Australia needs coordinated investment in marine and coastal restoration to manage and protect sensitive habitats, biodiversity and water quality, and prevent coastal inundation and erosion, and the spread of invasive species. Successful restoration efforts typically include ‘nature-based’ solutions such as restoring dunes, wetlands and biogenic reefs, and involve all stakeholders in project design and implementation.
Marine and Coastal Hub Project 1.6: ‘A roadmap for coordinated landscape-scale coastal and marine ecosystem restoration’ identified a lack of support for the adoption of nature-based ideas and technology, and limited inclusion of Traditional Owner groups in the design and implementation of restoration projects.
This hub project identified and examined policy and legislative barriers to marine and coastal restoration, the role and importance of co-design and inclusion, and barriers to nature-based solution adoption in Australia. Consultation included policy and permitting regulators, engineering sectors and non-government groups and Indigenous groups participating in restoration activities.
Approach and findings
Legal barriers to restoration
The project team reviewed approval and regulating agencies and legislative permitting processes relating in Queensland, New South Wales, Tasmania and South Australia to examine their influence on project success or where projects did not proceed. The focus was on oyster reef restoration and tidal reintroduction for wetland restoration.
They engaged with the national Wetland and Aquatic Ecosystems Task Force, and the Commonwealth Department of Climate Change, Energy the Environment and Water in relation to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, Ramsar wetlands, and threatened and migratory species. State governments, and non-government agencies and practitioners participating in coastal wetland restoration were also consulted.
Engineering adoption for nature-based solutions
Coastal managers commonly look to engineering and/or environmental consultants to design coastal protection infrastructure. There is scope for greater inclusion of nature-based solutions in large-scale coastal protection, but little engagement has occurred with the engineering sector to understand the barriers to adoption. This was addressed through consultation with key engineering and environmental consultancies.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander inclusion and co-design
The project team sought an understanding of processes that Indigenous groups in Australia have gone through to undertake work on Country. This included exploring barriers relating to project participation, design and implementation.
Outcomes
This project provided guidance for governments and restoration proponents on navigating legal and permitting processes relevant to nature-based restoration, and the importance of traditional environmental knowledge. This will support investment and engagement in restoration, with associated benefits for recreational and commercial fishers, conservation and coastal society.
Project location
National
Project leaders
Research partners
James Cook University
CSIRO
Research users
Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water
Journal article – Project 3.7
The permitting process for marine and coastal restoration: A barrier to achieving global restoration targets?
Bell-James J, Foster R and Shumway N (2023). The permitting process for marine and coastal restoration: A barrier to achieving global restoration targets? Conservation Science and Practice. 20 November 2023. https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.13050
Technical report – Project 3.7
Identifying and overcoming barriers to marine and coastal habitat restoration and nature-based solutions in Australia – Pathways to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander inclusion and co-design in restoration
Saunders MI, Fischer M, Vozzo ML, Chewying K, Malcom F, Liddell B, Cooley R, Cassady J, Bugnot AB, Waltham N (2024). Identifying and overcoming barriers to marine and coastal habitat restoration and nature-based solutions in Australia – Pathways to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander inclusion and co-design in restoration. Report to the National Environmental Science Program. University of Tasmania.
Technical report – Project 3.7
Identifying and overcoming barriers to marine and coastal habitat restoration and nature-based solutions in Australia – Legislative permitting processes for restoration
Bell-James J, McCormack P, Shumway N, Wawryk A (2024). Identifying and overcoming barriers to marine and coastal habitat restoration and nature based solutions in Australia – Legislative permitting processes for restoration. Report to the National Environmental Science Program. University of Tasmania.
Technical report – Project 3.7
Identifying and overcoming barriers to marine and coastal habitat restoration and nature-based solutions in Australia – A blueprint for overcoming barriers to the use of nature-based coastal protection in Australia
Morris RL, Pomeroy AWM, Boxshall A, Dack, D, Dunlop A, Townsend M, Swearer SE (2024). Identifying and overcoming barriers to marine and coastal habitat restoration and nature-based solutions in Australia - A blueprint for overcoming barriers to the use of nature-based coastal protection in Australia. Report to the National Environmental Science Program. University of Tasmania.
Technical report – Project 3.7
Identifying and overcoming barriers to marine and coastal habitat restoration and nature-based solutions in Australia
Waltham NJ, Saunders MI, Morris R, Bell-James J, Bishop MJ, Bugnot AB, Connell S, Drew G, Fischer M, Glamore W, Jones A, McAfee D, McCormack PC, Mayer-Pinto M, Prahalad V, Shumway N, Swearer S, Wawryk A (2024). Identifying and overcoming barriers to marine and coastal habitat restoration and nature based solutions in Australia – Project summary. Report to the National Environmental Science Program. James Cook University.