Meeting papers

Breaks in internal connectivity will be identified in Council’s Bushland Operational Assessment
(condition) mapping, and remediation where possible planned in ecological restoration planning.
Potential external linkages to other bushland will be identified via desktop mapping and confirmed
during nearby condition mapping processes. Securing and remediation of these areas shall be
planned during nearby ecological restoration planning.

Changing ecosystems and plant and animal distributions
Climate change can affect or change the ecosystems, ecosystem characteristics and the location
and distribution of plants and animals. Observed and likely regional ecosystem and other shifts due
to climate change should be acknowledged and incorporated when setting ecological restoration
targets, developing planting lists and conducting other ecological management activities11,12.

Sea turtles
Loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) (E ICUN, E EPBCA, E NCA)
Chelonia mydas – green turtle (E ICUN, V EPBCA, V NCA)
Green turtles (Chelonia mydas)

Loggerhead and green turtles nest and hatch on the Queensland coast at Noosa - both are
endangered at state, national and international levels. They are found around the globe, travelling
extensive distances between their inshore seagrass and seaweed feeding sites and sandy beach
breeding grounds each year. Hatchlings and young turtles drift in the open ocean for years, eating
small animals in and near patches of floating seaweed. They start breeding between 10 and 30
years of age and can live up to 70-90 years. While they mostly live in the ocean, some land-based
threats can affect them, particularly during nesting and hatching (November-February).

Threatened Fauna Road Map
With Noosa Council’s Threatened Fauna Road Map recently endorsed by Council, sea turtles
(Loggerhead and Green) have been identified as management priorities for the 20232/243 financial
year.

Existing sea turtle research and management actions include ongoing nest monitoring and
management, community awareness campaigns and marine debris clean-up initiatives. A Sea
Turtle Recovery Action Plan for the Noosa Shire will be developed alongside our key stakeholders
for the commencement of the 2023 breeding season.

The Sea Turtle Action Recovery Plan will aim to maximum the outcomes of the various
conservation efforts currently being implemented by Community Conservation Groups and Council,
while also contributing to external local, state and commonwealth government sea turtle recovery
programs. This initiative aims to provide clear management approaches across the Eastern
Beaches and Noosa North Shore, to address the threating process impacting the survival of these
threatened and iconic species.




Coolum and North Shore Coast Care (CaNSCC) - Turtle Monitoring Group
Volunteers from Coolum and North Shore Coast Care’s Turtle Monitoring and Council officers
respond to reports of turtle nests on Noosa beaches, often reported by regular local beach walkers
who volunteer with CaNSCC as spotters for tracks on the beach in the early morning before they


11 Harrison, P.A. (2021), Climate change and the suitability of local and non-local species for ecosystem
restoration. Ecol Manag Restor, 22: 75-91. https://doi.org/10.1111/emr.12520
12 McDonald T., Jonson J. and Dixon K. W. (2016). National standards for the practice of ecological
restoration in Australia. Restoration Ecology 24, S4–S32
Eastern Beaches Foreshore Reserves Management Plan 2023                                               Page 35


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