2019-01-14 General Committee Meeting Agenda

GENERAL COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                                   14 JANUARY 2019


In delivering this project, it is intended that through the partnership arrangement, TNC can provide
some strategic oversight and integration of not only the range of initiatives that are occurring locally
in and around the Noosa River, but draw on significant scientific expertise from across the globe,
thus enabling coordination across effort, integration of outcomes and access to world best practise.
Specifically, as identified in the background studies referred to above, a report was prepared by
TNC (Attachment 2) detailing management options to restore the ecology of Noosa River for the
benefit of fisheries habitats. It identifies restoration of oyster reefs as one of the key components
to restore the health of fisheries habitats, and therefore fisheries, in the Noosa River.
Oyster Restoration Scoping – December 2014–June 2015
A preliminary scoping study was undertaken by The Nature Conservancy between December 2014
and June 2015, funded through a partnership between Noosa Shire Council and the Thomas
Foundation. The aim of the project was to determine the abundance and recruitment potential of
oysters growing in the estuary across 11 sites. Results of this study showed moderate spat (oyster
larvae) settlement within the estuary. It identified that sediment was a potential issue, and that
typically reef-forming species were not among the main oyster recruitment. Species other than
oysters were able to make use of growing substrates, also with the potential to contribute to
enhancing food webs in the river. The project recommended installing a number of pilot reefs for
further monitoring and assessment.
Oyster reef restoration trial – November 2017-current
Following this scoping study, Noosa Council co-funded (via the Noosa Biosphere Reserve
Foundation) and provided in-kind support for a small scale oyster reef restoration trial. A University
of Sunshine Coast (USC) project team identified that 15 sites were needed for the oyster
restoration reefs, which equated to about 10m3 of reef.
The 15 sites selected are all located within the Declared Fish Habitat Area A (FHA A) section of
Noosa River. The Declared Fish Habitat Area has the highest level of protection by the State, with
strict policies on what activities can occur within it. FHA A area is only allowed to facilitate fishing
activities and does not allow for substitution of any habitat type (i.e. a sand substrate is considered
equally as important to fisheries as oysters), resulting in restrictions around the design of the Oyster
Restoration Reefs.
State approvals for this trial require that annual reporting is provided to show the objectives are
being met and further states that if this cannot be demonstrated, the reefs will need to be pulled
out. The monitoring specifically looks at four areas related to the project, each of which have clear
monitoring methods and performance targets:
1.    Oyster restoration unit stability (i.e. oyster reef restoration units remain within the allocated
      resource allocation areas).
2.    Restoration of natural recruitment processes over the long term (i.e. spat recruitment rates
      demonstrate that the biogenic matrix will be sufficient to hold the structure of the oyster reef
      restoration units in place following complete degradation of the supporting coir material
      during the establishment phase, and to facilitate ongoing natural recruitment processes).
3.    Equitable community impacts (i.e. ensuring fair community use of the river system is not
      impacted by placement of the Oyster Reef Restoration Units within the Resource Allocation
      Areas - to be monitored using a Council-operated community feedback system).
4.    No negative impact on marine plants or shoreline erosion (i.e. ensuring the oyster restoration
      units do not impede natural marine plant growth or accelerate coastal erosion processes).
In November 2018, the first report from USC (Attachment 3) regarding the monitoring of the oyster
reefs was received, 12 months after the reefs were initially placed into the Noosa River. It does not
include associated biological research (such as on fish) that is also being undertaken by USC
students, from which we have received no published reports.
The report was mostly positive, noting:


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