Coastcare
Australian Government, 2004
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About this document
The Australian Government's Coastcare initiative, through the Natural Heritage Trust, protects and restores Australia's coastal and marine environments, including estuaries, sand dunes, beaches, mangroves, headlands, rock platforms, mudflats, coral reefs and the ocean.
Australia's unique coastline is home to a vast array of plants and animals, including threatened species such as the Spotted Handfish, Great White Shark, Southern Elephant Seal, and Shy Albatross.
Many coastal areas are also habitat for nationally and internationally significant shorebirds, for example, Roebuck Bay in Western Australia, the Coorong in South Australia and Moreton Bay in Queensland support shorebirds such as Greenshanks, Bar-Tailed Godwits and Hooded Plovers.
Some coastal environments are themselves threatened, for example, the thrombolite (microbial formations) community of coastal freshwater lakes on the Swan Coastal Plain near Rockingham in Western Australia.
To address the issues threatening Australia's unique coastal flora and fauna the Natural Heritage Trust supports the development and implementation of recovery and threat abatement plans, designed to save and protect the threatened species of Australia's coastal and marine areas.
The Trust also supports a number of activities designed to prevent or control the introduction and spread of introduced marine pests and coastal weeds.
The Northern Pacific Seastar is a marine pest that has invaded the Derwent Estuary in Tasmania and Port Phillip Bay in Victoria, introduced by ships ballast water. A National Control Plan for the Seastar is being implemented to minimise its rate of spread and reduce its impacts on Australia's marine environment and industries.
The coastal weed Bitou Bush has invaded around 70,000 hectares of south-east Australia's coast and displaced native coastal plants. The community, Governments and scientists are battling Bitou Bush.
The natural resources of our coast and oceans don't just support the habitat of our unique plants and animals they also support many industries and the Trust aims to develop better management regimes for these resources. For example, improved ecologically sustainable use of fisheries resources in estuarine and marine environments.
Also, through the Trust the Australian Government has a policy to establish and manage a system of marine protected areas. Marine protected areas are dedicated to the protection and maintenance of biological diversity and of natural and associated cultural resources. For example some of the already established marine protected areas are the Great Australian Bight Marine Park, Ningaloo Marine Park and Lord Howe Island Marine Park.
Another key goal of the Trust's Coastcare is to achieve reductions in marine and coastal pollution from land and other sources, particularly for significant areas such as the Great Barrier Reef lagoon.
Coastcare supports activities that enhance the commitment, skill and knowledge of coastal and marine managers to manage coastal and marine environments sustainably and make well-informed decisions.
It aims to increase understanding and appreciation by coastal communities, including indigenous communities, of the role of coastal and marine biodiversity in Australia's rural and urban landscapes and an enhanced involvement in coastal and marine management activities.
For further information call 1800 065 823 or visit www.nht.gov.au
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