River loads of suspended solids, nitrogen, phosphorus and herbicides delivered to the Great Barrier Reef lagoon.

Sediments flows in the Great Barrier Reef lagoon as revealed by MERIS satellite data

The total suspended sediment (TSS) concentrations obtained by the satellite remote sensing instrument MERIS were validated using in situ data acquired during a dry and a wet season in the vicinity of the Herbert River, central Great Barrier Reef region, Australia. The available MERIS imagery for the region covering 16 months in 2003-2004 was then compiled, and derived TSS distributions statisti...

Water quality objectives and targets in the Mackay Whitsunday region to protect water quality to the Great Barrier Reef

This paper presents an overview of the development of water quality objectives (water quality guidelines for local waterways), and water quality targets to protect waterways draining to the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). The Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area is the world’s largest World Heritage Area, and contains the largest single collection of coral reefs in the world, supporting many divers...

An examination of the ability of coral geochemical records to reconstruct suspended sediment loads to the Great Barrier Reef lagoon

Coral Skeletons Provide Historical Evidence of Phosphorus Runoff on the Great Barrier Reef

Recently, the inshore reefs of the Great Barrier Reef have declined rapidly because of deteriorating water quality. Increased catchment runoff is one potential culprit. The impacts of land-use on coral growth and reef health however are largely circumstantial due to limited long-term data on water quality and reef health. Here we use a 60 year coral core record to show that phosphorus contained...

Long-term and seasonal trend decomposition of Maumee River nutrient inputs to western Lake Erie.

Cyanobacterial blooms in western Lake Erie have recently garnered widespread attention. Current evidence indicates that a major source of the nutrients that fuel these blooms is the Maumee River. We applied a seasonal trend decomposition technique to examine long-term and seasonal changes in Maumee River discharge and nutrient concentrations and loads. Our results indicate similar long-term inc...