Healthy estuaries are essential for food security and the productivity and sustainability of virtually all Australia's wild professional and recreational fisheries. Currently, Australia's estuaries are heavily degraded and increasingly the community is seeking to repair estuaries to optimise their fisheries productivity. (e.g. Creighton et al. (2015)). Key coastal wetland habitats have been disconnected from the estuary across all developed estuaries in Australia due to practices such...
More DescriptionHealthy estuaries are essential for food security and the productivity and sustainability of virtually all Australia's wild professional and recreational fisheries. Currently, Australia's estuaries are heavily degraded and increasingly the community is seeking to repair estuaries to optimise their fisheries productivity. (e.g. Creighton et al. (2015)). Key coastal wetland habitats have been disconnected from the estuary across all developed estuaries in Australia due to practices such as the construction of flood mitigation works and the clearing and draining of low-lying floodplain back-swamps. Natural services, such as fisheries production, are adversely affected with a resulting economic and community cost.The principal objectives of this project are conceptualised in Figure 1 and were to: - Determine the potential increases in fishery productivity using School Prawn (Metapenaeus macleaya) as readily understood community indicators of fisheries productivity. - Link habitat with existing fisheries production by understanding the connections between habitat and hydrology - Identify key opportunities for establishing connectivity, habitat and fisheries productivity - Estimate the likely benefits of repair in fisheries productivity as an input to a Clarence Fisheries Productivity Investment Strategy.