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Ecosystem restoration is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged or destroyed. Against a backdrop of rapid habitat degradation on land and along our coastlines, ecosystem restoration is becoming a critically important conservation intervention that can greatly enhance biodiversity and key ecosystem services.

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Competitive advantage

  • Extensive evidence-based expertise in ecosystem restoration and rehabilitation in marine and terrestrial habitats including seaweed forests, seagrass meadows, oyster reefs, mine sites, urbanised settings and bushfire affected ecosystems.
  • State-of-the-art analytical approaches including the use of genetic and molecular tools to design restoration programs and monitor biodiversity
  • Comprehensive support covering design of restoration, environmental sampling, statistical analyses as well as social research, community engagement and outreach

Impact

  • Development of novel socio-ecological approaches to effectively restore and rehabilitate terrestrial and marine habitats, thereby protecting and enhancing biodiversity values and associated ecosystem functions.

Successful outcomes

  • Developed bio-inoculants for restoring biodiverse communities in mine-affected areas
  • Developed methods to effectively restore self-sustaining crayweed forests at the scale of original degradation in Sydney metropolitan
  • Development of 'Living Seawalls', rehabilitation solutions for coastal urban developments
  • Development of methods to effectively restore seagrass using new citizen science methods to collect storm-detached seagrass shoots for restoration without damaging existing meadows

Capabilities and facilities

  • Specialist skills in flora and fauna taxonomic identification including traditional taxonomy and eDNA analysis
  • DNA sequencing facilities with all current state-of-the-art sequencing platforms
  • State-of-the-art ecophysiology facilities (fluorometry, photorespiratory/ metabolism chambers, MicroResp)
  • Probes to measure environmental parameters (e.g. oxygen, turbidity)
  • Equipment to survey terrestrial and marine ecosystems remotely at multiple spatial scales, including drones, radiometers, cameras and remote underwater vehicles
  • Programming and pipelining of bioinformatics tools
  • Boating fleet and SCUBA facilities for coastal and subtidal restoration
  • Brand new laboratories with a wide range of ecological and molecular analysis equipment

Our partners

  • Government organisations at the local (Council), State and Federal level
  • Other research organisations (domestic and overseas)
  • NGOs
  • Artists
  • Corporations
  • Indigenous ranger groups