The discharge of treated wastewater to the sea via ocean outlets is a common disposal option, and a large component of Oceanica’s work involves monitoring and managing the environmental impacts of these outlets.  To ensure ocean disposal is sustainable requires a clear understanding of the contaminants in the wastewater, flows, dilutions and hydrodynamics together with an appreciation of the receiving environment, including water quality, sediment quality and benthic habitats.

Dredging to provide navigable waters for the safe passage of vessels can involve the creation of new channels or maintenance of existing channels.  There are many types of dredging methods, and these may result in a number of potential impacts in the marine environment, including: loss of habitat, turbidity, contaminant release from dredged sediments, and the injury or death of marine biota due to vessel activity.  If dredged material is to be disposed on land, potential issues with creation of acid sulphate soils and leaching of toxicants also requires consideration.  Oceanica staff have undertaken numerous projects involving both capital and maintenance dredging and onshore and offshore disposal.

With growing pressure to use the coast, there remains a need to ensure new development is appropriately set back from the coast to allow for predicted sea level rise and a  consideration of tides, storm surges and coastal topography.  The level of climate change occurring also requires that existing development is protected where appropriate, based on careful consideration of the expected degree of hazard and vulnerability.

Marine resources include sands, oil and gas and fisheries.  Oceanica has provided environmental support for one of the only operational marine sand extraction industries in Australia, in a region where community expectations for environmental management are very high.  Approval for the removal of this resource has undergone extensive environmental assessment and ongoing environmental management to ensure environmental impacts are minimised.  Oceanica has also provided technical review of marine environmental management plans for the oil and gas industry in Western Australia’s north-west.

The advanced qualifications and experience of Oceanica’s staff has involved them in high-level input to several Government environmental policies.  Oceanica also recognises that despite our in-house capabilities to ensure effective implementation of large or complex environmental programmes it is often appropriate to draw on strategic advice or input from independent peer review.  Oceanica’s active links to educational and research institutions provides the opportunity to collaborate with leading researchers.  These links also provides an opportunity for Oceanica to present industry issues and solutions to academics, researcher and students in the field of marine environmental practice.

An understanding of the marine environment and impact pathways is an important base to ensure sustainable development of aquaculture industries and any potential impacts are appropriately managed.  Careful site selection, based on a consideration of sensitive benthic habitats and hydrodynamic characteristics, is the key to minimising potential impacts due to the development ‘footprint’ and the ongoing effects of any waste  generated.

A clear understanding of the condition and connections within the natural environment is critical for sustainable natural resource management.  Key aspects of the environment must be identified and considered in the context of existing and predicted patterns of human development and use.  Often, natural resource management requires such information for both the marine environment and its adjacent catchment.  Oceanica has been involved in several such studies, to help inform the management of pressures from increasing human use and climate change, and in particular to help identify priority areas for management and planning.