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| Biosphere Reserve Information | ||||
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GREAT SANDY |
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| General Description |
The proposed Great Sandy Biosphere incorporates a large sand system supporting a diversity of plant communities including colonising plants, open woodlands, very tall eucalypt forests, rainforests and low, shrubby heath. The distribution of these communities across the System’s landscapes is intimately related to the distribution of the soils that have developed on the various dune systems. A number of major river systems flow through or into the proposed Biosphere including the Noosa, Mary, Susan, Burrum, Elliott, Burnett, Gregory and Cherwell Rivers. Urban areas include the regional centres of Bundaberg, Hervey Bay, Gympie and Maryborough. Rural and agricultural areas support sugar cane, horticulture, forestry and animal grazing, while the adjoining coastal zone supports tourism and fishing activities. All of the Fraser Island World Heritage Area and Great Sandy Strait Ramsar site occur within the nomination boundary. The permanent human population is approximately 213,400, with around 950,000 seasonal visitors. The proposed Biosphere includes National Parks, Conservation Parks and Forest Reserves, the Wide Bay Military Reserve, remnant vegetation under the Queensland Government’s Vegetation Management Act, the Great Sandy Marine Park and a matrix of freehold land, unallocated State land and leasehold land. |
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| Major ecosystem type |
The Great Sandy Biosphere is located within two Endangered Ecoregions as defined by World Wildlife Fund and National Geographic. These are “’Eastern Australia Rivers and Streams’’ (Ecoregion 169) and “Eastern Australia Temperate Forests’’ (Ecoregion AA0402). Additionally the study area buffers marine Ecoregion 222 (Great Barrier Reef). |
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| Major habitats & land cover types |
Rainforest, Ecotonal Forests, Eucalypt Forests, Melaleuca Communities, Heathlands & Sedgelands, Mangrove & Saline Communities, Frontal Dune & Foreshore Communities, Exposed high dune sand systems, Freshwater and Marine ecosystems, Regrowth/regenerating vegetation areas, Plantations, Agricultural areas, Urban and urban infrastructure areas, Rural/Peri-urban areas. |
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| Location |
Central Point: Latitude -25.38296 Longitude 152.82773 Boundaries: Top left co-ordinate (NW extent) Latitude -24.64590 Longitude 152.16088 Bottom right co-ordinate (SE extent) Latitude -26.38437 Longitude 153.42043 |
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| Area (hectares) | ||||
| Total | 1,417,178 | |||
| Core area(s) | Terrestrial 272,678 hectares marine 499,531 hectares | |||
| Buffer zone(s) | Terrestrial 105,946 hectares Marine 42,829 hectares | |||
| Transition area(s) when given | 496,194 | |||
| Altitude (metres above sea level) | 450 metres | |||
| Year designated | 2009 | |||
| Administrative authorities | Burnett Mary Regional Group and Environment Protection Agency/Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, | |||
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| Brief description |
There is a very wide variety of ongoing a research including seabed biodiversity mapping, tidal wetlands research, environmental management of fishing, impact of stormwater, migratory shorebirds, marine turtles, dugongs, coral mapping and seagrass monitoring. Planned research will be anchored around the establishment of four integrated centres themed on sand, freshwater, vegetation and marine systems. |
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| Specific variables... | ||||
| Abiotic | Abiotic factors, acidic deposition/acid rain, air quality, air temperature, contaminants, drought, erosion, geology, geomorphology, geophysics, groundwater, habitat, heavy metals, hydrology, indicators, meteorology, modelling, monitoring/methodologies, nutrients, pollution, pollutants, siltation/sedimentation, soil, toxicology/toxic substances. | |||
| Biodiversity | Afforestation/Reforestation, algae, alien/invasive/exotic/introduced species, amphibians, arid/semi-arid, autoecology/synecology, beach/soft bottom, benthos, biodiversity, biogeography, biology, biotechnology, birds, breeding/reproduction, coastal/marine, community studies/communities, conservation, coral reefs, degraded areas, dune systems, ecology, ecosystem assessment, ecosystem functioning/ecosystem structure, ecotone, endemic species, ethology, evapotranspiration, evolutionary studies/palaeoecology/evolution, fauna, fires/fire ecology, fishes, flora, forest systems, freshwater/inland water, fungi, genetic resources, home gardens, indicators, invertebrates/insects/spiders, island systems/islands, lagoon systems, mammals, mangrove, microorganisms, migrating populations/migration, modelling, monitoring/methodologies, natural medicinal products, natural resources, perturbations/resilience/vulnerability, pests/diseases, phytosociology/succession, plants, pollination, population genetics/population dynamics, rare/endangered/threatened species, reintroduction, reptiles, restoration/rehabilitation/redevelopment, species inventorying/inventory, sub-tropical and temperate rainforest/sub-tropical forest, taxonomy, tropical humid forest, vegetation studies/plant cover, wetlands, wildlife. | |||
| Socio-economic | Agriculture/Production systems, agroforestry, anthropological studies/anthropology, aquaculture/mariculture, archaeology/paleontology, bioprospecting, capacity building, control and monitoring of illegal activities, cottage industry/artisanal industry, cultural aspects, demography, economic studies, economically important species, energy production systems/alternative energy, firewood cutting/harvesting, fishery/fisheries, forestry, human health, hunting, indicators, indicators of sustainability, indigenous people, industry, livestock and related impacts/overgrazing, modelling, monitoring methodologies, natural hazards, non-timber forest products/ntfp, pastoralism/pastoralists/grazing, people-nature relations/man/nature, quality economies, recreation, resource use, sacred sites, small business initiatives, social/socio-economic aspects, stakeholders' interests, tourism, traditional practices/ethnology/traditional knowledge, transport. | |||
| Integrated monitoring | Biogeochemistry, conflict, ecosystem approach, education and public awareness, environmental change, environmental quality, geographic information system/gis, impact and risk studies/environmental impact, indicators, infrastructure, integrated studies/interdisciplinaty, interdisciplinary studies, land tenure, land use/land cover, landscape inventorying/monitoring, management issues, mapping, modelling, monitoring/methodologies, planning and zoning measures/zonation, policy issues, remote sensing, rural systems, sustainable development/sustainable use, transboundary/transfrontiers, urban systems/towns/cities, watershed studies/monitoring. | |||
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| Contact address |
Burnett Mary Regional Group for Natural Resource Management Inc. PO Box 501, Bundaberg 4670 Queensland Australia |
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| Telephone | +61 7 4181 2999 | |||
| Fax | ||||
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admin@bmrg.org.au |
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| Web site | www.bmrg.org.au | |||
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n.a. | |||
| Last updated: 11/08/2009 |
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