The Nature Conservancy (TNC) will restore more than 3 hectares of Australian Flat Oyster and Sydney Rock Oyster reefs in Sydney's Georges River to support the health of the estuary, thanks to a $2 million grant from the Australian Government's Natural Heritage Trust under the Urban Rivers and Catchments Program.
Tony Jupp, Director of Conservation for TNC Australia, thanked the Australian Government for this fantastic investment in shellfish reef restoration.
"We are looking forward to starting the restoration work in this beautiful part of Sydney, which will take us closer to our objective of restoring 60 shellfish reefs by 2030," he said.
After extensive consultation with local communities and restoration suitability modelling, Audrey Bay and Taren Point were selected as sites for this exciting new project, expected to deliver benefits for nature and people connected to the estuary.
Taren Point will welcome 2.5ha of restored Australian Flat Oyster reefs while 1 ha hectare of Sydney Rock Oyster reefs will be restored at Audrey Bay, in what will be the first large-scale intertidal reef restoration initiative in the Sydney region.
Sydney's Georges River estuary was once the home of vast expanses of shellfish reefs, which sustained a wide array of invertebrates, fish and shorebirds. However, the combination of overharvesting, declining water quality, and diseases contributed to the dramatic decline in oyster reefs.
"Shellfish reefs have incredible benefits for nature and the communities whose lifestyle depends on healthy waterways," Kirk Dahle, South East Seascapes Manager for TNC, said. "They sustain biodiversity by providing food and habitat, but also support water quality through filtering and stabilisation of sediment. Oysters are powerful water filterers and on average each year, a hectare of shellfish reefs will filter 2.7 billion litres of seawater and remove 166 kilograms of nutrient pollution," he said.
Construction will start before June 2025, when the foundation of the reefs will be laid using locally-sourced rock which oysters can naturally colonise and thrive on. To kick start the recovery process, the reef at Taren Point will then be "seeded" with hatchery reared juvenile Australian Flat Oysters where they will continue to grow and attach to the reef base and each other. Over time, they will create a living reef.
"In Audrey Bay, we expect natural recruitment of Sydney Rock Oysters to keep the reefs growing and thriving," Mr Dahle said.
TNC has been restoring shellfish reefs in New South Wales since 2020, and restored 3.2 ha of shellfish reefs in Botany Bay in 2023, with the reefs already showing really promising results.
"Our monitoring already shows wonderful biodiversity around the reefs in Botany Bay. In addition to the Australian Flat Oysters, we've also recorded high fish abundances including Snapper, Flathead and Yellowtail Scad, as well as impressive Golden Kelp recruitment," Mr Dahle said.
This project is part of TNC's larger national shellfish restoration program that aims to rebuild 60 shellfish reef ecosystems across Australia. If achieved, Australia will be the first nation in the world to have recovered a critically endangered marine ecosystem.
If you would like to know more about our reef restoration work, please visit: Rebuilding Australia's lost shellfish reefs
