An Ecosystem Health Index for a large and variable river basin: Methodology,challenges and continuous improvement in Queensland’s Fitzroy Basin |
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| Institution: | 1. Central Queensland University, School of Medical and Applied Sciences, Rockhampton QLD 4702, Australia;2. Central Queensland University, School of Business and Law, Rockhampton QLD, 4702, Australia;3. Fitzroy Partnership for River Health, Rockhampton QLD, 4700, Australia;1. School of Agriculture, Laboratory of Ecology and Environmental Protection, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece;2. School of Agriculture, Laboratory of Agronomy, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece;3. School of Agriculture, Laboratory of Agricultural Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece;1. Faculty of Science and Technology, Campus of Gambelas, University of Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal;2. Centre of Marine Sciences, Campus of Gambelas, University of Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal;3. Department of Ecology and Vertebrate Zoology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Łódź, 90-237 Łódź, 12/16 Banacha Str., Poland;4. Department of Applied Ecology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Łódź, 90-237 Łódź, 12/16 Banacha Str., Poland;5. Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar;1. Laboratório de Ensaios Farmacológicos e Toxicológicos, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande – FURG, Av. Itália, km 8, Campus Carreiros, CEP 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil;2. Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e Mar, Departamento de Biologia Animal – Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal |
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| Abstract: | Report cards are an increasingly popular method for summarising and communicating relative environmental performance and ecosystem health, including in aquatic environments. They are usually underpinned by an Ecosystem Health Index (EHI) that combines various individual indicators to produce an overall ecosystem health “score”. As a result of public water quality concerns, an integrated means of monitoring and reporting on aquatic ecosystem health was needed for the Fitzroy Basin in central Queensland, Australia. The Fitzroy Partnership for River Health was formed to address this need, and developed an EHI and report card for the Basin using existing monitoring data collected from various third parties including regulated companies operations and government. At 142,000 square kilometres, the Fitzroy Basin is the largest catchment draining to the World Heritage Listed Great Barrier Reef. The Fitzroy Basin provides an example of how to deliver an effective aquatic ecosystem health reporting system in a large and complex river basin. We describe the methodology used to develop an adaptive EHI for the Fitzroy Basin that addresses variability, complexity and scale issues associated with reporting across large areas. As well, we report how to manage the design and reporting stages given limitations in data collection and scientific understanding. |
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| Keywords: | Report card Pollution Agriculture Grazing Coal mining Rivers Australia Ephemeral River basin Method Ecosystem health index Indicators Water quality Monitoring |
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