Vital coastal habitats in South Australia are being restored as key blue carbon ecosystems in an extensive collaborative effort between The Nature Conservancy Australia, Adelaide Plains Council and other key partners.
Healthy coastal ecosystems such as mangroves and saltmarshes can absorb and store carbon at concentrations up to four times higher than forests, and retain the carbon for millennia – known as blue carbon. They also provide nursery habitat for marine life, feeding areas for shorebirds, and protect communities and homes from storm surge events and flooding.
The Blue Carbon Ecosystem Restoration Project has restored natural tidal flows and boosted the region’s ecological health across 12,400 hectares of mangroves and saltmarshes around Webb Beach and within the Adelaide International Bird Sanctuary – Winaityinaityi Pangkara. Tracking of bird populations and habitat health assessments have provided data on the effectiveness of the restoration efforts.
Adelaide Plains Council was proud to collaborate on the ground-breaking project that supports the community and the planet, which was awarded the Excellence in Environmental Leadership and Sustainability at the LG Professionals SA 24th Annual Leadership Excellence Awards.
The project is a result of strong cultural and scientific collaboration, between The Nature Conservancy Australia, Adelaide Plains Council, coastal ecologists, Kaurna as the Traditional Owners, private landholders, community members, South Australian Department for Environment and Water, Flinders University, The University of Adelaide, Birds SA, BirdLife Australia, the Northern and Yorke Landscape Board and Green Adelaide.
This is South Australia’s first blue carbon project registered with the Australian Government’s Clean Energy Regulator and the second to be registered in Australia. It received $2.9 million funding from the Australian Government under the Blue Carbon Conservation, Restoration and Accounting Program.
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