Turning Rubble to Reef in the Mackay Whitsundays
Installing concrete Habitat Reef modules to emulate natural fish habitat in the Mackay offshore marine environment.
The Conservation and Communities Team at Reef Catchments works on a wide variety of ever-changing projects. Some of our focus areas include:
Islands
Islands are important areas for biodiversity. Comprising just 5% of the Earth’s landmass, they contain 41% of all endangered terrestrial vertebrates and 19% of avian biodiversity. The Conservation and Communities Team is working to protect islands by eradicating pests and weeds and removing marine debris.
Threatened species and communities
The Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region hosts a range of threatened species and threatened ecological communities, such as the northern quoll and broadleaf tea-tree woodlands. The Conservation and Communities Team leads a range of projects to protect these species and communities. Works in recent years have included bio-condition assessments of threatened ecological communities, fencing, revegetation, weed control and pest control.
Current Projects
Pests
Traditional Owner Reference Group (TORG)
See below links for further Current Projects
Resources
- Coastcare newsletters from 2017 to 2022
- Cockermouth Island Turtle Case Study June 2023
- Flaggy Rock Creek Fishway Remediation Case Study
- Goldsmith Island Weed Management Case Study
- Local Coastal Plans (Mackay region)
- Marine turtles in the GBR area
- Lights out there are turtles about
- Mackay, Whitsunday and Isaac Landholder Pack
Fact sheets and brochures
- Local Coastal Plans (Mackay region)
- Are your garden plants going bush?
- Species and ecosystem profiles
- Shorebird identification sheets
Completed Projects
Community Action Plan – Protect the Great Barrier Reef
Coastcare
Tackle Bin Project
See below links for further Completed Projects
Current Projects
Regional Wetland Working Group
A Wetland Working Group was formed in 2014 to promote the sustainable use and management of natural and constructed wetlands in the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac NRM region.
Completed Projects
Marine Classroom Program
The Mackay Marine Classroom aimed to reconnect students, in the greater Mackay region, with the coast and marine environment.
Seagrass community monitoring
Every year, volunteers come together to collect citizen science data from five seagrass sites across our region.
Greater Brisbane Urban Fish Barrier Prioritisation
The Greater Brisbane Urban Fish Barrier Prioritisation Process was created as part of a larger federally funded fish migration project: Re-connecting aquatic habitats across the greater Brisbane Urban Area.
Eastern Curlew
The eastern curlew (Numenius madagascariensis) is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’. We’re working to help protect this beautiful migratory bird.
Island Rescue
Reef Catchments aims to conserve and restore biological diversity on Australia’s islands.
Sandringham Wetlands Complex
The Sandringham Wetland Complex Project is a sub-component of the overarching ‘High priority coastal and island restoration for the protection of significant ecological communities and species project’ informally known as the Coastal Priorities Project.
Coastal Priorities project
The Coastal Priorities is supported by Reef Catchments through funding from the Australian Government’s Reef Trust. It comprises five distinct components.
Mackay Whitsunday Isaac Reef Community Action Plan
Be involved and help to protect the Great Barrier Reef.
Related resources
Project contacts
