing Tool for Expanding Science Knowledge and Scientific Literacy. BioScience 59, 977-984.

Cohn, J.P., 2008. Citizen Science: Can Volunteers Do Real Research? BioScience 58, 192-197.

Conrad, C., Hilchey, K., 2011. A review of citizen science and community-based environmental monitoring: issues and opportunities. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 176, 273-291.

Dickinson, J.L., Zuckerberg, B., Bonter, D.N., 2010. Citizen Science as an Ecological Research Tool: Challenges and Benefits. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics 41, 149-172.

EGCMA (East Gippsland Catchment Management Authority), 2015. Gippsland Lakes Ramsar Site Management Plan, East Gippsland Catchment Management Authority, Bairnsdale.

EPA, 2015. Gippsland Lakes and catchment literature review. Environmental Protection Authority Victoria, Carlton.

7. Appendices

Appendix 1: Environmental Scan for the Gippsland Lakes 2012-2015 Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Community Dobbie, M. F. 2013. Public aesthetic • For sustainable wetland management, and understanding of community preferences for www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii perceptions preferences to inform Sustainable wetland wetlands in (sub)urban landscapes is needed /S0169204613001795. Management in Victoria, Australia. • Public aesthetic preferences were examined for freshwater wetlands in Victoria, Australia (restricted public access) Landscape and Urban Planning 120, 178– • 241 Participants recruited from community groups in 189 • They found that: o There were five wetland preference categories, with increasing preference from ‘brown grasslands’, ‘green grasslands’, ‘wetlands with emergent vegetation’, ‘wetlands with open water’ and ‘treed wetlands’ (p178). o Wetland attributes that defined preference were presence of trees, amount of water and perceived wetland health, in turn defined by water quality, vegetation lushness and relative proportions of land and water (p178). o Predictors of preference were perceived wetland health, complexity, orderliness and perceived naturalness (p178). o Preference for least preferred wetlands increased with respondents’ familiarity with wetlands (p178). Community Dobbie, M. & Green, R. 2013. Public • Uses visual stimuli for general public perceptions of wetland values and health. www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii perceptions perceptions of freshwater wetlands in • Uses general populations from primarily suburban populations instead of locals. /S0169204612003155 Victoria, Australia. Landscape and Urban • States that management should distinguish between casual perceptions and true ecological (restricted public access) Planning 110, 143-154 values. However both should be considered in future management actions. Community Gippsland Ports, 2014. Dredging- Port of • A factsheet with ‘self’ asked questions about the impact of dredging. www.gippslandports.vic.gov.au/pdfs/info/ perceptions Gippsland lakes; commonly asked • Suggests that extensive scientific studies of the Gippsland Lakes have been done, by CSIRO gippslandport_13.pdf Questions. Online publication. Accessed 29 and others, which show that the salinity of the Lakes is driven by rainfall and catchment April 2015 runoff not dredging. This is because the entrance and inner channels of the Gippsland Lakes act as choke-points for marine waters only allowing a certain amount of marine influence through a tidal exchange. • Estimates an average of 300,000 cubic metres and up to 750,000 cubic metres are dredged from the Gippsland lakes channels each year. • States that dredging of the entrance is done between the entrance training walls, the ocean bar and inner channels, and that the dredged material is placed in designated dredge material grounds in the shallow waters of the ocean beaches approximately two kilometres to the east and west of the entrance. • Also states that freshwater inputs are the main factor that influences salinity changes in the Gippsland Lakes. Community Gippsland Lakes & Catchment Taskforce • Survey of 152 local individuals. www.gippslandlakes.net.au/about-the- perceptions 2011. Community awareness Survey: Health • The key findings are: lakes-2/historical-research/survey- of the Gippsland Lakes Perceptions & o ‘Environmental issues’ of the Gippsland Lakes are valued as very important. report011-taskforce/ Marketing Survey. Gippsland Lakes & o The community perceived that the Gippsland Lakes are in ‘good shape’. Catchment Taskforce, Bairnsdale o The community has an increasing strong appetite for more information regarding the condition, health and management action of the Gippsland Lakes. o Community would prefer to receive information through the local Newspaper. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Community values GLEE, 2014. The community vision for the • The community’s vision is: glee.gippslandlakes.net.au/wp- Gippsland lakes and catchments. Gippsland o ‘To improve and protect the health of the Gippsland Lakes and catchment, and the content/uploads/2014/10/THE- Lakes E-Engagement (GLEE). Online life it supports, through effective natural resource management policies and COMMUNITY%E2%80%99S-VISION-FOR- publication, Accessed 29 April 2015 initiatives that will provide positive environmental, social and economic outcomes for THE-GIPPSLAND-LAKES-AND- the region. This will ensure current and future generations continue to enjoy and CATCHMENTS.pdf appreciate the land, water, plants and animals of the Gippsland Lakes and catchment.’ (page 1) • The Gippsland Lakes community has a strong connection to, and concern for the health of the Gippsland Lakes and its catchments • The condition of the Gippsland Lakes and its catchments were highly important to the community, followed by the health of the flora and fauna in the region. • Underlying these values were a strong social and cultural connection to the Lakes, which included recreational activities, custodianship of the Lakes appreciation, enjoyment of the natural landscape and water, and economic opportunities and development related to the Lakes. Economic value AECOM Australia, 2014. The economic value • This study assessed the economic impact of recreational boating in the Gippsland Lakes www.gippslandports.vic.gov.au/pdfs/repor of boating and marine industries associated region and compared the demand and supply for recreational boating infrastructure, ts/gippslandport_34.pdf with the use of Gippsland land lakes. including a boating usage and demand study of commercial and recreational boating and an Prepared for Boating Industry Association of estimate of the economic contribution of commercial and recreational boating to the Victoria, AECOM Australia, Melbourne. region. • All types of recreational and commercial boating except commercial fishing were considered including recreational fishing and boating, yachting and other non-fishing commercial activities. • The economic modelling also included other associated sectors such as retail, accommodation and food services, boating repairs and manufacturing, and other support services. • In 2013, there were 12,658 boats registered in the Gippsland Lakes region, which is an average annual increase of 1.6% (compared to state average of 1.7%). • Three user groups identified: o Local boat users – averaged 16 days a year of boating o Day trippers (non-local) – averaged 7 days a year boating o Multi-day visitors (non-local) – averaged 6 days a year boating • Fishing and holidaying wwere the most popular acitivities for tourists • Expenditure per boating trip was o $38 for local day trippers o $170 for non-local day trippers o $511 for non-local multi-day trippers • Demand for boat ramps was found to be greater than supply during peak periods like summer, public holidays and events. • The direct economic impact of recreational boating in Gippsland was found to be $51.4 million, while the flow on economic impact was $111.6 million • The majority of the impact is through tourism (68.4%) • It was also estimated that this has direct and flown on employment gain in the region of 2,814 Full time Equivalent jobs Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Public awareness Coleman, P. & Coleman, K. 2013. Gippsland • The goal is to ‘help connect students with their local environment and support the writing www.loveourlakes.net.au/wp- Lakes: the inspiration for children’s stories. of a narrative that will engage and/or educate other students.’ content/uploads/2013/11/EnviroStories- Presented at Love our Lakes Forum 2013. • Actively works with local schools (e.g. Eagle Point Primary School) to develop the PKColeman.pdf 15-16 November, Lakes entrance. knowledge that is focused for the specific target audience. www.envirostories.com.au • Areas of focus include dolphins, platypus, migratory birds, rivers and upper catchments, wetlands and salt marshes, fishing, boating and recreation, food production, the lake entrance, community groups/individuals. Citizen science Boxshall, A. 2013. Untapped potential, lost • Connection between regular science and monitoring and community assisted monitoring. www.loveourlakes.net.au/wp- opportunities: communities & • Noted reasons for community taking part in research were: close to nature 30%; socialise content/uploads/2013/11/EPA- environmental management and with others with same passions 5%; learn more 10%. AnthonyBoxshall.pdf monitoring. EPA. Presented at Love our • Two primary reasons for not taking part: lack of time 54% and other including: don’t swim, www.healthywaterways.org Lakes Forum 2013. 15-16 November, Lakes too old, physically incapable 23%. Entrance. • Rangers view on community assisted research: capable of collecting scientifically sound data? 95% yes; Are data valid for scientific analysis? 89% yes; Is data collection by community feasible in the long term? 95% yes; You feel that the community is interested in annual monitoring? 89% yes. Citizen science Joy, M. 2013. Citizen Science and • Provided examples of Earthwatch citizen science initiatives. www.loveourlakes.net.au/wp- Earthwatch Australia. Presented at Love our • In 2011 in conjunction with Shell Australia, initiated a beach debris program in partnership content/uploads/2013/11/EWCitizenScien lakes forum 2013. 15-16 November, Lakes with the CSIRO where school students were involved in a scientifically rigorous beach debris ce-MichelleJoy.pdf Entrance. collection, analysis and recording program for the Australian coastline – a very ambitious www.earthwatch.org.au target. • Two years later: 95% of the Australian coastline surveyed, almost 5,000 school students involved, a data base maintained by the CSIRO. • Citizen science programs, when the methodology can be standardised and supported with supervising scientists, multiplies the achievement by the numbers of people that can be deployed on the ground. • This gets more results, more quickly and leaves a benefit of increased awareness, heightened responsibility and ownership for greater environmental care. • This program produced learning materials and online resources for schools and community groups Citizen science Conron, S. 2013. Tracking the abundance of • Highlights the use of citizen science in bream stock assessment. www.loveourlakes.net.au/wp- black bream in the Gippsland lakes. • States a total catch for 2011-2012 of 96 tonnes and market value of $1 million (commercial content/uploads/2013/11/TrackingBream- Presented at Love Our Lakes Forum 2013. and recreation fishing) SimonConron.pdf 15-16 November, Lakes Entrance. • Use of various monitoring programs; on-site (boats and shore ramp) surveys 1995-2012. Angler Diary program 1998-2013. Off-site (phone/diary) surveys. • Overall condition: stable populations in recent years however lower compared to 1970- 1980s • Flagged issues: lower levels in populations compared to 1970-1980s, decreased production rate of older (>8yrs) bream harvested by commercial and recreational fishers over past 10 years and requires further investigation. Black bream productivity in region is currently being limited by habitat and environmental conditions. High proportion (10%) of undersize fish being harvested by recreational fishes is compromising effectiveness of the current legal minimum length (LML) which is the principal means of stock protection for beam in the Gippsland Lakes. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Citizen science Boon. P. 2014. Rehabilitating wetlands in • Use of community involvement in revegetation and water regime efforts. search.informit.com.au/fullText;dn=65147 the Gippsland Lakes Ramsar site: the • Uses community perceptions of wetland values and their degradation. 4390706312;res=IELHSS benefits and limitations of community • The found that there was little congruence between community perceptions of community (restricted public access) involvement. The Victorian Naturalists groups and professional ecologists with the impacts of carp and of exotic weeds 131(4), 106–114. • Suggested that the wider use of conceptual models could improve understanding and enhance collaboration across different groups in large, multi-disciplinary projects that seek to rehabilitate high-value coastal wetlands • Surveys were carried out that looked at: o Why resident valued the Gippsland Lakes system? They valued Gippsland Lakes for recreation, environmental pollution filter and aesthetics o Wetland condition? Both groups determined that the Gippsland Lakes are in ‘fair’ condition Citizen science Environmental Justice Australia, 2014. • Gippsland Lakes & catchment case study was included in this report envirojustice.org.au/sites/default/files/file Water citizenship; advancing community • From discussion in workshop taken place in Bairnsdale, a consensus was expressed by s/Submissions%20and%20reports/enviroju involvement in water governance in Victoria. participants that public agencies such as EPA and CMA had neither the will nor capacity to stice_water_citizenship_report.pdf Environmental Justice Australia, Victoria monitor or enforce comprehensively water quality standards or achieve strong ecological Australia. p. 27-30. outcomes in the lakes and catchment. • Without continued active management a significant decline in condition is likely • They also found that the environmental governance of the Lakes system is fragmented and inadequate with various statutory bodies having responsibility for parts of the Lakes and/or catchment, such as the EGCMA, Gippsland Ports, Southern Rural Water, and a number of municipal governments. • Integrated governance of the Lakes system is poor and limited with no-one really ‘in charge’. • There is little opportunity for communities directly to initiate, lead or enforce water regulation and management, whether at a local scale or across the catchment except through review rights, panel processes or permit enforcement mechanisms. • Currently opportunities for strong engagement and participation at formative stages, or review or enforcement stages, are limited to ‘consultation’, which local environmental groups identify as of limited utility Climate change Graham, S., Barnett, J., Fincher, R., • Phone survey of lakes entrance residents to determine the priorities placed on a range of www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii Hurlimann, A., Mortreux, C. 2014. Local lived values. /S0959378014001411 values for fairer adaptation to sea-level rise: • Data determined that there is at least eight separate unique types of residents living within (restricted public access) a typology of residents and their values in the same community. These are: family-focused, active work-life balances, reclusive pink Lakes entrance. Global Environmental collar workers, community-minded entrepreneurs, socially-networked sea changers, retired Change 29, 41-52. community orientated sea-changers, regional retirees and welfare recipients. • Approximately 7% of Lakes Entrance households were contacted. • Much of sample population was determined to be the older population due to online surveys focused at younger member failing. • Environment, lifestyle, weather/climate were highest mentioned typology lived values. • This needs to be kept in mind to ensure that sea-level rise adaptation policy is to be distributed fairly to ensure that the lived values of each group of residents are maintained or enhanced. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Climate change Barnett, J., Fincher, B. R., Hurlimann, A., • Step-by-step guide for identifying community values and engagement in adaption planning. minerva- Graham, S., Mortreux, C. 2014. • Conducted by the University of Melbourne in collaboration with the East Gippsland Shire access.unimelb.edu.au/bitstream/handle/ Incorporating community values into Council, the Gippsland Coastal Board, the Victorian Department of Planning and Community 11343/39610/ARCL%20Guide%20for%20g climate change planning; a guide for Development, the Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment, and Wellington overnment%20-%20final.pdf?sequence=3 government. University of Melbourne. Shire Council. Melbourne, Victoria. • This manual is intended for parties interested in achieving a just approach to adaptation. It provides a step-by-step guide of how to identify community values, relationships and activities that are likely to be impacted by climate change and adaptation, and how to implement a more equitable, fair and inclusive adaptation process. • The overall approach is called a Values Approach for Adaptation Planning (VAAP). There are six main steps involved: 1. Gathering information on climate scenarios and vulnerability 2. Scope potential values at risk 3. Confirm actual values at risk 4. Develop a profile of residents and their values 5. Identify scenarios to guide adaptation planning 6. Encourage community participation in development of adaptation stages • These six steps were developed and tested in five communities along the Gippsland East coast, Victoria—Lakes Entrance, Seaspray, , McLoughlins Beach and Manns Beach. • It is hoped that this manual will be used to expand the current focus of decision-making from the impacts of climate changes on health and finances to the less tangible factors that gives meaning to people’s everyday lives. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Climate change Norman, B., Steffen, W., Webb, R., Capon, • In July 2012, the Victorian government gave local councils discretion to apply a lesser sea www.nccarf.edu.au/sites/default/files/atta A., Maher, W., Woodroffe, C., Rogers, K., level rise increase of 0.2m over the 1 in 100 year floods by 2040 for new development in ched_files_publications/Norman_2013_SE Tanton, R., Vidyattama, Y., Lavis, J., Sinclair, close proximity to existing development. CA_Coastal_urban_climate_futures.pdf H., Weir, B. 2013. South East Coastal Adaptation (SECA): Coastal urban climate • The Gippsland Regional Plan 2010, identified priorities for the region including: the need to futures in SE Australia from Wollongong to address population growth including changes to land use and infrastructure development; Lakes Entrance, National Climate Change establishing urban residential growth areas based on each area’s growth potential; Adaptation Research Facility, Gold Coast, improving the function, capacity and amenity of the region’s commercial centres; and 130 pp. identifying the region’s natural resources including coal and high value agricultural land (Gippsland specific section) • Since 1995 a series of research projects has advanced understanding of the risks climate change poses to the morphology of the Gippsland coast. Key documents have been the CSIRO report Climate Change in Eastern Victoria – Stage 3 Report: The effect of climate change on extreme sea-levels in Corner Inlet and the Gippsland Lakes (CSIRO, 2006), and the Department of Sustainability and Environment’s Future Coasts project. These documents make clear that a changing climate in the future is expected to have impacts on Gippsland’s coastal settlements including sea-level rise, increased intensity of storm surges which may cause damaging waves, wind and flooding, coastal erosion, and damage to infrastructure. There are significant implications for existing coastal urban centres that may be vulnerable to these impacts. • The draft Gippsland Integrated Land Use Plan identifies constraints for growth in the Gippsland region as water availability and fire risk, although climate change induced risk is not specifically mentioned, higher temperatures are already influencing both water availability and fire risk. • Results from case studies taken from across entire study field from southern NSW and Gippsland highlight: ageing population; an overall lack of public transport and potential isolation; urban lands subjected to flooding from rivers, estuaries and coastal inundation; dependency on natural resources; and significant youth unemployment. • Highlights need for education of local and community engagement with development and implementation of successful polices/management. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Climate change Barnett, J., Fincher, B. R., Hurlimann, A., • Social outcomes of sea-level rise and a adaptation strategies in five coastal communities in minerva- Graham, S. & Mortreux, C. 2014. Equitable Gippsland East, Victoria: Lakes Entrance, Seaspray, Port Albert, McLoughlins Beach and access.unimelb.edu.au/bitstream/handle/ local outcomes in adaptation to sea-level Manns Beach. 11343/39609/ARCL%20Gippsland%20Final rise: final project report. University of • For Lakes Entrance: %20Report%20.pdf?sequence=3 Melbourne, Melbourne. o The most important lived values were: the beauty of the area; being close to water; the friendly people; and the relaxed lifestyle. o Six lived values that elicited diverging opinions between different groups of residents were: peacefulness; financial security; feeling like a well-respected member of the community; sense of belonging; being close to family; and aunique place for children to grow up. • For Port Albert, Seaspray, McLoughlins Beach and Manns Beach: o The lived values that were important to most of the residents were the: peace and quiet; fishing; beauty; relaxed lifestyle; and being close to water. o The 11 lived values that elicited diverging views among different groups of residents were: feeling safe; a safe place for children; remoteness; peacefulness; slow pace of life; easy to get around; natural environment; being close to water; sense of belonging; everybody knows everybody; and feeling like a well-respected member of the community. • Adaptation policies need to ensure that the most common lived values among residents are maintained or enhanced and that efforts are made to compensate groups whose lived values are more affected than others. Sustainable Geografia, 2014. Gippsland Lakes Sustainable • Inform the development of the Gippsland Lakes Sustainable Development plan. glee.gippslandlakes.net.au/wp- development development Plan: Stakeholder Workshop • Overall themes: content/uploads/2014/06/GL-SDP- Summary. Geografia, Melbourne. o Public access to water and foreshores is important Summary-of-Workshop-Outcomes.pdf o Planned development in collaboration with stakeholders o Low impact tourism and recreation based development favoured o Any large scale tourism development should enhance the existing node/town o Low impact infrastructure encouraged in high environmental value areas like boardwalks o Need to consider role of agriculture o Boating infrastructure needs to be planned and implemented collaboratively o Keep commercial activity in existing townships o Need diversity housing options and planning needs to consider changing demographic and growth in semi-permanent residents Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Estuaries Lachlan Arrowsmith, C. & Race, G. 2014. • Desk-based GIS modelling of susceptibility of erosion under current sea levels and under www.watech.com.au/wp- Spatial assessment of estuary shoreline possible scenarios. content/uploads/2014/02/Spatial- erosion susceptibility. Presented at • Based on data collected in previous physical, environmental and biological studies. Assessment-of-Estuary-Shoreline-Erosion- Hydrology& Water Resources Symposium • Identifies previous studies that link vegetation and erosion in the area (Bird, 1978; Sjerp et Susceptibility.pdf 2014. 24 February, Perth. al., 2002; Brizga et al., 2013) • Somewhat selective on what data is used for each component e.g. ‘This biological categorization and erosion susceptibility score does not incorporate the impacts of existing changes in or potential future changes in salinity levels in the lakes on the vegetation communities. It represents the present condition only.’ (p6) • Under current conditions much of Gippsland Lakes shoreline has high susceptibility with isolated areas of very high susceptibility along main channels. • Under possible sea level rises, results indicate a very high susceptibility in smaller lakes running parallel to coast, e.g. Lake Reeve. Water quality EPA, 2012. Gippsland Lakes condition report • First long term full water assessment from fixed sites www.epa.vic.gov.au/~/media/Publications 1990-2011. EPA Victoria, Carlton, Victoria. • Highlights shortcomings of insufficient quality indicators for Gippsland Lakes SEPP schedule /1530.pdf in particular nutrients. • Noted nutrient reduction during 1997-2010 period relating to the drought thus identifying that inflow is major nutrient influence. During same period showed increased salinity relating to decreased fresh inflow (mainly East Gippsland Lakes). • In 2010 much of system saw return to ‘typical’ fresher state and increased risk of algae blooms. Water quality - Russell, K., Ladson, A., & • Desk-based modelling of sediment mobilisation following removal of Nicholson River dam. search.informit.com.au/fullText;dn=38956 sediments Tilleard, J. 2014. Predicting Sediment • Results indicated the total volume of coarse and fine sediment likely to be released from 9346701053;res=IELENG Liberation, Transport and Fate Following the reservoir following dam removal. The likely rate of sediment release and sediment (restricted public access) Dam Decommissioning. Presented at deposition downstream of the dam under a range of flows and the likely duration that new Hydrology& Water Resources Symposium sediment will smother the bed of the downstream river channel were investigated. 2014. 24 February, Perth. • It was found that coarse sediments (sands) are likely to temporarily deposit in the confined reach downstream of the dam, but are likely to persist for less than a year. Coarse sediments are likely to ultimately deposit in the floodplain reach downstream, however the impact in this reach depends on whether sand preferentially deposits overbank or within the channel. This information on sediment behaviour provided input to ecological studies of dam removal. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Water quality - Roberts, A. M.,. Pannell, D. J., Doole, G. & • looks at costs versus benefits of phosphorus (P) reduction programs and makes www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii nutrients Vigiak, O. 2012. Agricultural land recommendations on aims and approaches. /S0308521X11001594 management strategies to reduce • There is a target to reduce phosphorus flows into the Gippsland Lakes by 40% to improve (restricted public access) phosphorus loads in the Gippsland Lakes. water quality based on environmental concerns, but with limited consideration of technical Australia Agricultural Systems 106, 11–22. feasibility, socio-economic constraints, political factors and associated costs and benefits. • It is technically feasible to achieve a 40% reduction in P load entering the Lakes, although the cheapest way would require around A$1 billion over 25 years but this is unlikely. • A 20% P reduction could be achieved for around $80 million over 25 years and requiring more modest land-management changes. • A reliance on voluntary adoption of ‘Current Recommended Practices’ is unlikely to deliver practice change at the scale required to produce positive environmental impacts, therefore regulations needs to be enforced. • There needs to be feedback between goal setting and program costs, and consideration of factors such as the levels of landholder adoption of new practices that are required and the feasibility of achieving those adoption levels. Water quality - Ladson A, 2012. Importance of catchment- Key findings are: gcb.vic.gov.au/staging/wp- nutrients sourced nitrogen loads as a factor in o Average annual load of nitrogen to the Gippsland Lakes is around 2000 t per year, or about content/uploads/2014/04/Catchment- determining the health of the Gippsland 1 kg/ha/year from the catchment. sourced-Nitrogen-loads-into-the- Lakes. Gippsland Lakes and Catchment Task o Catchment loadings are moderate by Australian and international standards. GippsLakes_Final-May2012.pdf Force, Fitzroy North, Victoria. o Since European settlement, total loads have increased by a factor of about 1.5 because of land use change but it is likely that the load of bioavailable nitrogen has increased by a greater factor. • Annual nitrogen loads are highly variable, with the volume of flow entering the Gippsland Lakes in any particular year being a major factor in determining the nitrogen load. o Once the effect of flow is removed, there is no evidence that nitrogen loads have changed since 1978 (the earliest date that records are available). That is, there is no upward or downward trend in nitrogen loads. • Nitrogen loads following the extensive bushfires and flooding in 2007 were exceptionally large. Together, in one year, these events supplied an extra 4000 t of nitrogen to the Gippsland Lakes (i.e. the equivalent of 2 years of average load). o In normal years, much of the nitrogen load comes from forested areas with high rainfall and is likely natural in origin and not able to be changed through management action. This nitrogen is likely to be associated with humic material so will be relatively biologically unavailable. • Atmospheric deposition of nitrogen is likely to be increasing, consistent with world trends; however it currently represents only about 3% of the average annual nitrogen load to the Lakes. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Algae Cook, P., Holland, D., Beardall, J., Jennings, • Drivers of algal blooms identified including winter inflows introduces nitrogen and leads to www.loveourlakes.net.au/wp- M., Smith, J., Scicluna, T., Woodland, R., stratification leads to winter/spring blooms, the fish eat these and they deposit waste in the content/uploads/2013/11/AlgalBlooms- Zhu, Y., McCowan, A., Gell, P., and Mainville, lakes, this with dead algae sinking to the bottom leads to a release of phosphorus and PerranCook.pdf D. 2013. Algal Blooms: past, present and nitrogen from the sediments and build up in bottom waters. High phosphorus, low future. Presented at Love Our Lakes Forum nitrogen, temps greater than 17C and salinity between 9-22 leads to a summer bloom. 2013. 15-16 November, Lakes Entrance. • The role of infauna, such as Capitela capitata who play a role in controlling the uptake and release of phosphorus from the sediment • Algal blooms add 146 tonnes of nitrogen which is 177% pf summer nitrogen inputs and 22% of total annual load from rivers • Records of blooms in the 1880s which made the lakes look like a green field and it was very poisonous • Need to monitor causes to predict and manage blooms, EPA are doing this currently, there is scope for community involvement in this • Algae are an important part of the ecology of Gippsland Lakes, need to help community understand algae blooms better Algae Cook, P. L. M., and Holland, D. P. 2012. Long • Drivers of Nodularia spumigena Mertens blooms in the Gippsland Lakes http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s term nutrient loads and chlorophyll • Physico-chemical conditions influence bloom development 10533-010-9551-1#/page-1 dynamics in a large temperature Australian • Blooms occur at surface salinities between 9 and 20 (average =15), inorganic nitrogen (restricted public access) system affected by recurring blooms concentrations of <0.4 µM and inorganic nitrogen to reactive phosphorus ratios <5 of cyanobacteria. Biogeochemistry 107, 261- • Positive correlation between average annual chlorophyll a and total phosphorus in years 274. where there was no bloom, but this broke down when there was bloom • Shows the importance of internal phosphorus in bloom development • Hypothesise high NOx concentrations from fires were a key factor leading to Synechococcus sp. bloom in summer 2007-2008. Algae Myers, J. H., Beardall, J., Allinson, G., • A study on the effects of environmental variables on germination of N. spumigena akinetes http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s Salzman, S., and Gunthorpe, L., 2010. • Akinete germination and germling growth were optimal at salinities between 5 and 25 and 10750-010-0252-5 Environmental influences on akinete significantly reduced outside this range. (restricted public access) germination and development in Nodularia • Positive correlation in germination with increasing nutrient concentration (phosphorus and spumigena (Cyanobacteriaceae), isolated nitrogen) from the Gippsland Lakes, Victoria, • Germling grown increased with increasing concentrations of both nutrients Australia. Hydrobiologia 649, 239-247. • Light and salinity appear to be most critical in the germination process, with phosphorus most important for germling growth

Algae Woodland, R. J., and Cook, P. L. M., 2014. • Diazotrophic cyanobacteria are capable of fixing atmospheric N2 http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.18 Using stable isotope ratios to estimate • Estimate the total ND flux into the Gippsland Lakes estuary during a summer bloom of the 90/13-0947.1 atmospheric nitrogen fixed by cyanobacteria Nodularia spumigena (restricted public access) Ecological at the ecosystem scale. • Over the course of the bloom, ND increased in the upper water column of the estuary from Applications 24(3), 539-547. 33% ± 17% to 73% ±13% of the standing pool of total particulate N equating to 177% of the summer total N load and 22% of the annual N load to the estuary. • Thus, these blooms can represent major sources of new N to estuarine ecosystems when they occur, although blooms are uncommon in estuaries. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Algae Cook, P. L. M., Holland, D. P., Longmore, A. • Documented the response of a temperate lagoon system (Gippsland Lakes) with episodic http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.431 R., 2010. Effect of a flood event on the winter- or spring-dominated catchment inflows to a flood event 9/lo.2010.55.3.1123/abstract dynamics of phytoplankton and • High winter inflows resulted in high surface-water concentrations of inorganic nitrogen (IN) (restricted public access) biogeochemistry in a large temperate relative to reactive phosphorus (RP) with an IN:RP ratio > 100 Australian lagoon. Limnology and • Caused a rapid diatom and dinoflagellate bloom which collapsed with nutrients in the water Oceanography 55(3), 1123-1133. column were depleted • This increased carbon delivery to the sediment and stimulated benthic respiration and depleted bottom-water oxygen, causing a large release of RP from the sediments decreasing the IN:RP ratio in the bottom-water to ~ 6 • Strong stratification allowed the accumulation of RP in the bottom-water over spring and into summer • Mixing of the RP from the bottom-water over summer triggered development of a Nodularia spumigna Merten bloom • Thus, high nitrogen loading over winter contributed to severe nitrogen limitation over summer and thus it is important to control both nitrogen and phosphorus loading to estuaries Algae Scicluna, T. R., Woodland, R. J., Zhu, Y., • Studied the uptake and release of phosphorus associated with iron oxides within sediments Not available online at time of writing Grace, M. R., and Cook, P. L. M., 2015. Deep of a lagoon system affected by summer blooms of Nodularia spumigena dynamic pools of phosphorus in the • There were deep pools of iron oxide associated phosphorus (P) which rapidly decreased sediment of a temperate lagoon with with the onset of water column anoxia, cuasing an integrated release of ~300 mmol of recurring blooms of diazotrophic phosphorus m -2 of sediment over 3.5 months cyanobacteria. Limnology and • This release of P from the sediment would have allowed for ~130-187 tonnes of nitrogen to Oceanography. DOI: 10.1002/lno.10162 be fixed • It is likely that the release and accumulation of iron oxide associated P in these deep pools is mediated by the burrowing activity of the polychaete Capitella capitata highlighting the importance of sediments colonised by deeply irrigating fauna as a source of phosphorus during water column anoxia

Algae Woodland, R. J., Holland, D. P., Beardall, J., • Determine the fate of diazotrophic nitrogen (ND) fixed by planktonic cyanobacteria in http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id Smith, J., Scicluna, T., and Cook, P. L. M., pelagic food webs. =10.1371/journal.pone.0067588 2013. Assimilation of diazotrophic nitrogen • Found two distinct temporal phases in the trophic transfer of ND from Nodularia spumigena into pelagic food webs. PLOS One 8(6). Mertens to the plankton community. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0067588 • First phase was a dynamic transfer of ND to zooplankton; a transfer that the authors infer was routed through bloom-associated bacteria • Second phase was a slowly accelerating assimilmation of the dissolved ND pool by phytoplankton Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Algae Holland, D. P, van Erp, I., Beardall, J., and • Factors controlling estuarine blooms of N2-fixing cyanobacteria are poorly understood http://www.int- Cook, P. L. M., 2012. Environmental controls • Studied physical environmental drivers, grazing and macronutrients on the growth of res.com/abstracts/meps/v461/p47-57/ on nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Nodularia spumigena in Gippsland Lakes (restricted public access) Nodularia spumigena in a temperate lagoon • Nodularia was able to obtain phosphorus from the water column and from phytoplankton system in SE Australia. Marine Ecology breakdown. Progress Series 461, 47-57. • A reduction in grazing pressure via dilution led to lower growth rates of Nodularia and higher growth rates of other phytoplankton taxa • Appears that grazers selectively consumed taxa other than Nodularia, and that grazing positively influences Nodularia growth • However in situ Nodularia growth was limited by physical conditions (solar radiation) and nutrients and grazing were of second order importance Biodiversity - Charlton-Robb, K., 2013. Gippsland Lakes • Primarily focused on the discovery of new species of dolphin within the Gippsland region www.loveourlakes.net.au/wp- Dolphins Burrunan Dolphins: A new species in your and the listing as a threatened species (19th June 2013). content/uploads/2013/11/AMMCFBurruna backyard. Presented at Love Our Lakes • Highlights the issues relating to conservation and awareness i.e. plastic waste, cigarette nDolphins-KateharltonRobb.pdf Forum 2013. 15-16 November, Lakes butts (approx. 850,000 tons worldwide), water bottles (80% of total rubbish picked up Entrance. during 2012 clean up Australia) • Highlights the need and use of citizen science for continued monitoring of the dolphin populations Biodiversity - Charlton-Robb, K., Taylor, A. C. & McKechnie • Species identification, variation and distribution of the Burruan dolphin (Tursiops australis) http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007% Dolphins S. W. 2014. Population genetic structure of through Victorian waters. 2Fs10592-014-0652-6 the Burrunan dolphin in coastal waters of • The Burrunan dolphin, a newly described species, is endemic to southern Australian coastal south-eastern Australia: conservation waters from , east to Victoria and south to . implications. Conservation Genetics 16, • There are only two known resident populations in eastern part of their range, 195–207. Available online: Bay and the Gippsland Lakes. DOI 10.1007/s10592-014-0652-6 • Little is known about the population status and migration patterns. • Through population genetics, there is the highest differentiation between the Port Phillip Bay and both Gippsland Lakes and Tasmanian samples. • This suggests there are two populations in eastern Australia with little or no gene flow; one in Port Phillip Bay; the second from the east coast of Tasmania to Gippsland Lakes. • Tursiops australis appears to have small, localised, genetically distinct populations so it needs to be further assessed under local, national and international threatened species criteria. Biodiversity – Healey, C. 2013. Monitoring diversity and • Gippsland Lakes are Ramsar listed www.loveourlakes.net.au/wp- Wetland birds abundance of wetland birds. Presented at • Home to 1% of the global population for , chestnut teal, musk duck and little content/uploads/2013/11/BirdlifeEG- Love Our Lakes Forum 2013. 15-16 tern. ChrisHealey.pdf November, Lakes Entrance. • 92 species identified over 26 years of bird surveys (1987-2012) • Noted decline in abundance in all surveyed species apart from little black cormorant. • Increasing black duck abundance. • Noted peaks and troughs in abundance relating to changes in environmental conditions. • Highlights the need for continued and comprehensive long term mentoring. • ‘Birdlife east Gippsland GLIBA project’ is a current ongoing project welcoming citizen science for assistance. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Biodiversity - Boon, P., Rosengren, N., Frood, D., Oates, A. • Comprehensive literature review references from dates 1855-2013 on the form and www.gippslandlakes.net.au/wp- Vegetation & Reside, J. 2014. Shoreline geomorphology evolution of the Gippsland Lakes, the variety of vegetation that fringes the Lakes', and the content/uploads/2012/08/Shoreline- and fringing vegetation of the Gippsland way both have changed since European colonisation. geomorphology-and-fringing-vegetation- Lakes. Online publication. Accessed • Covers: of-the-Gippsland-Lakes.pdf February 2015. 1. Geomorphology: origins, sand barriers and shoreline types 2. Fringing water-dependant vegetation of the Gippsland lakes: mangroves, coastal saltmarsh, other emergent woody vegetation, fringing vegetation and freshwater subsides 3. The changing environment of the Gippsland lakes: early descriptions, the changing entrance of the lakes, form and evolution, salinity regimes and the permanent connection to the ocean at Lakes Entrance 4. Environmental consequences of altered conditions: shoreline erosion and retreat, changes in fringing vegetation, loss of freshwater taxa, expansion of coastal saltmarsh and other halophytic taxa 5. Fringing vegetation and shore protection: the protective role of fringing vegetation, re- instating fringing vegetation to protect coastal shoreline. • The next step in this project is to carry out a detailed survey of the shoreline to: o detailed description of shoreline geomorphology at a wide range of sites o characterise the fringing (water-dependent) vegetation at these sites o assess the ecological value of this vegetation o determine any changes in shorelines or in vegetation since European colonisation o determine any relationship between lake or river-water salinity and shoreline geomorphology and fringing vegetation o determine whether a freshwater subsidy is responsible for fringing vegetation occurring along the more saline shorelines, from which it would be otherwise be excluded by high salinity o determine whether Common Reed collected from saline sites is more salt-tolerant than plants collected from fresher sites. • The second stage of the project is to identify, using genetics, salt-tolerant strains of Phragmites australis (Common Reed) for use in revegetation projects to determine if there is a genetic basis to differences in salt-tolerance of different strains. • Once complete, this project will provide more detailed advice on possible revegetation strategies for the shoreline of the Gippsland Lakes and the lower parts its rivers. Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Biodiversity – Water- Williams, G. A. & Serena, M. 2014. • Little was previously known about the distribution and status of the Australian water-rat or www.gippslandlakes.net.au/wp- rats Distribution and status of Australian water- rakali (Hydromys chrysogaster) in the Gippsland Lakes system. content/uploads/2012/08/Distribution- rats (Hydromys chrysogaster) in the • Lack of public awareness about the presence of this native rodent in Gippsland’s and-Status-of-the-Australian-Water-Rats- Gippsland Lakes. A report to the Gippsland waterways. in-the-Gippsland-Lakes.pdf Lakes Ministerial Advisory Committee. • Australian water-rats are found through most of the Gippsland Lakes region. Population Australian Platypus Conservancy, Wiseleigh, density appears to be low in Lake Wellington, the western end of Lake Victoria, and in Lake VIC. Tyers. • Anecdotal evidence suggests that water-rat numbers have declined in the last five decades. • Threatening processes identified by members of the local community including the impact of commercial eel-fishing, predation, loss of habitat to development and possible poisoning during baiting programs for pest species, but the Gippsland Lakes water-rat population is not substantially threatened or at risk. • Need to develop public awareness of the occurrence of water-rats in the Lakes through a community education program to help protect them in to the future. As, community interest in local water-rats could be used to highlight and address management problems in the Lakes, including litter, pollution and illegal or irresponsible fishing practices. • Feedback from the community regarding their support for the species’ presence in the region was very positive. • The Australian water-rat could be promoted both as a desirable resident of the Lakes ecosystem and as an eco-tourism attraction. Biodiversity – Warry, F. Y., Reich, P., Woodland, R. J., and • Investigated spatial patterns of seagrass leaf chemistry and the role of seagrass in the http://www.loveourlakes.net.au/learning/ Seagrass Cook, P., 2013. Using leaf chemistry to nutritional support of fish in the Gippsland Lakes reports/ better understand the ecology of seagrass in • Appears that the supply of nutrients to seagrass exceed carbon acquisition, indicating the Gippsland Lakes. Water Studies Centre, plants were not nutrient limited Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental • Significant spatial variation in leaf chemistry. Preliminary results indicate that stable isotope Research, Department of Sustainability and signatures of carbon (δ13C) decreased with proximity to freshwater sources and with Environment, Heidelberg, Victoria. increasing potential for wind-driven mixing • Physical condition of seagrass was more variable close to freshwater sources, suggesting the conditions are more variable or these seagrasses are more sensitive to environmental changes. • Seagrass contributed to the nutrition of multiple fish species although the extent of this contribution varied spatially and among species. • Thus seagrass are not just a physical habitat for fish species Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Biodiversity – Fish and Warry, F. Y. & Hindell, J. S. 2012. Fish • Sampled September 2008 between Lake Victoria and Lakes Entrance using habitat maps www.gippslandlakes.net.au/about-the- seagrass Assemblages and Seagrass Condition of the (Roob and Ball, 1997 or Judd et al., 2008) to select sites where beds of high or medium lakes-2/historical-research/fish- Gippsland Lakes: 2012. Unpublished Client density Zostera had been observed; April 2009 re-sampled 2008 sites and 20 additional assemblages-2012/ Report for the Gippsland Lakes Ministerial sites, increasing the spatial coverage of monitoring. These 50 sites were re-sampled in April Advisory Committee. Arthur Rylah Institute 2010, April 2011 and again in April 2011. for Environmental Research, Department of • Sampling methods (i.e. trawl, serine netting, electrofishing, including combinations.) varied Sustainability and Environment, Heidelberg, Victoria. between years 2008-2012 • While some water quality measurements were taken, methods varied throughout study. • Seagrass was present at most sites. Two seagrass taxa dominated: Ruppia in waters mostly around 0.5 to 1 m; and, ‘Zostera’ (including both Zostera nigricaulis and Zostera muelleri) in waters 0.5 to 2 m depth. • Seagrass condition was variable among sites and years. For example, seagrass condition was high (score 4) in April 2011 at a greater proportion of transects (74.4%) than in other sampling rounds. By April 2012 seagrass condition had declined at 42.7% of transects and was high (score >4 out of 5) at only 21.8% of transects. • Differences in seagrass condition through time may reflect natural cycles in productivity and/or changes in environmental conditions. • Underwater video footage taken during September 2008 suggested that there had been some decline in the occurrence and densities of seagrass within 75% of all sites compared to 1997. • However, video data indicated seagrass occurrence and qualitative condition had increased in the Gippsland Lakes between September 2008 and April 2011, however, different methods were used in 1997 making comparison difficult. • Estuarine electorfishing revealed several fish species that had not previously been found. • Water quality variables throughout the Gippsland Lakes were within the ranges commonly observed for this large estuary during both sampling periods. Chlorophyll a levels were > 10 μg.l-1 in the vicinity of eastern Lake Victoria during the September 2008 and again in April 2010 sampling periods, while in April 2009 chlorophyll a levels were generally < 4 μg.l-1. • Salinity was lower in April 2012 than on other sampling occasions and ranged 14-18 ppt. • Recommendations include: o future seagrass monitoring activities should be conducted at the end of summer (March/April). This will allow investigation of the links between fish and seagrass at a time when a wide range of fish species are present in the Gippsland Lakes. o investigations into process orientated seagrass monitoring and the contribution of seagrass to the nutritional support of fish in the Gippsland Lakes (this was in process at the time of writing the report 2012-2013). o Investigate seagrass habitats and Black bream recruitment Category Reference Summary/notes Availability Biodiversity - Fish Kemp, J., Brown, L., Bridge, N. & Conron, S. • Bream stock assessment both commercial and recreation fishing harvest. www.depi.vic.gov.au/fishing- and- 2013. Gippsland lakes black bream stock • Found that there is a lower level of bream productivity in the Gippsland Lakes compared to hunting/science-in- fisheries/fisheries- assessment 2012. Department of the 1970s and 1980s. research- findings/gippsland-lakes-black- Environment and Primary Industries, • A decrease in proportion of older (>8 yrs) bream harvested by commercial and recreational bream- stock-assessment-2012 Melbourne. fishers over the past 10 years requires further investigation. • Black bream productivity in the Gippsland Lakes is being limited by habitat and environmental conditions. • The high proportion (~10%) of under‐size fish being harvested by recreational fishers is compromising effectiveness of the current legal minimum length (LML), the principal means of stock protection for bream in the Gippsland Lakes. • Highlights concern of impacts of change in water quality (e.g. fresh water inflows and salinity) in relation to bream spawning and the possible economical flow on effects of these impacts. Wetlands Boon, P., Allen, T., Carr, G., Frood, D., Harty, • Provides geomorphic context, predominant adjacent land use, and rainfall. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/aqc.2 C., McMahon, A., Mathews, S., Rosengren, • Uses aerial photography survey and small scale on ground assessment, although only 30 442/abstract N., Sinclair, S., White, M. & Yugovic, J. 2014. sites across Victoria (restricted public access) Coastal wetlands of Victoria, South-eastern • Data from the Victorian Biodiversity Atlas were used to revise the typology currently Australia: providing the inventory and applied to coastal saltmarsh in Victoria. condition information needed for their • Seven new Ecological Vegetation Classes were proposed to reflect the floristic and effective management and conservation. structural diversity of coastal saltmarsh in south-eastern Australia. Aquatic Conservation Marine And • A State-wide inventory using this new typology, using high-resolution aerial photographs Freshwater Ecosystems. Online at DOI: and extensive ground-truthing (212 person-days), indicated that there were 19 212 ha of 10.1002/aqc.2442 coastal saltmarsh of all types, 5177 ha of mangroves, and 3227 ha of EVC 10 Estuarine Wetland (a wetland type dominated by Juncus kraussii) in Victoria. • On-ground assessments indicated that coastal wetlands were confronted by a range of anthropogenic threats. Weed invasions were especially problematic, from a wide range of exotic taxa in more elevated saltmarshes (e.g. tall wheat grass Lophopyrum ponticum). Grazing by cattle also an issue for saltmarsh in Gippsland. • Other issues specific to Gippsland Lakes were not explored, therefore more research on the specific issues for coastal wetlands in Gippsland Lakes is required.

Appendix 2: Education or discovery centres Organisation Location Facilities Funding Services Other Contact

Marine Discovery Various all physical centres Various Education FRDC supported http://www.mdca.org.au/ Centres Australia

Marine Care Beaumaris Marine Education Centre in Volunteer and Education, surveys, public Marine Sanctuary http://www.marinecare.org.au/ Ricketts Point LSC philanthropy lectures

Barwon Estuary Barwon Lobster Pot in Caravan Park Volunteer and Education, training, events, Friends of the Bluff http://barwonheads.net/CLUBS/lobster/lobster.htm Heritage Centre Heads philanthropy native plant nursery

Marine and Queenscliff Education Centre DEPI Aquarium, education, special DEPI research too http://www.depi.vic.gov.au/fishing-and- Freshwater tours, holiday events hunting/marine-and-freshwater-discovery-centre Discovery Centre

Woodbridge Woodbridge, Education centre, classrooms, Dept Education Education, tours, monitoring Govt funded https://education.tas.edu.au/woodbridge/mdc School Marine Tasmania aquaria, research boat Discovery Centre

Marine Discovery Port Newman Senior Tech; , Dept Education Education - broad and vocational Govt funded http://www.portmacquariemdc.com.au/ Centre Port Macquarie marine labs, fish hatchery, training Macquarie marine engineering workshop, research boat

IndoPacific Marine Darwin Education Centre, aquaria Private (?) Tourism, education Bit weird http://www.indopacificmarine.com.au/

Dolphin Discovery Bunbury Conference room, education Lottery West Dives, tours, kid's parties, Private Enterprise http://dolphindiscovery.com.au/ Centre centre, café, … education

Marine Discovery Henley Aquaria, marine trail, Volunteer and Education, conservation focus whacky models http://www.marinediscoverycentre.com.au/ Centre, Henley Beach, SA microscopes, viewing room - philanthropy Beach telescope

Marine Discovery Bondi Bondi Pavilion Safcol tuna Rockpool walks Underwater centre http://www.marinediscovery.org.au/ Centre Bondi and council closed

Ballina Marine Ballina, NSW Boats, trucks, aquaculture Education Dept Marine and maritime training Run by Ballina High http://www.ballinamarinediscoverycentre.nsw.edu.au Discovery Centre Organisation Location Facilities Funding Services Other Contact

Sapphire Coast Eden, NSW Centre, teaching area, NFP, Education, Research Can hire labs http://www.sapphirecoastdiscovery.com.au/ Marine Discovery research labs donations Centre

Central Coast Wyong, NSW Centre, walking track council and Education, Research. Tourism, Volunteer http://www.ccmdc.org.au/ Marine Discovery small school hols Centre

Adventure Hastings Museum, Kayak, Camps, ? Education - in and Excursions, only open to public 1 http://www.adventureeducation.info/ Education Marine Point, NSW Hotel camps day Environments Field Study and Resource Centre

Mt Rothwell Mt Rothwell 420 Ha Property, info centre Various, DEPI. Education, VCE, tours, volunteer Conservation http://mtrothwell.com.au/ Biodiversity Zoos program Interpretation Centre

Earth Ed Mt Clear School room setup and Dept Education Education, tours, travelling, Climate, http://earthed.vic.edu.au/ travelling science and maths Sustainability, Geology

Ecolinc Bacchus Bacchus Marsh centre - Dept Education Education, tours, travelling, FedUni http://www.ecolinc.vic.edu.au/ Marsh Horticulture, Wetland, Climate ecology and climate wall

CERES Brunswick Gardens, Café, education Moreland Education, training, short Global programs http://www.ceres.org.au/ centre Council courses

Serendip You Yangs Sanctuary, night tours Parks Vic Sanctuary, education Bird watching http://parkweb.vic.gov.au/explore/parks/serendip- Sanctuary wetlands-education-facility

Gibberagong Kur-ing-ai Bobbin Head recreation Dept Education Education, Indigenous history Film making http://gibberagongeec.nsw.edu.au/ Environmental Chase centre & camping sites Education Centre Organisation Location Facilities Funding Services Other Contact

Botany Bay Kurnell, NSW Visitor Centre, digital learning Dept Education Education, Indigenous history, Incursion and http://botanybayeec.nsw.edu.au/ Environmental community engagement excursion Education Centre

Wetlands Hunter Valley 45 Ha wetland reserve & Dept Education Education, waterbugs, incursion, Climate and http://www.wetlandseec.schoolwebsites.com.au/ Environmental education centre excursion sustainability Education Centre

Pullenvale Brisbane Arts based education centre Dept Education Education, Indigenous history Storythread http://www.pullenvaeec.eq.edu.au/ pedagogy

Narmbool Elaine Accom, education centre, Sovereign Hill Education, online Functions http://www.sovereignhill.com.au/narmbool/ farm, bush 2000 Ha

LaTrobe Bundoora 30 Ha Sanctuary LaTrobe Uni Biodiversity Education Plant nursery http://www.latrobe.edu.au/wildlife

Conservation Cape Otway Conservation Ecology Centre Philanthropy Ecology and conservation Ecolodge http://www.conservationecologycentre.org/ Ecology Centre education

Healesville Yarra Valley Sanctuary and Education Zoos Vic Education for conservation Wild encounters http://www.zoo.org.au/healesville Sanctuary Centre