Management Concern: Low    

Adequacy of Information: Moderate

Summary extracts from Outlook Report 2009

• Beaches are an important part of the coastal zone, especially as nesting grounds for seabirds and marine turtles. They also have an important recreational role for visitors to the Great Barrier Reef.
  
• Beaches are highly dynamic habitats with natural cycles of erosion and accretion driven by winds, tides, waves and storms.  They are therefore sensitive to any changes in coastal water movement, including climate change impacts such as increased sea level and weather variability.
  
• In some areas, changes in coastal dynamics (for example through the installation of groins and seawalls) and reclaiming of marine areas have altered the beach habitats of the Great Barrier Reef.
• Most routine shipping activities have negligible consequences. Dredging and construction of port facilities can have significant, but localised impacts.
• Increasing coastal development is resulting in the loss of both coastal habitats that support the Great Barrier Reef and connectivity between habitats.

What do we know?

Relevant pages from Outlook Online include:

• Beaches and tidal flats
  
• Coastal erosion
  
• Coastal processes
  
• Sea level rise
  
• Shipping voyages in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
  
• Shipping incidents in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
• Major shipping incidents in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
• Great Barrier Reef oil spill risk and equipment 
• The 2006 Gladstone oil spill: environmental impacts 
• Dredging at the Port of Hay Point
  

Existing policies and management actions

• Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Zoning Plan
• Environmental Impact Assessment
  
• Plans of Management
  
• State Coastal Management Plan 2002
  
• Coastal Ecosystem Management Position Paper
• Memorandum of Understanding between GBRMPA and Queensland Ports [1.34MB]
  
• Cruise Shipping Policy for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park [113KB]
  
• Dredging and Spoil Disposal Policy [525KB]
  
• Environmental Impact Management Policy [900KB]

Future management requirements

• Draft Queensland Coastal Management Plan
  
• Biodiversity strategy
• Planned review of the Dredging and Spoil Disposal policy

Defined research questions

• There are currently no defined research questions for this topic. Research questions will be developed, giving priority to interactions/issues that are of most concern to management.

Related information

• Current Research and Monitoring