Postgraduate Students
Jaunita Bite
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Changes in the inshore habitats of the Great Barrier Reef region since European settlement: Implications for contemporary management
Supervisors: Dr Peter Griggs (TESAG), Professor Helene Marsh (TESAG), Dr David Wachenfeld (GBRMPA)
Funded by: APAI Award of the Australian Research Council, GBRMPA and JCU
It is sometimes claimed that the inshore habitats of the Great Barrier Reef region have deteriorated since European settlement took place. European practices of fishing, agriculture, mining and coastal development are blamed for the perceived degradation of coral reefs, islands, beaches and wildlife. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) is under increasing pressure to confirm or refute these anecdotal reports of degradation, but extensive scientific monitoring of the region extends back only to the 1960s. For the earlier period, qualitative sources could provide insights into changes in the inshore habitats of the Great Barrier Reef region and their biota.
This research uses an array of qualitative methods, especially oral history, to document and analyse environmental changes and to produce an environmental history of the inshore Great Barrier Reef. It explores the impacts of European settlement on dugong, turtles, seabirds, beche-de-mer, mother-of-pearl, trochus and corals. The research uses documentary, visual and oral sources from the collections of the major historical libraries in Australia, and qualitative interviewing with key informants. It is a multidisciplinary piece of work and it evaluates the potential of qualitative methods in environmental history research. It will be completed in August 2004.