About AIMS Data Centre - Darwin Harbour

AIMS latest | Contacts

Australian Institute of Marine Science
	Copyright ©1996-2008

AIMS

Voyage tracker
Weather stations
___________________

AIMS Data Catalogue

CADS_TOOL
Darwin Harbour
Reef monitoring
surveys
Reef state
Satellite observing
Sea temperatures
___________________

Chlorophyll monitoring

You are at - Home | Online Data | Darwin Harbour
________________________________________________________________________

Darwin Harbour water quality

View Darwin Harbour water quality data

Between 2002 and 2004, a collaborative project between AIMS and the Northern Territory Government studied the water quality of the greater Darwin Harbour to establish high-quality baseline information that would allow future changes caused by human activities to be detected.

Nine sites throughout Darwin Harbour were monitored on a quarterly basis for information on standing stocks of nutrients and plankton. In addition, more detailed ecosystem processes were studied on two field trips of the RV Cape Ferguson, one in the dry season and one in the wet season.

Darwin Harbour is a macrotidal estuary and, despite high turbidity, has good water quality.

The extensive mangrove communities fringing the harbour are largely undisturbed, and at present levels of development the Darwin Harbour ecosystem remains healthy.

Water quality monitoring Darwin Harbour with the RV Cape Ferguson

Water quality monitoring Darwin Harbour with the RV Cape Ferguson.
Image: AIMS.

However, the region faces management issues including:

point source discharges of contaminants, nutrients and sediments
treated sewage
land use and management
diffuse contamination of waters through changes to storm water quality, quantity and movement
native vegetation clearing and reclamation of coastal, catchment and riparian vegetation for development
dredging of harbour and dumping of dredged soil, and oil and chemical spill contingency planning and response.

AIMS scientists now understand the main ecosystem process controlling nutrient cycling in Darwin Harbour. This knowledge is critical to managing this ecosystem in the face of Darwin’s continuing economic development.

January 19, 2010

_____________________________________________________________