WAMSI 2 - Dredging Node - Project 4.2 - Defining Thresholds and Indicators of Coral Response to Dredging Related Pressures - WATER QUALITY, Western Australia

Data is in the form of a Microsoft Access database, showing the original data together with site information (GPS coordinates), date collected. Data is also in the form of a report, which will be a secured (printable, non-editable), searchable, Portable Document Format (PDF) showing the results of the analyses. The aim of the Western Australian Marine Science Institution (WAMSI) DREDGING SCIENCE NODE Project 4.2, is to thoroughly characterise how dredging activities alters reef water quality (i.e. total suspended solids levels (TSS), underwater light levels and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) i.e. (light attenuation) in terms of temporal and spatial characteristics (including spectral analyses of temporal patterns) and how the nature of dredging-related turbidity events differs from natural turbidity events in terms of intensity, duration and frequency. The results are valuable for future experiments and the design of more environmentally realistic laboratory-based, ex situ studies of the effects of turbidity and light reduction on reef biota. Together with analyses of the effects of these dredging projects on the underlying reef communities the data are important for developing water quality thresholds for dredging projects and to improve the ability to predict and manage the impact of future projects. Data used to conduct these analyses was from three Dredging projects conducted in the Pilbara region of Western Australia using in situ water quality instrumentation from 3 large scale capital dredging projects referred to below by their location and Federal Ministerial Approval Statement (MS757, MS800, MS840), which are searchable on the WA EPA website: http://www.epa.wa.gov.au).