Quantifying the sources of pollutants in the Great Barrier Reef catchments and the relative risk to reef ecosystems

Waterhouse, Jane; Brodie, Jon; Lewis, Stephen E.; Mitchell, Alan

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2011.09.031

Cited by 112 publications

(68 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…These large discharges led to the formation of extensive river plumes intruding onto the southern GBR shelf and phytoplankton blooms with chlorophyll-a concentrations in the range 6-18 mg·m −3 [23]. Discharges were enriched with nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural land use, especially nitrate from fertilizers used in sugarcane cultivation (and other crops) and particulate nitrogen and phosphorus from erosion in beef grazing and cropping lands [24]. Nutrient loads from GBR rivers have increased several-fold over the past 150 years, associated with agricultural development of their catchments [25].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unique Sequence of Events Triggers Manta Ray Feeding Frenzy in the Southern Great Barrier Reef, Australia

et al. 2015

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Manta rays are classified as Vulnerable to Extinction on the IUCN Red List for Threatened Species. In Australia, a key aggregation site for reef manta rays is Lady Elliot Island (LEI) on the Great Barrier Reef, ~7 km from the shelf edge. Here, we investigate the environmental processes that triggered the largest manta ray feeding aggregation yet observed in Australia, in early 2013. We use MODIS sea surface temperature (SST), chlorophyll-a concentration and photic depth data, together with in situ data, to show that anomalous river discharges led to high chlorophyll (anomalies: 10-15 mg·m ) and turbid (photic depth anomalies: −15 m) river plumes extending out to LEI, and that these became entrained offshore around the periphery of an active cyclonic eddy. Eddy dynamics led to cold bottom intrusions along the shelf edge (6 °C temperature decrease), and at LEI (5 °C temperature decrease). Strongest SST gradients (>1 °C·km zone between the shelf and eddy-influenced waters, directly overlying LEI. Here, the front intensified on the spring ebb tide to attract and shape the aggregation pattern of foraging manta rays. Future research could focus on mapping the probability and persistence of these ecologically significant frontal zones via remote sensing to aid the management and conservation of marine species.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unique Sequence of Events Triggers Manta Ray Feeding Frenzy in the Southern Great Barrier Reef, Australia

et al. 2015

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“…Declining water quality from land-based runoff is one of the most significant threats to the health of the GBR, with sediments, nutrients, and pesticides identified as the key contaminants of concern [10]. Wet season conditions are experienced from December-April in Northern Australia and are an important catalyst in the condition and variability associated with water quality within the GBR [9].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The content of the river discharge has changed through time with large increases in the loads of sediments, nutrients, and pesticides associated with the expansion of agricultural development of the GBR catchment [10][11][12]. Persistent, above average river flows over a seven year period have been associated with a number of changes in the GBR communities, such as reduction in seagrass cover [13], impacts on coral cover, increase in coral disease [14], and high mortality rates of dugongs and turtles [15][16][17].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Management agencies in Australia are responding to these issues with the Australian and Queensland (State) Governments committing to the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan [10], a bilateral policy (initiated in 2003), that aims to ensure that 'by 2020 the quality of water entering the GBR from broadscale land use has no detrimental impact on the health and resilience of the GBR'. The plan identifies a range of strategies and actions to achieve this goal including prioritisation of investment, adoption of improved land management practices, and evaluation of performance [18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Water Quality and River Plume Monitoring in the Great Barrier Reef: An Overview of Methods Based on Ocean Colour Satellite Data

et al. 2015

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A strong driver of water quality change in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is the pulsed or intermittent nature of terrestrial inputs into the GBR lagoon, including delivery of increased loads of sediments, nutrients, and toxicants via flood river plumes (hereafter river plumes) during the wet season. Cumulative pressures from extreme weather with a high frequency of large scale flooding in recent years has been linked to the large scale reported decline in the health of inshore seagrass systems and coral reefs in the central areas of the GBR, with concerns for the recovery potential of these impacted ecosystems. Management authorities currently rely on remotely-sensed (RS) and in situ data for water quality monitoring to guide their assessment of water quality conditions in the GBR. The use of remotely-sensed satellite products provides a quantitative and accessible tool for scientists and managers. These products, coupled with in situ data, and more recently modelled data, are valuable for quantifying the influence of river plumes on seagrass and coral reef habitat in the GBR. This article reviews recent remote sensing techniques developed to monitor river plumes and water quality in the GBR. We also discuss emerging research that integrates hydrodynamic models with remote sensing and in situ OPEN ACCESS Remote Sens. 2015, 7 12910 data, enabling us to explore impacts of different catchment management strategies on GBR water quality.

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“…All of these land use practices can be amplified by the increase in run off produced by flooding events. There are numerous factors which affect the water quality of water discharged on the Great Barrier Reef, these include land-based runoff and river flow, point source pollution and extreme weather conditions (Brodie et al, 2011;Waterhouse et al, 2012). Decreased water quality parameter have been identified as one of the most significant causes of seagrass decline Coles et al, 2015;Day and Dobbs, 2013;, McKenzie et al, 2014, 2012.…”

Section: Seagrass Declinementioning

confidence: 99%

The effectiveness of rehabilitation post catastrophic environmental events as a conservation strategy for marine turtles

Flint¹

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School of Veterinary Science 2In-water monitoring of the health and well-being of marine vertebrates is usually expensive and therefore may not be undertaken by management agencies with financial constraints.However, the use of stranding data can provide a cost-effective alternative estimation of disease and mortality. Strandings for marine turtles in Queensland are recorded in a web based database (StrandNet) managed by the Queensland Government's Department of Environment and Heritage Protection (EHP). Data recorded in StrandNet for marine turtles stranded from the entire east coast of Queensland between 1996 and 2013 were investigated for patterns of stranding in an attempt to identify which factors, such as extreme weather events, may cause stranding of marine turtle species and, further, use these patterns to predict stranding and the required responses to mitigate the negative impact mass mortalities have on endangered species such as marine turtles.Significant stranding trends in Queensland between 1996-2013 were: (i) an increase in the number of animals reported stranded within the study site; (ii) a species (loggerhead and green marine turtles) prevalence for stranding; (iii) a seasonal effect on different age classes stranding with most overall strandings occurring between August and November; and (iv) stranding hotspots (Moreton Bay, Hervey Bay, Rockhampton region and Cleveland Bay) persisting throughout the study timeframe.One strategy to mitigate the negative effects of marine turtle stranding is to provide medical care to those that strand alive in the hopes they can return to the functional population. Rehabilitation of marine turtles in Queensland is multifaceted. It treats individual animals, serves to educate the public, and contributes to conservation. Of 13854 marine turtles reported as stranded during the 18-year period of investigation, 5022 of these turtles stranded alive with the remainder verified as dead or of unknown condition. A total of 2970 (59%) of these live strandings were transported to a rehabilitation facility.The original cause of stranding has an impact on the success of rehabilitation and this may influence where treatment efforts are directed. For example, of the turtles admitted to rehabilitation exhibiting signs of disease (natural cause of illness) (18% of all animals admitted to rehabilitation), 88% of them died either unassisted or by euthanasia. Sixty-six percent of turtles admitted for unknown causes of stranding died either unassisted or by 3 euthanasia. By contrast, all turtles recorded as having a buoyancy disorder with no other presenting problem or disorder recorded, were released alive.One hundred and one of the turtles released from rehabilitation were reencountered: 77 reported as restrandings (20 dead, 13 alive subsequently died, 11 alive subsequently euthanized, 33 alive) and 24 recaptured during normal marine turtle population monitoring or fishing activities. Considering the high mortality rate and low successful recapture rate, rehabilitation may not be...

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Quantifying the sources of pollutants in the Great Barrier Reef catchments and the relative risk to reef ecosystems

Cited by 112 publications

References 57 publications

Unique Sequence of Events Triggers Manta Ray Feeding Frenzy in the Southern Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Unique Sequence of Events Triggers Manta Ray Feeding Frenzy in the Southern Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Water Quality and River Plume Monitoring in the Great Barrier Reef: An Overview of Methods Based on Ocean Colour Satellite Data

The effectiveness of rehabilitation post catastrophic environmental events as a conservation strategy for marine turtles

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