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SEAGRASS STIMULATES GLOBAL GATHERING22 September 2004
Australia has more types of seagrass than anywhere else in the world. Dugongs and turtles feast on 15 succulent species off the coast of Queensland, making the sunshine state the seagrass capital of the world. The public will have a chance to find out what makes Queensland’s vast seagrass meadows so special when the international conference, Seagrass 2004, opens this Friday in Townsville. “Seagrass 2004 has attracted 165 delegates from 24 countries,” said conference convenor, Dr Michelle Waycott from James Cook University. “This fantastic response reflects north Queensland’s reputation as a world centre for seagrass research.” Seagrass 2004 will begin with a free lecture by Professor Bill Dennison from the University of Maryland on Friday 24 September. “Seagrass is the only flowering plant that can live underwater. It has been growing on the ocean floor since the time of the dinosaurs. Seagrass is a delicacy for dugongs and sea turtles, and provides nursery areas for many fish and prawns,” says Professor Dennison. “Most seagrass grows close to the edge of the sea, which is also the area under most pressure from human impacts. Scientists need to work together with politicians, the community and management agencies to solve the environmental problems we have created in coastal areas,” he said. CRC Reef supports both scientific and community-based seagrass monitoring programs, including Seagrass-Watch, which involves communities along the Queensland coast, in Torres Strait and the western Pacific in collecting information about changes in their intertidal seagrass meadows. This is very useful because it gives managers information over a much larger area than could be gathered by scientists alone. It also encourages communities to become more involved in protecting their coastal habitats. Some areas require more high-tech monitoring. CRC Reef researcher Dr Michael Rasheed, from Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, is mapping seagrass in Queensland’s ports. To avoid being eaten by crocodiles, Dr Rasheed and his team conduct their surveys from the safety of a helicopter, or using an underwater video camera lowered from a boat. “Most of Queensland’s ports contain seagrass beds. These are really valuable areas, worth millions of dollars to the fishing industry as nurseries for young fish and prawns, and they are also food for dugongs and turtles. If the port authorities know where their seagrass beds are, they can protect them from impacts like dredging and spoil disposal,” Dr Rasheed said. Seagrass 2004 is sponsored by CRC Reef Research Centre, Queensland Environmental Protection Agency and Queensland Parks & Wildlife Service, and James Cook University. It is supported by Queensland Department of Primary Industries & Fisheries, Creek to Coral, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Reef HQ and Ports Corporation of Queensland. Seagrass 2004 opens on Friday 24 September at 6pm with a free public lecture by Professor Bill Dennison, at Jupiters Convention Centre in Townsville. The conference finishes on Monday evening. More information: www.tesag.jcu.edu.au/seagrass2004 or contact: Dr Michelle Waycott, James Cook University, 0429 345 191 Prof Bill Dennison, University of Maryland (from 2pm on Thursday 23 September) on 0408 079 933 Dr Michael Rasheed, QDPI&F, 0429 978 55 or michael.rasheed@dpi.qld.gov.au Ms Chloe Lucas, CRC Reef Media Liaison, 07 4729 8450, or 0408 884 521, chloe.lucas@crcreef.com |
