2020-09-14 GC Agenda - Item 7 - Attachment 1 - Noosa River Oyster Ecosystem Restoration Project Annual Report No. 1

restoration to the long-term health and resilience of the Noosa River estuary. The Noosa River Plan will support the
delivery of the Noosa Environment Strategy.

TNC Project Management Plan 2020
The TNC Project Management Plan including Communications Plan and Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting (MER)
Plan were presented to Noosa Shire Council at its Ordinary Meeting, 16th July 2020.


Project overview
Past research projects demonstrated that the Noosa River estuary has sufficient oyster recruitment and survival, and
invertebrate colonization, at a number of locations to make the estuary a viable place to pursue an oyster ecosystem
restoration project at scale.

The primary goal of the Project is to restore functionally extinct oyster-dominated ecosystems (beds and reefs) and
other associated oyster species, in the Noosa River estuary. These ecosystems benefit nature and people.

Historically, oyster ecosystems were prolific throughout the Noosa River estuary. They were created predominantly
by rock oysters (such as Saccostrea glomerata), which, in association with other oyster species, formed three-
dimensional ‘natural infrastructures’ in the river, either forming ‘beds’ of low relief or ‘reefs’ of high relief. Oyster
ecosystems provide valuable fish habitat and substantial ecological services to coastal ecosystems (Peterson et al
2003; Beck et al 2011; Grabowski et al 2012). Oysters are ecosystem engineer species capable of improve ecosystem
function and providing habitat for other organisms (Grabowski et al 2012).

Oyster ecosystems thus added extensive ‘natural infrastructure’ to the estuary and provided the estuary with a
range of environmental functions. These included providing complex habitats for marine species (the diverse
habitats typically consist of fish, invertebrates, corals, ascidians, lace corals, encrusting sponges and algae); filtering
water and removing suspended sediment and pollution; processing nutrients; providing bank stabilization and
protection; and, providing complex vertical and horizontal living spaces, and feeding grounds, for a multitude of
intertidal and marine creatures, which are today important for marine and coastal lifestyle and tourism activities
such as fishing, diving and bird watching.

The recognition of the significant contribution of oyster ecosystems led to their recognition as an important wetland
habitat type in the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (The Ramsar Convention – habitat type
‘Ga’) (Kasoar et al. 2015).

Key related references include:

Kasoar T, zu Ermgassen PS, Carranza A, Hancock B, & Spalding M. 2015. New opportunities for conservation of a
threatened biogenic habitat: a worldwide assessment of knowledge on bivalve-reef representation in marine and
coastal Ramsar Sites. Marine and Freshwater Research. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/MF14306

Peterson CH, Grabowski JH, & Powers SP. 2003. Estimated enhancement of fish production resulting from restoring
oyster reef habitat: quantitative valuation. Marine Ecology Progress Series 264, 249–264. doi:10.3354/MEPS264249

Grabowski JH, Brumbaugh RD, Conrad RF, Keeler AG, Opaluch JJ, Peterson CH, Piehler MF, Powers SP, & Smyth AR.
2012. Economic valuation of ecosystem services provided by oyster reefs. Bioscience 62, 900–909.
doi:10.1525/BIO.2012.62.10.10




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