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The Victorian Estuaries Network (VEN) has been set-up to link estuary management and research in Victoria. The Network acts as a one stop shop to exchange knowledge and ideas, collaborate and keep up to date with research and initiatives. The VEN is run through a consortia of estuary stakeholders, with the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) and the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) as the facilitators. The audience includes managers, scientists and members of the public with an interest in seeing the health of Victorian estuaries sustained or improved. The Victorian Estuaries Network is part of the National Estuaries Network. Vic Estuaries 2006 The Victorian Estuaries Network presented Vic Estuaries 06 on the Bellarine Peninsula on December 14 and 15, 2006. Attended by more than 100 participants, Vic Estuaries 06 opened with a forum at Queenscliff on December 14, followed by a field day visiting nearby estuaries. The forum:
Dianne Rose, Chair of the VEN dianne.rose@epa.vic.gov.au |  Image courtesy of Coast Action.  Image courtesy of Tim Allen, NRM Faciliator. |
Healthy Victorian Estuaries project
The coastline of Victoria contains about 123 bays, inlets and estuaries, varying in water area from about 2,000 km2 to 1 km2.
Estuaries are semi-enclosed bodies of coastal water where fresh and saltwater meet. They are also referred to as bays, inlets, river mouths, mudflats, wetlands, mangroves, salt marshes and reed beds.
Estuaries are more often than not the most popular and most heavily used portions of a river reach, and can provide boating access, fresh water, fertile land for agriculture and fish plus shellfish catches.
Victorian estuaries are under pressure from urbanisation, farming, modified stream flows and drought.
There is probably no other natural ecosystem as vulnerable to human activities downstream than an estuary, so integrated management along the entire watercourse is extremely important.
To put those who manage estuaries in the best possible position to manage the impacts of human activities, a major research project is being undertaken to help to classify Victoria’s estuaries according to vulnerability to specific human activities.
The Healthy Victorian Estuaries project has been established by the Department of Sustainability and Environment to identify specific human impacts on estuaries to guide better management and healthier estuaries.
The Healthy Victorian Estuaries project has three main components.
1. Scientific research
Firstly, Deakin University will conduct scientific research (over three years) on estuary pressures and the knock-on effect these have on general catchment conditions.
This research will provide practical management options for reducing impacts on Victoria’s estuaries. Importantly, the research will help to set environmental targets for estuary managers to achieve.
Symbols courtesy of the Integration and Application Network (ian.umces.edu/symbols), University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science
2. Environmental targets
For the first time, managers of Victoria’s estuaries will have very real environmental benefits to strive for and by achieving the targets, Victoria’s estuaries will be managed to the best possible standard.
Environmental targets for estuaries will also provide managers with the clarity and direction they need to meet goals set out in the various strategies they are already obligated to take into account when planning, especially regional River Health strategies.
3. Governance arrangements
The third component of the Healthy Victorian Estuaries project is focused on supporting and encouraging relevant land managers to adopt the research in their own catchment management planning.
This will include providing clear direction on management responsibility among many players for Victoria’s estuaries. The diverse nature of estuaries means there are often many players involved in their management. Clarifying who is responsible for what in terms of managing these precious resources is a crucial step for improving the health of estuaries.
Proper management of Victoria’s estuaries can only be achieved if there is a sound understanding of the flow-on affect that human pressures have downstream on other land managers, so the Deakin University research will provide a sound basis for this understanding.
Fact Sheets
Healthy Victorian Estuaries Fact Sheet - May 2006 (PDF - 177 Kb) The Estuary Entrance Management Framework - Project update 1 - June 2005 (PDF - 1.2 Mb) Assessing the Impact of Estuary Management on the Sustainability of Aquatic Ecosystems - Natural Heritage Trust (NHT) (PDF - 1.3 Mb)Healthy Victorian Estuaries Bulletin
Healthy Victorian Estuaries Bulletin - July 2006 (PDF - 874 Kb) Healthy Victorian Estuaries Bulletin - March 2006 (PDF - 78 Kb)Please note: Document(s) on this page are presented in PDF format. If you do not have the Adobe Reader, you can download a copy free from the Adobe web site.