The Future Coasts Lab

Check out this amazing entry into the National Science Week bake off! A mangrove scene, complete with a tidal creek (+fish), pneumatophores, sand and mud - plus surprise sediment layers when you core it! Fantastic effort by @sophkaterussell 😍 🍰 #NationalScienceWeek #BakeOff

Eventually the seagrass starts to fill the gaps between the bags and full meadows are created! This project is aiming to facilitate the recovery of more than 10 hectares of seagrass meadow 🤞🏼

We’re deploying bags now, so they can catch the winter seedling release. 6-months from now, the bags will look like this! 🌱 🌱 🌱 🌱 🌱 🌱 🌱 🌱 Check out this article for more info on the method development and smaller scale trials: seagrassrestorationnetwork.c…

The sand bags we deploy from the boat provide a stable surface for the seagrass seeds & seedlings to grow. This approach works brilliantly for Amphibolis seagrass, because their seedlings have roots like little grappling hooks - so they can grab onto the bags! 🌱🪝

The problem here is sediment mobility. After losing the seagrass meadows, there is nothing stabilising the surface sediments - meaning they move around a lot with tide, wind & waves. This makes it really hard for seagrass seeds and seedlings to take hold & get established 😞

First deployment done - heading back to port to re-load the boat! The seagrass meadows along this coast have historically been lost because of poor water quality. Improvements in water quality mean the area is now suitable for seagrass again… 🧵

This is what #seagrass restoration at scale looks like! We’re out on the boat today - ready to deploy a few thousand sandbags to facilitate seagrass seedling recruitment along the coast just north of Adelaide 🌱 🌊 #GenerationRestoration #BlueCarbon #MarineEcology