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Abstract

This report presents data obtained as part of the trial implementation of the Coastal and Estuarine Resource Condition Assessment (CERCA) project. CERCA was established to address the widely-acknowledged need for a standardised means of collecting, analysing and presenting coastal and estuarine condition information.
NRM South, in partnership with the Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute (TAFI), has developed CERCA to improve availability of estuarine health data and access to information, as well as identifying the data and information needs of stakeholders.
A comprehensive review of condition assessment methodologies, followed by extensive consultation with resource managers (including state and local government, industry and community groups), resulted in the selection of baseline monitoring parameters and priority monitoring sites.
A 12-month program was developed and implemented in order to obtain baseline information on water quality (salinity, water temperature, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, pH, dissolved nutrients, silica), ecological condition as shown by Chlorophyll a, benthic macroinvertebrates, pathogens, and habitat extent determined from habitat mapping.
While in some cases the program built on existing collection programs, in most locations this represented the first effort to obtain comprehensive quality assured/quality controlled data.
The CERCA trial has shown that the proposed framework can be successfully applied to collect, collate, analyse and present condition information that is useful to a variety of stakeholders. It has also yielded valuable baseline information that can be used to monitor changes to the health of coastal and estuarine ecosystems in Tasmania’s southern NRM region.

Item Type:	Report (Project Report)
Authors/Creators:	Temby, N and Crawford, CM
Publisher:	University of Tasmania
Additional Information:	© Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute, University of Tasmania 2008.
Related URLs:	Organisation
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