CRC REEF RESEARCH CENTRE TECHNICAL REPORT No. 24

Developing Reliable Coral Reef Monitoring Programs For Marine Tourism Operators And Community Volunteers.

Barbara Musso, CRC Reef Research Centre Ltd
Graeme Inglis, CRC Reef Research Centre Ltd

FOREWORD

The research by Barbara Musso and Graeme Inglis into the development of an effective Coral Reef Monitoring Program for use by the Marine Tourism Industry and local community volunteers is a valuable contribution to the ongoing needs of both management and other stakeholders of the Great Barrier Reef.

Despite the variable expertise levels of volunteers, this report shows that non-professional data collection can be accurate, reliable and a valuable contribution to the scientific understanding of the reef environment.

These findings are important for a variety of reasons. Not only does this monitoring program provide data on the health and general ecology of specific reef sites, but it also provides an "early warning" system able to identify environmental changes at specific sites and alert appropriate management agencies when necessary. This cooperation between industry, management, science and community groups is essential to the continued sustainable use of the Great Barrier Reef.

The increased awareness of the marine life and local ecology by both staff and passengers encourages a keener sense of stewardship and caring for the reef. This, in turn, has been shown to lead to positive changes in attitude and environmentally friendly behaviour.

The Coral Reef Monitoring Program presented in this report, with its detailed information and required training, provides an opportunity for the overnight sector of the Marine Tourism Industry (such as live-aboard and cruise ships) to be involved in coral reef monitoring. It augments other projects, such as the Eye-on-the-Reef Monitoring Program, which are being developed for use on day operations.

It is encouraging to see projects of this kind gaining respect and acceptance by all stakeholders within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area. They are certainly important steps in the continued development and growth of the Marine Tourism Industry.

Robin Aiello
Marine Biologist/Interpretation Programs Director
Great Adventures, Cairns

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This project was initiated in response to growing interest by community groups and the marine tourism industry in the Great Barrier Reef region to become directly involved in monitoring the state of the coral reef sites that they visit on a regular basis. There was the need to have access to a low cost package of methods and procedures for monitoring which were easy to use and which could be used to collect data from regularly visited dive sites.

The major objectives of this project were to:

• develop a reliable and low-cost protocol for gathering environmental data on the Great Barrier Reef that could be used by marine tourism operators and volunteer community groups;
• develop a relevant training program that had a high environmental education value;
• evaluate the quality of data collected by non-expert volunteers;
• provide guidelines for the design of other volunteer-based reef monitoring on the GBR, and
• develop protocols for data reporting and quality control.

We conducted a feasibility study that sought to develop quantitative methods that could be used by non-experts to monitor the condition of coral reef sites in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. The sampling methodology chosen for use in the program used point-intercept transects to measure the abundance of reef organisms. Pilot studies assessed the suitability of the sampling technique for volunteers by comparing estimates of the abundance of reef organisms obtained by volunteers to those obtained by scientists using both the point-intercept methodology and conventional line transect methods.

A training program was developed concurrently with the pilot studies. This consisted of interpretive materials - including a handbook, photographic guide and instructional manual for tour operators participating in the trials - and the script for a training session. Seven field trials and one laboratory trial were conducted over the 12 months of the project. During that time, a total of forty-five volunteers were involved. The trials aimed at assessing the feasibility of the methodology and evaluating the training/interpretive program.

Satisfaction with the program was evaluated by a questionnaire distributed to all participants. The aim of the questionnaire was to establish the value of volunteer involvement in reef monitoring as perceived by the participants and to obtain feedback on specific components of the program (e.g. training materials and session, difficulties with underwater data collection).

The results indicate that, with limited training, non-experts can collect reliable, quantitative information on the state of coral reefs. However, a number of requirements must be met to ensure this. The present study incorporated quality control procedures into the sampling methodology and the training and interpretive materials. Data obtained by this project suggest that the program cannot be used reliably by divers with 30 hours SCUBA experience. It also indicates that it may not be suitable for use by visitors on tourism operations of short duration ( 3-days). The time required to assimilate the instructions given during the training, may be incompatible with the tight schedule of operations of short duration. Furthermore, the evaluation survey indicated a lower interest and willingness to be involved in volunteer research by visitors on board short trip operations.

The involvement of community groups in coral reef monitoring has strong possibilities. The positive response of community groups to the project, and the quality of data collected by them, suggest that they are a valuable resource for monitoring ecological changes on coral reefs at selected sites. During the course of the project, links were established with several community groups in the GBR region and elsewhere in Australia which were not directly involved in the feasibility study. All expressed a strong interest in and support for this kind of program.

This report provides a framework for developing volunteer-based monitoring in marine environments which identifies the components that need to be incorporated into the design of such studies to ensure the success of the program. Guidelines for the sampling design of volunteer-based monitoring have been prepared and are aimed at mitigating the effect of important sources of bias identified during the field component of this project.

THIS PUBLICATION IS CITED AS:
Musso, B.M. & Inglis, G.J. (1998)
Developing reliable coral reef monitoring programs for marine tourism operators and community volunteers.
Technical Report No. 24
Townsville; CRC Reef Research Centre Ltd, 134 pp.

ISBN 1 876054 93 X

A full copy of this report may be obtained from the author(s), and through the following libraries: