Novel Biomonitoring to assess Estuarine Health

Estuaries are the most impacted of all marine habitats, and more than half of Australian estuaries have been modified by human activities. To distinguish the effects of natural stressors from anthropogenic disturbance requires the implementation of sensitive sampling programs. This project investigates novel biomonitoring techniques to investigate anthropogenic impacts over large spatial scales. Some examples include cellular biomarkers and sequencing approaches to compliment the more traditional chemical monitoring and morphological assessments of sediment macrofauna.