Interactive website to help monitor sea changes
A website claimed to be the first of its type in the world aims to engage the community in mapping the effect of climate change on Tasmanian waters.
The Coastal Climate Change Range Extension Database and Mapping Project has been created by the Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute. The project – known as REDMAP – is an interactive website which lets the public report sightings of marine species which might be shifting further south because of warming waters along the state’s coastline.
It provides a link between the Tasmanian community and world class science being undertaken in the state.
The project aims to use the knowledge and experience of local fishers and divers to create a network of observers to help track how Tasmanian waters are changing.
Director of TAFI, Colin Buxton, says recent research and anecdotal evidence has indicated several dozen marine species are shifting their ranges further south along the Tasmanian coast.
Professor Buxton says temperature monitoring over the past 50 years has shown waters off the east coast of Tasmania are warming at over three times the global average. He says while there may be many reasons for habitat shifts of species, it is suspected the effects of climate change – in particular rising seas temperatures – are creating the greatest impact.
To view the REDMAP website, go to www.redmap.org.au
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