Carter, A.B., Taylor, H.A., McKenna, S.A., and Rasheed, M.A. (2014) Long-term seagrass monitoring in the Port of Thursday Island: March 2014. Report. TropWATER, James Cook University, Cairns, QLD, Australia.

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Abstract

Key Findings:

1. Monitoring of seagrass meadows in the Port of Thursday Island is conducted every 2 years. Results show the majority of seagrasses were in good condition in 2014 with meadow biomass and area close to or above the long-term average, and with stable species composition.

2. Two of the smaller Enhalus acoroides meadows (Meadows 4 and 6) on either side of Engineer's Wharf were classed as being in "poor" condition due to declines in meadow area of >20% below the long-term (12 year) average, but this only represented a small actual decline in area. Seagrass biomass within these meadows remained high.

3. The generally good condition of seagrass meadows surrounding the Port of Thursday Island means meadows should continue to be resilient to port and other anthropogenic activities without the requirement for additional mitigation measures.

4. Daytime tidal exposure had an apparent impact on seagrass biomass in both Halodule uninervis and Enhalus acoroides dominated meadows, with high biomass occurring in years of low tidal exposure. More frequent assessments of seagrass condition (i.e. annual monitoring) would enable a better understanding of the effects of environmental conditions on fluctuations in seagrasses surrounding Thursday Island.

5. The good condition of seagrasses in the Port of Thursday Island and other monitoring locations in the Gulf of Carpentaria contrasts with many of the seagrass meadows on Queensland's east coast that were significantly impacted by major climate events in 2010/2011 and remain in poor condition.

Item ID:	39675
Item Type:	Report (Report)
Keywords:	recovery, resilience, management, environmental monitoring, marine monitoring, marine water quality, seagrass, reproduction, seagrass habitats, Great Barrier Reef, port development, dredging
Additional Information:	Access: This report is openly accessible from the link to TropWATER's Technical Reports web page above. Copyright: Please refer to the copyright statement in the report.
Funders:	Far North Queensland Ports Corporation (FNQPC) trading as Ports North
Date Deposited:	25 Aug 2015 06:15
FoR Codes:	05 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES > 0502 Environmental Science and Management > 050206 Environmental Monitoring @ 50% 05 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES > 0502 Environmental Science and Management > 050205 Environmental Management @ 50%
SEO Codes:	96 ENVIRONMENT > 9605 Ecosystem Assessment and Management > 960507 Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Marine Environments @ 50% 96 ENVIRONMENT > 9605 Ecosystem Assessment and Management > 960503 Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Coastal and Estuarine Environments @ 50%
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