This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub scoping study - "Identify knowledge gaps and solutions for extent mapping of Australian marine and coastal wetlands". No data outputs were generated by this project. -------------------- Marine and coastal wetlands provide extensive ecosystem services. In Australia, coastal wetlands protect shorelines, improve water quality, support healthy fisheries, promote tourism, store carbon, and hold special cultural values, supporting people and the economy. Like many wetlands around the world, Australian wetlands continue to be threatened, degraded, and lost due to climate change, development, and other human activities. A national wetland inventory is being developed by the Australian Government as a step towards improving wetlands management and protection, and fulfilling national and international reporting requirements. This project identified key knowledge and inventory gaps and determined solutions to progress a consolidated inventory within the context of a wider review of national mapping capacity for wetlands. Gaps and solutions were identified through targeted surveys and workshops with end-users and researchers following a review of relevant data and literature. A summary of the status of mapping habitat attributes and services such as blue carbon, coastal protection and shorebird habitat was produced and is available within the Final Technical Report generated by this project. This enables prioritisation for future investment to fill knowledge gaps. Outputs • Report reviewing and synthesising knowledge gaps in inventory mapping of marine and coastal wetlands, identifying effective solutions, and guiding subsequent research projects for enhancing wetland mapping [written]

This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub small-scale study - "Towards a consolidated and open-science framework for restoration monitoring". No data outputs were generated by this project. -------------------- Coastal habitat restoration is scaling up rapidly in Australia and covers a range of habitats including oyster reefs, seagrass meadows, mangrove forests, kelp forests, and saltmarshes. Every restoration project includes some attempt at monitoring outcomes but currently these are piecemeal, uncoordinated, often poorly funded, and rarely follow Open Science protocols. Previous NESP-funded projects have improved understanding of the ecology and service provision of threatened ecosystems and established targets for repair based on reference conditions (e.g. Marine Biodiversity Hub project B4). They have also established an extensive database of marine and coastal restoration projects (Australian Coastal Restoration Network: project E5), and have supported the development of monitoring, evaluation, reporting and improvement systems (MERI) for various sectors or projects. By combining the knowledge of all Australian researchers undertaking monitoring of restoration projects, across multiple habitats, this project builds upon these previous projects to synthesise the approaches for monitoring of habitat restoration. It explores integration of new technologies, such as automation, artificial intelligence, and eDNA, within the monitoring framework to improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness. The primary output of this project is a co-ordinated and open-science framework for restoration monitoring across projects, scales and habitats, that integrates clearly articulated hypotheses to determine the goals for restoration. This framework streamlines the development of future restoration projects and ensures that maximum value from monitoring activities is achieved. Outputs • Best-practice toolkit / final project report [written]

This dataset has been superseded by https://metadata.imas.utas.edu.au/geonetwork/srv/eng/catalog.search#/metadata/0145df96-3847-474b-8b63-a66f0e03ff54 (Victorian Statewide Marine Habitat Map 2023). The Victorian Benthic Habitats - Port Phillip Bay (CBICS) is a synthesis of all existing benthic habitat characterisations of the embayment which have been reclassified to conform to the Combined Biotope Classification Scheme (CBiCS). Base information for the synthesised dataset were sourced from data provided by: Marine and Freshwater Resources Institute, Queenscliff, Victoria Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, Victoria University, Melbourne. Parks Victoria, Victorian Government Deakin University, Victoria Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victorian Government

This dataset has been superseded by https://metadata.imas.utas.edu.au/geonetwork/srv/eng/catalog.search#/metadata/0145df96-3847-474b-8b63-a66f0e03ff54 (Victorian Statewide Marine Habitat Map 2023). The Victorian Benthic Habitats - Gippsland Lakes (CBICS) is a synthesis of all existing benthic habitat characterisations of the Gippsland Lakes Region which have been reclassified to conform to the Combined Biotope Classification Scheme (CBiCS). The study area for this layer is defined as Jack Smith Lake in the west to Mallacoota in the east.

This dataset has been superseded by https://metadata.imas.utas.edu.au/geonetwork/srv/eng/catalog.search#/metadata/0145df96-3847-474b-8b63-a66f0e03ff54 (Victorian Statewide Marine Habitat Map 2023). The Victorian Benthic Habitats - Western Port Bay (CBICS) is a synthesis of all existing benthic habitat characterisations of the embayment which have been reclassified to conform to the Combined Biotope Classification Scheme (CBiCS). Base layers for the synthesised dataset were sourced from data provided by: Marine and Freshwater Resources Institute, Queenscliff, Victoria Institute for Sustainability and Innovation, Victoria University, Melbourne. Parks Victoria, Victorian Government Deakin University, Victoria Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victorian Government