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The intense field-based learningattracted me to UTS Science.Subjects are offered where youtravel to the destination and learneverything first-hand out amongstthe environment.

UTS also has very environmentalbased focus courses that includeterrestrial and aquatic, whichallows you to work in almost anyenvironmental related field.

MICHAELA LARSSONGraduate, Bachelor of Science inMarine Biology

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UTS IS A KEY PARTNER OF THE SYDNEY INSTITUTE OF MARINE SCIENCE

WHY SCIENCE AT UTS?Because it is research driven, relevant, innovative and practical

www.science.uts.edu.au

GOOD REASONS TO CHOOSE ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES PROGRAMS AT UTS!MARINE BIOLOGY, ENVIRONMENTAL BIOLOGY & ENVIRONMENTAL FORENSICS: Flexible specialist programs to choose from.

PRACTICAL & RELEVANT: Strong fieldwork focus, so be prepared to learn in the great outdoors, in places such as Heron Islands,One Tree, Southern Ocean, Antarctica and the Snowy Mountains.

WORKREADY: Gain skills employers want through field and lab experience, hands-on with latest technology equipment.100% employment rate for UTS Science postgraduate graduates in the first 3 months of degree completion, according to theAustralian Graduate Survey 2008.

RESEARCH-DRIVEN: Engage with big issues research such as climate change impacts in one ofAustralia’s best science facilities.

To find out more about courses, careers in science, research and scholarships, visit:

TOOLS OF THEIR TRADEHOW OUR SCIENTISTS KEEP TRACK OF THE OCEAN

SUBMERSIBLE ROBOTSTWIN-HULLED AUTOMATED UNDERWATER VEHICLE (AUV) An underwater craft that can propel itself along a pre-determined course, measuring water properties such as temperature, salinity and oxygen content. Can also take photographs

of the sea bed showing the distribution of coral, algae,

sponges etc. Maximum mission - about eight

hours.

SINGLE-HULLED GLIDERPassive underwater robot that glides with the current, measuring some of the same things as the AUV -temperature, salinity, oxygen, chlorophyll - but for up six months. Surfaces every few hours to send information back to shore via satellite.

COASTAL RADAR A network of radar devices measure the surface movement (speed and direction) of the water up to 250 kilometres from the shore.

SATELLITE STATION Receives signals from satellites in space recording information about temperature, salinity, wind at the sea surface, as well as sediment and algae concentration across the world.

FISH MONITORING POSTS

Thousands of different fish have been been tagged.

When they swim past the listening posts, the tags issue an acoustic signal

which allow scientists to differentiate between, say, a

shark, a small fish (such as snapper or mulloway) or

larger species such as manta ray or turtle.

MOORING CABLESWeighted cables at

different depths, containing instruments

vertically through the water that measure the

speed, direction and strength of the current as

well as its temperature and salinity.

ARGO FLOATS Part of an international program. Around 3000 of them are deployed around the globe, measuring temperature, salinity, drift. Each one surfaces about once a fortnight to send its findings via satellite.

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GRAPHIC: REMI BIANCHI

Going underto look aheadOcean-faring technologies are helping experts to save the planet, says Megan Johnston.

I f you are ever diving offAustralia’s coast andan underwater car-likecontraption tootles by, do

not be alarmed.Scientists are deploying more

machines, sensors and othercutting-edge gadgets underwater than ever before. The aim:to help them understand ourchanging oceans over the com-ing decades. Much of the gear inNSW – provided as part of anational infrastructure programnamed the Integrated MarineObserving System (IMOS) – hasbeen installed, however, morewill be employed as the techno-logy gradually improves.

This system will capture dataabout ocean properties such ascurrents, salinity, biodiversityand habitats, all of which will befree to the scientific community,including oceanographers andmarine biologists.

These experts will pool theirknowledge to piece together thepuzzle of how climate affectsoceans and vice versa, especiallyin “hot spots” such as Australia’seast coast. The hope is that muchof that research will eventuallybe available in real time.

The information also feedsinto the global ocean-observingsystem, helping internationalscientists understand globalcurrents and ocean conditions.

But this type of research is notcheap. Four years ago the systemreceived crucial funding –$50 million from the federal gov-ernment’s National Collaborat-ive Research InfrastructureStrategy. And it received an extra$52 million in last year’s budget,through the Education Invest-ment Fund and the Super Sci-ence Initiative. Combined withmore funding from state andfederal agencies, universitiesand industry, the total project isworth $200 million.

The infrastructure is run by sixresearch groups, one of which ismanaged by the Sydney Institute

of Marine Science (SIMS) atChowder Bay. This organisationbrings together dozens of gov-ernment and university scient-ists along the NSW coast. Itsdirector and chief executive,Professor Peter Steinberg,describes the infrastructure sys-tem as an “amazing thing”.

“When fully deployed therewill be highly sophisticated sen-sors and monitoring devices inthe ocean at hundreds of loca-tions,” Steinberg says.

“It is only by such long-termand comprehensive oceanobserving that we can answerfundamental questions about . . .response to climate change.”

The national system com-prises 11 “facilities” or programs,each of which manages a partic-ular type of equipment, such asfloats, ships, radars, satellitesand underwater gliders. Thesemeasure variables such as salin-ity, temperature, current and pHfrom different angles. Theanimal-tagging, underwatervehicle and coastal mooringfacilities are outlined below.

Animal taggingThe acoustic tagging and monit-oring system is a way ofobserving the behaviour of thou-sands of animals, especially inresponse to changing oceanconditions. The receivers,secured to the sea floor, “listen”for passing animals, whose tagscan last up to nine years.

The equipment can monitorprecise movements, down toindividual fin kicks, and cantrack changing behaviours,including dive depths, habitatsand migration routes.

In NSW, key receivers lie offBondi, Coffs Harbour and Manly.

Animals being tracked alongthe state’s coast include mullo-way, flathead, bream, bullsharks, great whites, duskywhalers, wobbegongs, gropersand cuttlefish.

Andrew Boomer, who helpsrun the network, says researchgroups can use the infrastruc-ture for many applications,including following endangeredand commercially importantspecies, or predators at the topof the food chain, which oftenindicate the overall health of anecosystem. The network is also away of centralising data frommultiple studies.

“In the past, if my animalswam past your receiver you’dnever know about it,” Boomersays. “It will enable scientists toanswer questions they’ve neverbeen able to answer before andon scales they’ve never been ableto do before.”

UnderwatervehiclesThese robots survey the sea floormore closely and at higher resol-utions than previously possible.The 200-kilogram contraptionsare about two metres long andcan dive deeper than most divers– up to 800 metres.

The machines can also cap-ture more information thanindividual researchers can.

“One of its features is that itcan get into places that are diffi-cult to get a diver into,” the Uni-versity of Sydney’s AustralianCentre for Field Robotics direct-or, Dr Stefan Williams, says.

The devices travel slowly –about one knot – and propelthemselves just above the seafloor, building 3D high-resolution maps and images.Typical missions last for sevenhours and go about 150 metresdeep, as far as the edge of thecontinental shelf.

Williams and his team manageand develop the program’sequipment and software andhope to eventually expand theirthree-vehicle fleet.

Scientists can deploy vehiclesfrom boats and the shore, on

missions that use sensors andequipment such as cameras,strobes and sonar to recorddepth, temperature and waterchemistry. The team hopes toestablish sites in marine parksalong the NSW coast.

“The plan is to revisit theseareas to see how they are chan-ging,” Williams says.

Coastal mooringsThe mooring network is a seriesof national reference stationsand regional moorings thatmeasures the physics and bio-logy of ocean circulation.

A senior lecturer at the Uni-versity of NSW, Dr MoninyaRoughan, who helps run thefacility, says they offer anotherlayer of information. Once datais uploaded in real time, it willalso have practical applicationsoutside of science – for example,for anglers or sailors.

Each state’s national referencestation is a GPS location wherewater samples are taken forchemical and biological analys-is. The Port Hacking station isespecially important given itsbusy location and history.

“We have 70 years of data, sowe’re able to assess if the climateis changing,” Roughan says.

Regional moorings are alsoweighted off the coast near CoffsHarbour, Bondi, Port Hackingand Jervis Bay, plus another soonoff Eden.

Each is secured via cable tothe continental shelf and equip-ped with fixed instrumentationthat measures temperature,current speed and direction,and sometimes salinity andfluorescence, which is a proxyfor biological productivity.

“We don’t really understandthese things and once we do, wecan predict the effects of climatechange and adjust our beha-viour,” Roughan says.Further information imos.org.auand sims.org.au

Marinemonitors

The flow has slowedthanks to stricterpollution laws.

SINCE co-founding CleanUp Australia Day twodecades ago, Kim McKay hasseen the best and worst ofAustralia’s coastline – andthe potential for humans toboth harm and protect themarine environment.

“There was an attitude 20years ago that people couldget away with dumpingwaste but that’s just notacceptable now,” she says.

She recently joined thefoundation board of theSydney Institute of MarineScience (SIMS), whereresearchers are helping toprevent further harm tocoastal waters and thepeople who use them.

Much of Australia’s coastalpollution is concentrated inestuary sediments, a legacyof decades of industrialdumping. The flow hasslowed thanks to stricterpollution laws, improvedsewerage and cleaner carsand industries.

But stormwater still carriesheavy metals and othercontaminants, threateningmarine life, which can alsoabsorb or swallow oldpoisons from sediments.SIMS scientists, for example,have found pollution knocksout native species and helpsspread pollution-tolerantinvasive species. Some

seaweed in Sydney Harbourhas potentially harmfulconcentrations of copper,lead and zinc.

But research not onlyreveals the dangers ofpollution, it can also helpprevent further harm. Inaquaculture farms andsewerage systems, certainplants and animals are beingused to clean up nutrients orpollution, Dr EmmaJohnston, from theUniversity of NSW says.

“There’s a number of reallygood reasons why algae oroysters might be goodbiomonitors – theyaccumulate contaminantswithout being killed off, theycan be easily deployed andthey are very hardy,” she says.

Associate professor atMacquarie University,David Raftos, agrees. He isworking with Sydney rockoysters to develop an earlywarning system forcontamination.

SIMS researchers are alsostudying ocean dynamics tounderstand how pollutiontravels or combines withother factors such as heat oracidification to becomemore toxic. This could helpdetermine the least harmfulspots for ocean outfalls oreven contain or preventdisasters, such as oil spills.

Over the past 20 years,researchers from theUniversity of Sydney havealso identified which NSWestuaries have the mostcontaminated sediments.Associate professor GavinBirch says this work willhelp authoritiesunderstand catchmentbehaviour and know whichsediments to avoiddisturbing, or where toclean up existing toxins.Megan Johnston

Oysters and urchins: early warning agentsScientists from all over the world are collaborating to put ocean acidity and its effects under the microscope – before it’s too late, writes Megan Johnston.

‘This is not going to go away. We’ve got todo something about it.’ Dr Maria Byrne

A sk your typical sciencebuff how climatechange is affecting thewaters around

Australia and he or she willprobably mention theacidification of the ocean.

As more carbon dioxide entersthe atmosphere, some is alsoabsorbed by the water,eventually making our oceansmore acidic.

The phenomenon poses anobvious threat to coral reefs butit also affects a variety of marinelife around the world, especiallyin climate-change ‘‘hot spots’’such as Australia’s east coast.

It is only one part of oceanchange, a process that alsowarms the water and reduces theavailability of carbonate, the‘‘building block’’ organisms useto form bone and develop.

The interactions between

these factors can harm plantsand animals, particularly whenthey are combined with otherelements, including overfishingand pollution.

Scientists such as thoseworking for the Sydney Instituteof Marine Science (SIMS) are stilldebating which of these factorsis the most powerful.

But so far, research showsocean change is a highlycomplex process that affectsanimals in many ways.

For example, increased aciditycan erode shells, and reducedcarbonate can affect develop-ment and harm shell growth.And while warmer waters harmreproduction and stimulatemetabolism on the one hand,elevated carbon dioxide canslow metabolism on the other.

‘‘Ocean change has a triple-whammy effect on animals,’’ says

SIMS researcher and Universityof Sydney professor of marinebiology, Dr Maria Byrne.

While it poses obvious risks tomarine ecosystems, it may notnecessarily be as scary as itsounds, she says.

That is, provided catastrophicclimate change is curbed andscientists learn more about theprocesses at work.

Long-term effects areextremely difficult to predict,but some animals, especiallythose that do not make a shell orskeleton, may even benefit fromtheir new environment, whileother populations could move oradapt to the pressures.

‘‘It’s not all doom and gloom –there will be winners andlosers,’’ Byrne says.

‘‘We’re going to lose a lot ofbiodiversity but we won’t godown to zero.’’

She and her collaboratorsfrom the University ofWollongong and the NationalMarine Science Centre in CoffsHarbour are researching thedevelopment of sea urchins andabalone, among other species.

At Macquarie University, Dr

Jane Williamson is working onsimilar projects with researchersfrom the University ofQueensland and the Universityof Gothenburg in Sweden.

Their exact results differslightly, but both teams agreeacidity and water temperaturecan affect development of thesecreatures. They hope to discover

which parts of their life cyclescould be more vulnerable todifferent aspects of oceanchange – and whether certainspecies can better acclimatise orevolve fast enough to survive.

In the long term, this datacould be fed into modelling

systems, which will helpscientists forecast flow-oneffects. Animals that shapehabitats, such as sea urchins, areparticularly helpful whenmaking long-term predictionsbecause they can turn thrivingkelp beds into barren rocky areasand subsequently change foodchains and ecosystems.

‘‘Once we get more of thesebasic questions answered,we have the opportunity toreally understand things onan ecosystem level,’’ Williamsonsays. Rather than looking at eachissue separately, scientists withdifferent areas of expertisecan collaborate to build abigger picture.

‘‘The good thing about SIMS iswe’ve got such a base of diversescientists with a real broad rangeof skills,’’ Williamson says.

But the pace of change doesnot leave much time.

‘‘We’re very aware of theshort time we have to find theright keys to unlock theanswers,’’ she says.

The research also helpsindustries that are dependent onthe marine environment.Associate Professor DavidRaftos, also from Macquarie

University, is working withIndustry & Investment NSWand researchers from theUniversity of Western Sydney,using genetic testing to find andpotentially breed strains ofSydney rock oysters that aremore resilient to oceanacidification and warming.

‘‘There is a real option toclimate-proof our industriessimply by breeding climate-proof oysters before the impactsare felt,’’ he says.

The ultimate goal, Byrne says,is to prepare for change andbuild buffers into marinesystems; for example, bycreating marine parks orreducing pollution.

‘‘If we understand what we’ve gotand how it might change, we canfigure out ways of resistance,’’ shesays. ‘‘This is not going to go away.We’ve got to do something about it.’’

The Sydney Morning Herald smh.com.au FRIDAY, MARCH 5, 2010 19

WHAT LIES BENEATHSECRETS OF OUR COAST

SPECIAL REPORT