Australian Coastal Ecosystems Facility(ACEF)Presentation by

Dr Andy StevenTheme Leader, Our Resilient Coastal AustraliaCSIRO

Our Coastal Zone

Source: C.Roelfsema and Google Images

ACEF PurposeGoal: Provide national and enduring access to coastal data of national

importanceObjectives1. Establish a coastal community of practice to bring together researcher

managers, industry and the community to identify key coastal datasets, improve technologies and identify further funding opportunities.

2. Identify key national datasets that need to be collected, and fund strategic research that address key gaps in these datasets.

3. Enable improved digital access to quality-assured coastal observational data and methods for analysis & visualization.

Key Questions being Addressed1. How, are coastal ecosystems changing in response to anthropogenic

pressures and climate change?2. How is the productivity of coastal ecosystems related to terrestrial

subsidies and how will climate change affect these ecosystems?3. How is coastal geomorphology changing in relation to climate change and

extreme events?4. How far do vagile coastal and marine organisms move and what are the

key coastal habitats they depend upon?5. Can we measure the relative benefits/impacts of legislated

environmental management programs on Australia’s coastal ecosystems? 6. What are the key gaps in understanding of coastal ecosystems or in

management of the flora, fauna and processes of these ecosystems?

Approach Demonstrate:

• What can be done in coastal zoneValue–add:• Work with agencies to provide national datasets• To NCRIS investments; IMOS, ANDs, Auscope, & AODN• Use AODN as delivery Portal for Coastal Information• Deliver demonstrator coastal datasets for NPEIScope:• Supratidal to nearshore• Strong connections between terrestrial processes and coastal asset

and processes

ACEF Data Sets

Soils SupersitesPlot networksOzFluxAusCoverCoasts Plots

Multi-Scale Plot Network

Scaling/Modelling

Ecoinformatics

ACEAS TERN Portal

Infrastructure to be Delivered• Data through the AODN:

– Water Quality information– Bathymetry data– Wave and beach profile

• National Marine Turtle base– Development– Storage of data

• Coastal Ocean Color Products:– Chlorophyll, TSS, CDOM

22 Jan 2011-10 days after flood

Challenges for informatics in the coastal zone

Cameras for:• Shoreline• Beach State Information• Wave Height and Period• Statistics and Warnings• People Counts

Analysing wave and shoreline change

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Our plan for community engagementTask 1. Coastal Community of Practice to establish an

Australian Coastal Observatory1. A series of workshops to establish the needs, both

national and regional, scope, key parameters and technologies.

2. Working groups focused on specific user needs to better define what technologies and approaches best suit.

3. A forum to engage policy, industry and researchers in the need for a coastal observatory.

4. Preparation of an implementation plan, including funding options for an Australian Coastal Observatory.

Collaborating Agencies and Acknowledgements

Thanks to:– Chris Lane (CoastalCOMs) – Roger Proctor (IMOS, UTas)– Tim Moltmann (IMOS)– Toni Cannard (CSIRO)

Facility Contact DetailsAndy StevenTERN – Australian Coastal Environment Facilityandy.steven@csiro.au or 0422 002 116

Australian Ocean Data Networkhttp://portal.aodn.org.au/webportal/ Coastal Coms: http://www.coastalcoms.com LIVE Demos:Wave Height and Period Measurement http://demo.coastalcoms.com/waveheight-engineering.htmlShoreline Detectionhttp://gccc.coastalcoms.com/reports/Palm-Beach/weekly-reports/2011