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 "Environmental DNA for measuring offshore marine biodiversity: what can DNA in water collected from the RV Investigator tell us?". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- Environmental DNA (eDNA) in seawater provides a non-extractive way to characterise marine biodiversity from genetic material shed by organisms, from microbes and plankton to invertebrates and fishes. It is an emerging tool for marine ecosystem monitoring, particularly in offshore areas where conventional sampling can be difficult, costly or environmentally disruptive. This project collected and analysed more than 500 eDNA samples from 91 sites during the South-east Australian Marine Ecosystem Survey (SEA-MES) on RV Investigator. Samples were collected along the continental shelf between Tasmania and southern New South Wales, including sites within the South-east Marine Parks Network, providing the first comprehensive eDNA baseline for this region. The project tested active eDNA sampling from CTD water samples and passive eDNA sampling from a deep-towed camera system. DNA metabarcoding and Tree of Life metabarcoding were used to identify biodiversity patterns across the water column and near the seafloor. Results were compared with conventional survey methods, including fish trawls, plankton sampling and deep-towed camera deployments, to assess how eDNA complements existing monitoring approaches. The dataset revealed clear biodiversity patterns by depth, latitude, and water-column position, including higher fish diversity near the seafloor than at the surface. Comparisons with trawl and plankton data showed that eDNA provided complementary biodiversity information, supporting its use alongside existing survey methods and highlighting its value as part of integrated monitoring programs. The outputs provide a new biodiversity baseline for south-eastern Australian waters, and practical guidance on future application of eDNA techniques for offshore monitoring of marine parks and fisheries. Outputs • eDNA sequences with associated collection metadata (x2 voyages x50 sites) [dataset] • Final project report [written]