Tasmania is experiencing escalated development of its coastal regions, with greater use of coastal waters for industry and recreational activities, as well as the value placed on the pristine nature of our coasts. A greater understanding of community values regarding the marine environment is required so that increased seafood production and marine-based livelihoods can be generated from a public resource to meet the needs of current and future generations. In addition, procedural justice is a key component underpinning conflict in this arena. It is not enough purely to understand community values, it is imperative to understand how such values can be incorporated into a ‘just’ decision-making process. This project will use the Tasmanian coast as a case study to investigate potential means by which to incorporate natural resource values into public decision-making processes relating to commons-resource use.
Understanding the complex interplay between human-induced ecological changes and their feedbacks on societies is a crucial step towards an integrated ecosystem assessment and management that takes into account conservation and societal objectives. Ecosystem models are powerful tools to explore and predict such interactive mechanisms.
This project will evaluate current approaches and develop new methodologies for representing human behaviour with size-spectrum ecosystem models, with the final aim of clarifying interdependence of humans and their role in shaping ecosystem structure, function and dynamics, and thus improving integrated ecosystem assessment and management in the oceans. The first main task of the project is the development of a data driven size-spectrum ecosystem model for the South-East Australia region, where data on populations abundance at size and fishing effort through time are available. Then, the South-East Australia model will be extended to include the human part of the combined socioecological system, with a specific focus at incorporating fleet dynamics. This is to improve understanding of fishers’ response to changes in biological and economic conditions of a fishery and in management regulations, and to predict the consequences that such behaviour might have on ecosystem functioning. Last, the methodology developed will be stretched from the South-East Australia to a global context, thus contributing to ongoing global scale modelling work.
Conflicts over activities in the marine environment are increasing. As recent controversies like the “super trawler,” and marine aquaculture in Macquarie Harbour and Okehampton Bay suggest, marine activities involve impacts on common pool environmental resources. They often involve fundamental conflicts between private and public interest values. This project examines how to improve formal approval processes for activities affecting the marine environment by drawing on insights from the relationship between two public participation concepts: Social License to Operate (SLO) and Free, Prior, Informed Consent (FPIC). Approaching social license to operate through an FPIC framework creates the potential for a standardized definition of marine SLO and a reproducible process by which to pursue it.
The project fills an important gap in the existing literature. While the concepts of SLO and FPIC have both received detailed treatment as separate concepts, the relationship between the two is relatively under-explored, as is the relationship between the two concepts and formal legal approvals processes, and the application of both concepts to marine environments. The project will identify the points of commonality and difference between the two concepts. It will then develop mechanisms by which to incorporate those elements into formal approvals processes. This will involve challenging new requirements for determining who constitutes the ‘affected community’ for activities affecting the marine environment, whose values are important, and what provides legal basis for their FPIC rights.
As plastic production increases globally we are, in turn, seeing a rise of litter lost into the marine environment. To combat this issue, numerous abatement strategies have been employed that target reducing litter from local sources. However, these strategies are under-researched in Australia and internationally. Given that litter not only reduces the economic value of an area but also creates a problem to public health, knowing what litter abatement strategies work is imperative to reducing litter entering the ocean. This PhD programme aims to determine a potential link between the density of the marine debris on the coastlines around Australia and the effectiveness of existing local litter abatement strategies.
More specifically this project will:
Fishing contributes significantly to the livelihood of coastal communities in many developing countries, through subsistence, artisanal and commercial operations. Over-exploitation of fisheries resources is a major challenge in many of these countries, a consequence of economic imperatives and non-existent or inadequate regulation and enforcement of fishing activity. The precautionary principle has long been recognised in international law as a guiding principle for fisheries governance to ensure the sustainable use of marine resources. Most countries have explicitly or implicitly committed to manage their fishery resources in a precautionary manner, yet the implementation of precaution in domestic law and policy remains fraught. Developing countries in particular have limited legal and institutional capacity and struggle with the cost of the scientific inputs required for implementation approaches that are favoured by wealthier countries. A more contextual, tailored and nuanced approach to operationalising the precautionary principle is needed for developing countries. This would enable them to meet their common–but-differentiated international responsibilities, while recognising that limited resources are available for fisheries management.
There has been remarkably little focus on this challenge in fisheries management research and practice. This research project will identify the mechanisms by which developing countries can enhance implementation of the precautionary principle through domestic law and policy, based on an in-depth comparative analysis of the legal regimes for fisheries management in one developed country (Australia) and two developing countries (Colombia and Chile).
More specifically this project will:
The global oceans represent a crucial component of the Earth’s system and provide billions of people with core ecosystem services. Yet there is high uncertainty about the ecological status of the worlds’ marine ecosystems and increasing evidence of ocean tipping points and regime shifts from multiple human pressures. The need for knowledge of resilience thresholds (tipping points) for human use of the world’s biosphere has been highlighted by the “Planetary Boundaries” framework, which aims to define a safe operating space for humanity on Earth. Recent progress has extended this framework to account for the needs of people, at both regional and global scales. What is currently lacking is knowledge of the trade-offs that exist among planetary boundaries; whether and how humanity can remain within the safety limits of ecosystems whilst simultaneously meeting societal needs – now and in the future.
Global marine modelling efforts have begun to link physical, ecological and human processes for predicting consequences of climate change in the oceans and can be used to assess resilience alongside empirical datasets. However dynamical feedbacks among these components and human drivers are not yet well developed. This project aims to develop a framework that predicts resilience thresholds of linked trophodynamic social-ecological systems by linking existing global marine ecosystem models and social network modelling extensive data on physical, biological and human variables.
The South–East Tasmania provides a ready-made laboratory to undertake research on regional ecosystem-based coastal management. South–East Tasmania has been the focus of over two decades of activities by CSIRO, the University of Tasmania and State and federal governments.
This work can be summarised as:
(i) There are several CSIRO activities and strategic interests in which there is considerable scientific capability for EBM delivery, and while these have made progress they have encountered institutional barriers to uptake. Two such examples, at national and regional extremes, are a national Oceans Policy and EBM for the Hobart Derwent/Huon/Bruny bioregion (INFORMD and IMFORMD2- YMV).
(ii) There is improved application of interdisciplinary capability to understanding the institutional barriers to uptake of scientific capability in EBM, most notably through the model developed by the Coastal Collaboration Cluster Knowledge System Theme.
(iii) CSIRO and local research organisations (especially via University of Tasmania and the Derwent Estuary Program) have engaged in coordinated research for EBM-oriented management in the Hobart Derwent/Huon/Bruny bioregion.
The proposed Postdoctoral fellowship is expected to build on this research – and the data from these projects – in the INFORMD region of SE Tasmania (i.e. the Derwent and Huon rivers, catchments and estuaries, the Storm Bay – D’Entrecasteaux channel and the Bruny bioregion) to focus on the science-policy base for resilient regional multiple use management.
The project’s primary aim is to develop a robust and resilient framework for EBM at a regional level that is repeatable and scalable and as a result be applied in other areas. The multidisciplinary approach suggested for this research position can start to account for how diverse ‘values’ are accounted for within EBM. An overview of socio-ecological interactions will be facilitated through the understanding of ecological, social and economic consideration of the marine environment being developed through research undertaken by members of the Centre for Marine Socioecology.
The project uses reflexive participatory-action research (PAR) methods – individual stakeholder/key informant interviews and (collaborative) workshop(s).
Current research has focused on coordination within individual sectoral issues (e.g. aquaculture development). This project moves to address science-policy-management constraints that have hindered development of an integrated EBM approach.
The key research question is what are the constraints that have prevented implementation of an EBM approach in a region that has been successful in coordinating research and in addressing individual sectoral issues?
The key research question is what are the constraints that have prevented implementation of an EBM approach in a region that has been successful in coordinating research and in addressing individual sectoral issues?
What lessons can be learned from this experience?
What model(s) to implement EBM can be developed from this research?
How can this model be evaluated?
The project will combine global species distribution and trait databases, existing experimental data and new targeted field sampling to develop, test and apply an integrated modelling platform to predict how global warming driven changes in species distributions and their interactions affect the structure and dynamics of shallow marine communities.
The project will address a key knowledge gap on how species redistributions and trophic dynamics interact to simultaneously produce novel communities. We aim to forecast future species abundances for sustainable marine ecosystem management.
However, existing fishing rules often are not able to account for the myriad of interactions happening below and above the sea…. The complexity of ecological interactions, external drivers, local socio-economic issues and institutional constraints.
This project will develop and test ways of integrating these human dimensions with our existing fishing management models. Firstly, the project evaluates existing fisheries decision support tools for their ability to account for environmental, social, economic and institutional [sustainability] objectives. Using Australian Rock Lobster fisheries as a case study, the outputs of different decision support tools will be assessed, providing a comparative analysis of the strengths and weakness of each tool in reporting the described objectives of the fishery. This project will focus on collecting appropriate social data from fishers and community members on social objectives, relationships, motivations, capacities and capabilities relating to participation and persistence in the fishing industry. This data will be combined with scientific, economic and institutional factors in order to produce holistic management scenarios whereby management policies can be evaluated against multiple outcomes.
Finding ways to better integrate the ‘human’ with the ‘environmental’ will not only help managers and policy makers to make more transparent, equitable and fair decisions, it will also help fishers and other community members to become an integral part of the decision making process by making their long-term needs a factor in the decision.
However along with this significant growth in aquaculture production, there is an increasing concern over the availability of adequate and suitable space for aquaculture expansion. In recent decades aquaculture has been in competition with different users both on land and in the water due to other competing economic developments such as agriculture, renewable energy and tourism. Furthermore, the potential impacts of climate change on aquaculture (e.g. increasing water temperature, evaporation and precipitation levels) and increasing constraints from ecological concerns (e.g. nutrient enrichment, disease outbreak, conflict of interest with other societal demands) have made the battle for space harder. In response to these limiting factors and the search for adequate and suitable space, aquaculture is now expanding into deeper offshore environments.
The attractiveness and potential benefits of moving aquaculture deeper offshore are many. For example, as a result of increased water flow and depth, offshore sites tend to be less susceptible to the effects of farms on the environment (e.g. nutrient enrichment, disease outbreak), to the effects of the environment on farms (e.g. land- based pollutants), or to the effects of climate change (e.g. water temperature). While offshore environment can play a major role in ensuring good environmental outcomes, reduce conflict between different users, and provide a better culture environment for some aquaculture species, the choice of farm location also plays a critical role in determining its productivity, environmental impact, and interactions with other services provided by the ocean. In other words most issues related to aquaculture development and administrative decision-making are driven by spatial considerations. Thus the tools developed in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) can be used for spatial planning purposes in offshore aquaculture development and administrative decision-making.
Spatial planning needs to include sustainability considerations, without this development and administrative decisions may run contrary to the environmental and social objectives. One way of achieving sustainable development is to define management objectives (e.g. physical, social, ecological, production) in terms of ‘carrying capacity’. These carrying capacities can be used to define the upper limits of aquaculture production, the ecological limits, and the social acceptability of aquaculture in a way that does not cause unacceptable change in any carrying capacities over an extended period. Since the interactions between the major carrying capacities over time characterises the behaviour of the ecosystem, it can then be explained through System Dynamics (SD) modelling.
Given the strength of SD modelling in representing temporal processes with restricted spatial modelling capabilities, and the competency of GIS for spatial modelling with limited representation of temporal aspects, the aim of this PhD project is to integrate GIS with SD to provide a powerful decision support tool that would minimise adverse environmental impacts, social conflicts, and maximise economic return.
