Connecting targets for catchment sediment loads to ecological outcomes for seagrass using multiple lines of evidence

Lambert, Victoria; Bainbridge, Zoë; Collier, Catherine; Lewis, Stephen E.; Adams, Matthew; Carter, Alex; Saunders, Megan I.; Brodie, Jon; Turner, Ryan; Rasheed, Michael A.; O’Brien, Katherine R.

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112494

Cited by 15 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…Seagrasses in the GBRWHA are vulnerable to a range of threats, particularly those associated with declines in water quality and available light, which can have catastrophic consequences 34 , 35 . Watershed-derived pollutants, particularly sediment loads, were linked to seagrass loss across the GBRWHA from 2008 to 2011 4 , 36 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A spatial analysis of seagrass habitat and community diversity in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area

Carter

Collier

Lawrence

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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The Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area (GBRWHA) in north eastern Australia spans 2500 km of coastline and covers an area of ~ 350,000 km2. It includes one of the world’s largest seagrass resources. To provide a foundation to monitor, establish trends and manage the protection of seagrass meadows in the GBRWHA we quantified potential seagrass community extent using six random forest models that include environmental data and seagrass sampling history. We identified 88,331 km2 of potential seagrass habitat in intertidal and subtidal areas: 1111 km2 in estuaries, 16,276 km2 in coastal areas, and 70,934 km2 in reef areas. Thirty-six seagrass community types were defined by species assemblages within these habitat types using multivariate regression tree models. We show that the structure, location and distribution of the seagrass communities is the result of complex environmental interactions. These environmental conditions include depth, tidal exposure, latitude, current speed, benthic light, proportion of mud in the sediment, water type, water temperature, salinity, and wind speed. Our analysis will underpin spatial planning, can be used in the design of monitoring programs to represent the diversity of seagrass communities and will facilitate our understanding of environmental risk to these habitats.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A spatial analysis of seagrass habitat and community diversity in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area

Carter

Collier

Lawrence

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

Self Cite

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show abstract

“…This data can be used for assessing the present condition of ecosystems and for understanding long‐term trends. It can be used to define the desired state of the diversity of habitats (Collier et al 2020; Carter et al 2022 b ), establish ecologically relevant targets to maintain resilience (Brodie et al 2017; Lambert et al 2021) and to implement effective management frameworks (Levin and Möllmann 2015; Hallett et al 2016; O'Brien et al 2017; York et al 2017).…”

Section: Background and Motivationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seagrass spatial data synthesis from north‐east Australia, Torres Strait and Gulf of Carpentaria, 1983 to 2022

Carter,

McKenna,

Rasheed

et al. 2023

Limnol Oceanogr Letters

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The Gulf of Carpentaria and Torres Strait in north‐eastern Australia support globally significant seagrass ecosystems that underpin fishing and cultural heritage of the region. Reliable data on seagrass distribution are critical to understanding how these ecosystems are changing, while managing for resilience. Spatial data on seagrass have been collected since the early 1980s, but the early data were poorly curated. Some was not publicly available, and some already lost. We validated and synthesized historical seagrass spatial data to create a publicly available database. We include a site layer of 48,612 geolocated data points including information on seagrass presence/absence, sediment, collection date, and data custodian. We include a polygon layer with 641 individual seagrass meadows. Thirteen seagrass species are identified in depths ranging from intertidal to 38 m below mean sea level. Our synthesis includes scientific survey data from 1983 to 2022 and provides an important evidence base for marine resource management.

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“…We assumed that continual supply of nutrients or sediment over time would be a chronic risk to seagrasses primarily from smothering and eutrophication, whereas pulsed events would be an acute risk to seagrass primarily due to turbid plumes. Both forms of sediment and nutrient delivery have been demonstrated to have negative effects on seagrass (e.g., Cardoso et al, 2010;Lambert et al, 2021).…”

Section: Urban/agricultural Runoffmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Risk of Multiple Anthropogenic and Climate Change Threats Must Be Considered for Continental Scale Conservation and Management of Seagrass Habitat

et al. 2022

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Globally marine-terrestrial interfaces are highly impacted due to a range of human pressures. Seagrass habitats exist in the shallow marine waters of this interface, have significant values and are impacted by a range of pressures. Cumulative risk analysis is widely used to identify risk from multiple threats and assist in prioritizing management actions. This study conducted a cumulative risk analysis of seagrass habitat associated with the Australian continent to support management actions. We developed a spatially explicit risk model based on a database of threats to coastal aquatic habitat in Australia, spanning 35,000 km of coastline. Risk hotspots were identified using the model and reducing the risk of nutrient and sediment pollution for seagrass habitat was assessed. Incorporating future threats greatly altered the spatial-distribution of risk. High risk from multiple current threats was identified throughout all bioregions, but high risk from climate change alone manifested in only two. Improving management of nutrient and sediment loads, a common approach to conserve seagrass habitat did reduce risk, but only in temperate regions, highlighting the danger of focusing management on a single strategy. Monitoring, management and conservation actions from a national and regional perspective can be guided by these outputs.

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Connecting targets for catchment sediment loads to ecological outcomes for seagrass using multiple lines of evidence

Cited by 15 publications

References 62 publications

A spatial analysis of seagrass habitat and community diversity in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area

A spatial analysis of seagrass habitat and community diversity in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area

Seagrass spatial data synthesis from north‐east Australia, Torres Strait and Gulf of Carpentaria, 1983 to 2022

The Risk of Multiple Anthropogenic and Climate Change Threats Must Be Considered for Continental Scale Conservation and Management of Seagrass Habitat

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