This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub scoping study - "Research needs for a national approach to socio-economic values of the marine environment". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- Effective management of natural resources and biodiversity requires an integrated understanding of the complex relationships between people and nature. This project reviewed a range of socio-ecological frameworks to identify which system components influence environmental outcomes, and which are most relevant for policy design and behaviour change. A key point of difference from previous NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub projects was an additional theme on implementation pathways, enabling research to inform the full progression from policy to on-ground action. Through a co-design process with stakeholders, the project identified priority social and economic research needs and assessed the availability of relevant datasets to meet them. A key outcome was the identification of three common decision contexts faced by managers—monitoring, trade-off analysis, and promoting behaviour change—and the matching of appropriate frameworks and data to each context. The findings highlight critical data gaps, while providing practical guidance on how existing information can be strategically used to inform management and policy decisions. Outputs • Inventory of compiled datasets relating to relevant economic values, threats, and socioeconomic values for Case Study locations [data inventory] • Four fact sheets, each based around common decision contexts encountered by the project [written] • Final Project Report [written]

This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub Research Plan 2024 project "Potential impacts of offshore wind developments on eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whales". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- Pygmy blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda) are listed as Endangered under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC 1999). Their distribution and Biologically Important Areas (BIAs) overlap with regions proposed for offshore renewable energy development in western and south-eastern Australia, creating a need to assess potential impacts alongside existing pressures such as shipping, oil and gas activity, vessel strike, underwater noise and habitat disturbance. This project mapped the distribution and core foraging and migratory areas of eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whales by combining satellite tracking data with auxiliary information from aerial surveys, marine mammal observer records, and existing habitat suitability models. These spatial products were overlaid with proposed offshore renewable energy areas, BIAs, Australian Marine Park boundaries, and spatial pressures layers. A cumulative impact framework was used to identify areas of higher risk and potential lower-impact reference sites. The project outputs support regulators, proponents and government agencies in assessing and mitigating potential offshore renewable energy impacts on pygmy blue whales. The results contribute to cumulative risk assessment, blue whale recovery planning, future BIA review, monitoring design, and prioritisation of future research and data collection. Outputs • Spatial layers quantifying the relative distribution including migratory corridors and foraging areas across the known eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whale range [dataset] • Spatial layers of habitat suitability distribution [dataset] • Spatial layers for human activities identified as key pressures in this study [dataset] • Spatial layers of cumulative impact score across the species' range including potential threats from ORE and existing threats from other industries [dataset] • Final project report [written]

This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub Emerging Priorities project "A trophic-ecology based tool to assess and manage HAB impacts on marine ecosystems". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- South Australia’s 2025 harmful algal bloom (HAB) caused mortality across multiple trophic levels, from primary producers to top predators. This highlighted the need for tools that assess reef ecosystem condition and recovery using food-web structure, not only species counts or biomass estimates. This Emerging Priorities project will develop a trophic integrity framework for assessing subtidal reef condition across South Australia’s marine estate. The framework will support development of a Normalised Reef Status Index (NRSI) based on relative biomass across trophic levels, using biodiversity datasets from Reef Life Survey and the Australian Temperate Reef Collaboration, along with stereo-BRUV surveys and long-term habitat, plankton and water-quality monitoring. The project will model relationships between reef condition and environmental, disturbance and management drivers, enabling assessment of the 2025 HAB and marine heatwave impacts, recovery trajectories, and areas most vulnerable to future events. It will integrate existing and new biodiversity datasets with trophic and spatial analyses to provide a science-based assessment of subtidal reef condition. A web-based decision-support tool will be used to visualise reef condition, disturbance impacts and recovery, and to explore management options such as spatial protection, habitat restoration, fishing closures and rezoning. A technical report with management recommendations will support the SA HAB Science Program, state and Commonwealth agencies, marine park management, and public engagement. Outputs • Quantitative models linking trophic integrity indicators (including the NRSI) with environmental and management drivers [modelling framework] • Spatial prediction and vulnerability maps identifying reef areas most affected by the 2025 HAB and areas most susceptible to future disturbance events [dataset] • Interactive web-based decision-support dashboard for visualising reef condition, disturbance impacts and recovery trajectories, with scenario-testing functionality [tool] • Final technical report [written]

This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub Emerging Priorities project "Assessing impacts of harmful algal bloom events on South Australian benthic habitats". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- In early 2025, South Australia experienced an unprecedented harmful algal bloom (HAB) dominated by Karenia species, with high concentrations in Gulf St Vincent and Spencer Gulf. These gulfs support diverse benthic habitats, iconic biodiversity, and important commercial and recreational fisheries. The rapid development of the bloom and challenges associated with accessing affected areas limited timely assessment of impacts to benthic ecosystem. This Emerging Priorities project will assess HAB impacts by repeating recent benthic surveys at impacted sites across both gulfs. The project will take advantage of existing pre-bloom baseline data, allowing robust before-after comparisons with minimal confounding by seasonal or inter-annual trends. The assessment will integrate towed-camera habitat imagery, stereo-BRUV fish assemblage surveys, benthic trawl data and environmental measurements. Towed-camera resurveys will provide post-bloom imagery, and visual and quantitative assessments of habitat condition. Repeat stereo-BRUV surveys will assess changes in relative abundance, richness and composition of fish and larger invertebrate communities across seagrass and sand habitats. The findings will inform the South Australian HAB Science Program, support development of HAB-related coastal habitat monitoring, and provide evidence for state and Commonwealth agencies to prioritise future monitoring, research and management actions. Outputs • Post-HAB benthic imagery [imagery] • Quantitative assessment of impacts on benthic habitat and fish communities [dataset] • Final technical report [written]