Queensland Coastal Wetland Resources: the Northern Territory Border to Flinders River

Abstract

Protection of coastal wetland environments is an important prerequisite to effective and sustainable fisheries management and conservation of habitats for the use of future generations. Mangroves, saltmarshes and seagrasses directly support local and offshore fisheries through the provision of food, shelter, breeding and nursery grounds. As such, these vegetated wetland environments along with sandbars, mudflats, rocky foreshores and reefs have significant economic value as well as their intrinsic aesthetic and ecological values.

This report summarises the results of the mapping undertaken in the Gulf of Carpentaria Region from the Queensland/Northern Territory border eastwards to the western bank of the Flinders River (hereafter called the Gulf Study Area). The study was undertaken in order to:

1. document and map coastal wetlands of the Gulf Study Area;
2. document levels of existing disturbance to and protection of these wetlands;
3. examine existing recreational, indigenous and commercial fisheries of the region;
4. evaluate the conservation values of the areas investigated from the viewpoint of fisheries productivity and as habitat for important and/or threatened species for future FHA/Marine Protected Area (MPA) declaration.

Dataset URL Link: Queensland Coastal Wetlands Resources Mapping data. [Dataset]