Benthic Sediment Surveys of Darwin and Bynoe Harbours (2017)

Inner Darwin Harbour and shallow water areas in and around Bynoe Harbour were surveyed from 29 May to 16 August 2017. The project collected 285 seabed sediment samples for grain size, inorganic elemental, and organic matter analyses, alongside seagrass and hardground observations. This work was part of a four-year (2014-2018) science program led by the Northern Territory Government and funded by the INPEX-led Ichthys LNG Project, in collaboration with Geoscience Australia and the Australian Institute of Marine Science.

Use Cases

• Creating thematic habitat maps based on seabed sediment composition and seagrass observations.
• Analyzing sediment grain size and inorganic elemental content for environmental baseline studies.
• Integrating benthic survey data with multibeam echosounder data for comprehensive marine spatial planning.

Strengths

• Contains 285 seabed sediment samples with associated location maps and metadata.
• Data collection involved multiple authoritative partners: Geoscience Australia, AIMS, and the NT Government.
• Part of a defined four-year (2014-2018) program aimed at creating interpolated maps with full regional coverage.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count for observational data (e.g., seagrass) is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Primary data files are in PDF, DOCX, and HTML formats, which may require extraction for analysis.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia, the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), and the Northern Territory Government's Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Collection Method

Benthic sediment sampling surveys, with samples designated for grain size, inorganic elemental, and organic matter analyses.

Time Range

Survey conducted from 29 May to 16 August 2017, as part of a program spanning 2014-2018.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-30 14:31:43.153348; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Inner Darwin Harbour and shallow water areas in and around Bynoe Harbour, Northern Territory, Australia.