PROJECT 1.5: SYSTEMS MODELS
(Dr T Done, AIMS)
The goals and intended outcomes of this project were defined in a
series of workshops and discussion groups. It was agreed that Project
1.5 would pursue a course centred on Ecological Risk Assessment and Geographic
Information Systems (GIS). Archival databases (of varying length, geographic
coverage and accuracy) will be used to characterise the past history and
future risk of exposure of reefs at various locations to impacts which
cause some effect in the coral reef community. Development of key databases
was commenced by a process of 'data mining' of historical data within
several other tasks (water quality; hyrodynamics; sediments; fish-larvae).
To fund casual and part-time positions for these data-mining activities,
the appointment of a permanent GIS/Risk Analyst was deferred. As a small
task, a graphical PC based model called 'Three Reefs', portraying fractally
growing corals and seaweed, and based on current perceptions of how runoff
affects coral reefs, was developed for use in future education and extension
programs.
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