Analysis Of Historical Sea Urchin Research For Improved Management Of Nearshore Fisheries In New South Wales
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$107,000.00
Summary
The creation, persistence, and demise of sea urchin barrens is the most significant ecological dynamic on southeast Australian rocky reefs. Sea urchin barrens cover ca. 50% of nearshore reefs in NSW and have rapidly grown in Tasmania and far eastern Victoria. The creation and/or persistence of barrens has devastating impacts on a range of commercial and recreational fisheries, most notably abalone.
Managing fisheries to deliver societal benefits within the ecological regime driven by s ....The creation, persistence, and demise of sea urchin barrens is the most significant ecological dynamic on southeast Australian rocky reefs. Sea urchin barrens cover ca. 50% of nearshore reefs in NSW and have rapidly grown in Tasmania and far eastern Victoria. The creation and/or persistence of barrens has devastating impacts on a range of commercial and recreational fisheries, most notably abalone.
Managing fisheries to deliver societal benefits within the ecological regime driven by sea urchins presents a profound challenge. Dynamics external to the fishery are very influential and challenge classical fisheries governance paradigms. Overlayed on these ecological challenges are diverse stakeholders that have different visions for nearshore reefs and therefore the definitions of success.
New management objectives will be required, some of which will mean manipulating ecosystems and human behaviours to avoid thresholds in ecological variables in, among other species, sea urchin abundance, rather than optimizing yields in a classical fisheries sense. New institutional relationships will be required among policy makers, Indigenous groups, conservationists, and the fishing industry as they grapple with potential alternative futures for these reefs.
Considerable momentum is emerging in NSW to engage with this wicked problem. A unique opportunity exists to re-imagine the management of NSW reefs; to design a management regime in which all stakeholders have a place at the table. Fundamental to developing common purpose among diverse stakeholders will be a shared and scientifically informed understanding of the underlying ecology of reefs. This understanding will enable and promote the design for a spatial regime that serves multiple management and cultural objectives.
Achieving that shared understanding is hampered by the unavailability of scientific studies of the fisheries and ecology of sea urchins in southeast Australia. There is an urgent need to bring the comprehensive understanding of the dynamics of Centrostephanus on NSW reefs and relevance to fisheries (abalone, sea urchins) into the public domain to contribute more effectively to management.
Objectives: 1. Analyse historical unpublished data on the ecology of Centrostephanus and its interactions with nearshore biota and augment the findings with oral histories of fishers to inform desirable outcomes for nearshore reef management 2. Submit research findings in the primary scientific literature as five papers and share findings with the primary nearshore reef stakeholders in the form of an accessible synthesis of all research findings. 3. Share findings and conclusions with key stakeholders from NSW, Victoria and Tasmania. Read moreRead less
Futures Of Seafood. Wild. Aquaculture. Recreational. Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islanders
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$3,043,500.00
Summary
“Futures of Seafood” is an 18th month multi-disciplinary study co-designed with industry and government. It will draw from existing data, complementary work underway or concluded, and importantly will involve a suite our outputs that can be used by a variety of stakeholders in formats that are fit for purpose.
The study will provide a contemporary description on the state of play of Australia’s seafood system, the supply chain, markets and its reach into communities. It will identify a ....“Futures of Seafood” is an 18th month multi-disciplinary study co-designed with industry and government. It will draw from existing data, complementary work underway or concluded, and importantly will involve a suite our outputs that can be used by a variety of stakeholders in formats that are fit for purpose.
The study will provide a contemporary description on the state of play of Australia’s seafood system, the supply chain, markets and its reach into communities. It will identify and report on trends, insights, forecasts and cumulative impacts that are impacting (positive and negative) the industry. It will include the first in-depth spatial and descriptive profile of the seafood industry by sector and jurisdiction through spatial mapping and productivity reporting since Marine Matters in 2003. Beyond seafood, it will also identify, describe and map other ocean uses (new, emerging and transitioning), including assumptions about current growth plans / policies / rights completed / taken up, looking towards 2040.
Drawing from information collated, the study will include scenario modelling to model and scrutinise the cumulative impacts of these trends and produce associated impact reporting against productivity and sustainability (social, economic, environmental and governance) metrics for a series of ten scenarios.
It will synthesise the study findings, as well as curate across other studies underway or completed, to develop a series of industry-specific assets (reports, tools, frameworks and systems) that aim to improve knowledge and support ongoing participation in the ocean estate policy conversation. This includes supporting priority contemporary frameworks to support transitions to future states and de-risking industry/sectors.
‘Futures of Seafood’ will support a shared understanding of the potential pathways and opportunities that lie ahead for Australia’s seafood stakeholders during this time of rapid change and transformation. It will furthermore provide a foundation for industry, Government and policy makers to make better decisions, navigate changes, and ensure industry and stakeholders are well-equipped to adapt and hopefully flourish in a dynamic environment.
This study and its intended outputs are consistent with and seeks to promote action against local, national, and global strategic initiatives, including those of the High-Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy, the Biodiversity Framework within the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Paris Declaration, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and associated Forward Faster Initiative.
WORK PACKAGE SUMMARY
In short, this is a novel study that describes, maps and models the spatial, economic and social impacts of Government targets and decisions, provides evidence-based insights and charts a course for Australia’s futures of seafood alongside other ocean uses for the coming 10-15 years.
It will be delivered through a series of four work packages. These are founded on an enduring data collation platform, undertaken by a series of expert commissions and overseen and supported by a strong and inclusive governance framework.
Work Package 1: State of Play • Identify data system to support mapping and describing the current state of the industries/sectors – i.e. locations, GVP, employment, production, jurisdiction input/output. • Identify social and economic values i.e. contribution to regional communities, nutrition + value of supply chain. • Deliver a contemporary description on the building blocks and state of play of Australia's ocean food system, its supply chain and markets alongside the other uses of the ocean estate. • Investigate and report the trends, forecasts and cumulative impacts (positive and negative) on Australia's seafood industry. i.e. Nutritional security; spatial squeeze; working in a changing climate i.e. resilience, adaptation, emergency response; Industry transitions i.e. decarbonisation; Jurisdiction i.e. policy/strategy, production v consumption; Workforce + training; Nature based solutions & investment, sustainable food systems i.e. ESG and sustainability
Work Package 2: Future Estate • Map and overlay impacts of new and emerging transitioning industries in the ocean estate. • Identify and describe the trends, forecasts and cumulative impacts affecting the seafood industry. • Map/measure/describe the implications of trends, forecasts and cumulative impacts of these industries and impacts (positive and negative) on Australia's seafood industry. • Describe other uses of the ocean estate.
Work Package 3: Scenario Modelling • Design and develop tool to test future state scenarios for commercial, recreational and indigenous fishing. • Undertake a series of impact scenario examples: i.e. spatial squeeze/crowded ocean, a changing climate, a regulatory reset, sector case studies and cumulative pressures. • Use the scenarios to deliver impact reporting on productivity, nutrition and sustainability metrics to include: spatial mapping, heat maps, regulatory options, socio-economic attributes, community sentiment, nutrition, consumer and market impacts and opportunities.
Work Package 4: Synthesis • Synthesis of research from WPs into a complete report and communications assets. • Develop a Futures of Seafood Roadmap to navigate the likely impacts of the futures scenarios.
Governance Framework • This collaboration will bring together leaders from industry sectors and government portfolios of agriculture, energy and environment. • A strong and inclusive governance model is proposed to capture the breadth of stakeholders and ensure oversight of the study, strategic relevance and timely input from data and information contributors. • Oversight Committee • Industry + Community Advisory Committee • Government Advisory Committee • WP Technical Teams + Data Management & Communications Teams • Terms of Reference for each committee with be established.
Project Management • This will be supported by a mature project administration system, drawing from the Blue Economy project management system, a governance model and also an independent project evaluator to undertake assurance and integrity of program logic and models.
Objectives: 1. Provide a contemporary description on the state of play of Australia’s seafood system, the supply chain, markets and its reach into communities. 2. Identify the trends, insights, forecasts and cumulative impacts that are impacting (positive and negative) Australia's seafood industry. 3. Provide an in-depth spatial and descriptive profile of the seafood industry by sector and jurisdiction through spatial mapping and productivity reporting. 4. Identify, describe and map other ocean uses (new, emerging and transitioning), including assumptions about current growth plans / policies / rights completed / taken up, looking towards 2040. 5. Develop scenario modelling tools to model these trends and produce associated impact reporting against productivity and sustainability (social, economic, environmental and governance) metrics. 6. Synthesise the research and available to develop industry-specific assets (tools, frameworks and systems) that improve knowledge and support ongoing participation in the ocean estate policy conversation. 7. Progress priority contemporary frameworks to support transitions to future states and de-risking industry/sectors. Read moreRead less