Reef watchers on job
A TEAM of volunteer survey divers has spent the past two days installing new long-term reef health monitoring sites in Hervey Bay waters.
The monitoring stations are the first of 25 reefs stretching from the Fraser Coast to the Gold Coast that will be visited over the next six months by environmental group Reef Check Australia.
The not-for-profit organisation has more than 200 trained volunteer divers to check reef composition, wildlife numbers, coral bleaching, disease and the impact of marine debris.
Reef Check general manager Jennifer Loder said the organisation was trying to build appreciation of the subtropical rocky reefs found on the Fraser Coast.
"These places where tropical and cold water species mix really are pretty unique and it is important that we understand them better," she said.
Data collected at the monitoring stations is provided to government agencies, natural resource managers and marine industries.
Visit reefcheckaustralia.org for more information.
