This metadata record provides a brief overview of the National Environmental Science Program (NESP) Marine and Coastal (MaC) Hub. The record acts as an aggregation point for all NESP Marine and Coastal Hub data collections and projects developed as part of this research program. The National Environmental Science Program (NESP) is a long-term commitment by the Australian Government to environment and climate research. The first phase invested $145 million (2014-15 to 2020-21) into 6 research hubs. The second phase invests $149 million (2020-21 to 2026-27) into 4 new research hubs. The program builds on its predecessors – the National Environmental Research Program (NERP) and the Australian Climate Change Science Programme (ACCSP) – to support decision-makers to understand, manage and conserve Australia’s environment by funding world-class biodiversity and climate science. The Marine and Coastal Hub is a collaborative partnership supported by funding from the Australian Government administered by the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment. The current NESP funding program runs from 2021 to 2027. The Marine and Coastal Hub is co-administered by the University of Tasmania (UTAS), and the Reef and Rainforest Research Centre (RRRC). The Marine and Coastal Hub will deliver: • applied research to support management of Australia’s marine and coastal environments including estuaries, coast, reefs, shelf and deep-water • targeted biodiversity and taxonomy products to support efficient system monitoring • environmental monitoring systems and decision-support tools. The hub will also drive coordinated research across all 4 new hubs under NESP’s ‘protected place management’ cross-cutting mission. This research will support management of Australia’s protected places and heritage, including the national park estate and Ramsar sites in both marine and terrestrial environments. Research products from the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub are available from https://nespmarinecoastal.edu.au and the Australian Ocean Data Network catalogue (http://catalogue.aodn.org.au)

Tidal wetlands are vulnerable to accelerated rates of sea-level rise projected by climate models. Assessing the resilience, or vulnerability, of these environments requires measurements of rates of vertical accretion, subsidence and elevation gain across a range of coastal settings. The Surface Elevation Table (SET) technique is applied globally to assess the extent of vertical adjustment of tidal wetlands to sea-level rise over decadal timescales. This enables measurement of whether wetlands are keeping pace with sea level rise (measured at tide gauges), or subsiding relative to local sea level rise and thus vulnerable to permanent inundation and loss. Australia’s network of Surface Elevation Tables is one of the most extensive in the world, consisting of over 200 benchmark monitoring stations from Westernport Bay, Victoria to Darwin Harbour, NT. This record describes the consolidated SET data collated from the Australian network (OzSET) as at 2022. This data can be used for analysing change to the elevation of wetlands wetlands at the study sites encompassed by OzSET.

This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub small-scale study - "Quantifying the ecosystem services of the Great Southern Reef". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- The Great Southern Reef (GSR) is an 8,000 km network of temperate rocky reefs stretching from Western Australia to New South Wales. Dominated by kelp forests, it is one of the world’s most biodiverse and productive marine ecosystems, supporting important fisheries, tourism, cultural values, and ecological functions. Despite its significance, kelp forests are in decline due to ocean warming, marine heatwaves, pollution, and expanding herbivore populations—threatening both biodiversity and the services these reefs provide. Evidence-based management is hindered without accurate estimates of the GSR's contribution to society and the economy. This project delivered the first systematic synthesis of existing data on the ecosystem services and economic value of the GSR, focusing on shallow reefs (0–50 m). Market and non-market services—such as commercial and recreational fishing, tourism, carbon sequestration, and existence value—were assessed for each state in which the GSR occurs. The synthesis highlighted the high societal dependence on the GSR, with over 17 million Australians living within 50 km of its waters and significant national engagement in related economic and cultural activities. All data inventoried by the project were aligned with national and international environmental-economic accounting standards to support future inclusion in Australia’s ocean accounting frameworks. This inventory provides the foundation for developing a national ocean account for kelp forests, and identifies the key data gaps that must be addressed to fully capture the GSR’s value and guide long-term policy and investment. Outputs • Inventory of data collated and assessed for the purpose of developing ecosystem accounts for GSR • Final technical report with analysed data, including a short summary of recommendations for policy makers of key findings (written)

This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub scoping study - "Research needs for assessment and monitoring of nutrients, chemicals and antimicrobials in the marine environment". No data outputs were generated by this project. -------------------- Coastal water quality is threatened by an increasing volume of chemicals produced and used in our modern lives. These chemicals are commonly incorporated into pharmaceuticals and household items, and subsequently discharged into coastal areas from a broad range of point sources. Recently emerging contaminants include a variety of chemical (e.g. heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, nutrients) and microbiological (e.g. pathogens, antibiotic resistant microbes) sources that are discharged in sewage, stormwater, estuarine flows and industrial wastes. For many of these chemicals, our understanding of their environmental concentrations and biological effects is limited. When new scientific information emerges to suggest that a particular contaminant may be hazardous, this is refered to as a contaminant of emerging concern (CEC). There is limited data about the environmental occurrence and biological effects of CECs, but emerging research suggests they have the capacity to be toxic. With an increasing list of CECs detected in the environment, important questions remain unanswered around which contaminants and scientific knowledge gaps should be prioritised. This desktop study engaged CEC stakeholders from academic research, government, water utilities, and non-government organisations to collaboratively identify priority CEC issues in Australia’s marine ecosystems. The project delivers a risk-based framework for future CEC research directions and water quality management priorities. Outputs • Final Project Report [written]

Fish annotations of stereo Baited Remote Underwater Video and panoramic drop camera imagery, were completed as part of a report funded by the NESP Marine & Coastal Hub. This report focussed on an IUCN II zone in the South-west Corner Marine Park off the 'Capes region' near Margaret River. These data were analysed in EventMeasure using standard operating procedures for the annotation of remote stereo imagery.

This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub Research Plan 2023 project 3.7 – Identifying and overcoming barriers to coastal and marine habitat restoration and Nature based Solutions in Australia. All outputs of this project are written (i.e. no data outputs). -------------------- There is an increasing need for and investment in coastal and marine restoration around Australia to help manage habitat and biodiversity loss, water quality, coastal inundation and erosion, and blue carbon assets. These projects are undertaken by a range of Commonwealth, state and local government agencies, NGOs, and community groups, and range across different habitat types and scale. However, a number of barriers currently preclude widespread uptake and implementation of habitat restoration and nature-based solutions (NbS) in Australia, which centre on: 1) policy and legislative barriers; 2) engineering adoption of NbS; and 3) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander inclusion and co-design. Overcoming barriers to marine and coastal restoration, and Nature-based Solutions (NbS) adoption is critical to safeguarding Australia’s marine estate. We focus this research on three thematic areas that represent roadblocks and opportunities for more inclusion in implementing and scaling-up restoration and NbS: 1. Engaging policy and permitting regulators to identify and breakdown barriers for marine and coastal habitat restoration; 2. Understanding and up-take of NbS by the engineering sector; and 3. Inclusion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in restoration and NbS This research was conducted through in person and virtual workshops, with the outcome being advancement of effective approaches to overcome these challenges. Outputs • Identifying and overcoming barriers to marine and coastal habitat restoration and nature-based solutions in Australia [project summary - written] • A blueprint for overcoming barriers to the use of nature-based coastal protection in Australia [written] • Legislative permitting processes for restoration [written] • Pathways to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander inclusion and co-design in restoration [written]

This data is from the 2021 'Seeds for Snapper' season which is a community volunteer seed based seagrass restoration program located in Perth, Western Australia. It details the effort that went into the collection of Posidonia australis seagrass fruit including number of divers, number of shore support personnel, volunteered hours, and fruit collection metrics (volume, estimated number).