Lake Macquarie and Effective Management of Estuaries – Now and in the Future

The intent of this seminar is to focus on effective management of estuaries – now and in the future. What does best practice look like now, and how will it change and adapt in the context of population growth, changing recreational preferences and, of course, climate change and sea level rise. This topic also builds on articles that have been in the local media about Lake Macquarie.

Speakers:

Bruce Coates, Senior Team Leader Coasts, Estuaries and Floodplains, OEH. Bruce has been closely involved in estuary policy and planning at OEH for many years. He will discuss the OEH perspective on priority estuary health and inundation issues – managing current and future risks.

Symon Walpole, Ecosystem Enhancement Coordinator, LMCC. Symon will discuss the LMCC approach to managing Lake Macquarie, the social and environmental centrepiece of the City, including recent experience with the introduction of conversations about local area adaptation planning for lake side communities.

Steve Wilson, Regional Program Manager for the Hunter and Central Coast Regional Environmental Management Strategy. Over recent years Steve has been working closely with the region’s coastal councils to facilitate more consistent and transparent decision making processes for determining adaptation responses and pathways for vulnerable coastal areas.

Steve has been developing “A Handbook for Coastal Decision Making: Decision Support Framework & Guide”. The Handbook was developed to assist coastal councils in the our region to more effectively approach and determine adaptation responses and pathways for vulnerable coastal areas, including low lying land around estuaries. It promotes a consistent, transparent and structured approach to adaptation planning in the context of land use planning and asset management within and across councils and other stakeholder organisations.