Great Barrier Reef Water Quality Guidelines and Ecological Models, 1990-2005

Water quality trigger values for the Great Barrier Reef were derived from long-term averages and ecological relationships. Models show up to 60% reductions in macroalgal cover are possible if proposed guidelines are met. This dataset, from the Australian Institute of Marine Science, supports the protection of ecosystem health.

Use Cases

• Establishing water quality guideline values based on Secchi disk depth and chlorophyll concentrations.
• Modeling ecological changes in coral and macroalgal cover based on turbidity and nutrient levels.
• Identifying geographic regions within the Great Barrier Reef where water quality standards are exceeded.
• Monitoring inshore reef status using indicators like macroalgal cover and octocoral diversity.

Strengths

• Defines specific numerical trigger values for five key water quality parameters.
• Links water quality data directly to ecological outcomes for coral and macroalgae.
• Models predict up to 60% change in macroalgal cover based on meeting guidelines.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data freshness should be verified; last metadata update is 2026-07-14.

Provenance

Source

Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), Marine and Tropical Sciences Research Facility (MTSRF)

Collection Method

Guidelines derived from characterizing long-term water quality and relating it to coral and macroalgal spatial distributions.

Time Range

1990 - 2005

Freshness

Last updated 2026-07-14 10:24:19.066285; freshness should be verified

Geography

Great Barrier Reef, Australia, including six Natural Resource Management (NRM) regions