Home

Oyster Reef Restoration: Your Chance to Contribute

Oyster reef restoration is looking like the answer we need to combat the Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB), and now you have the chance to help. Environment Institute Future Making Fellow Dr Dominic McAfee recently spoke with ABC Radio Adelaide to discuss this great initiative in partnership with OzFish Adelaide Chapter, and how volunteering to make oyster baskets will help the Port River flourish once again.

Steps to Clean Up the Algal Bloom

Around 30% of SA’s coastline is being impacted by a harmful algal bloom driven by heatwaves, nutrient run-off, and upwelling events. According to Environment Institute members Dr Dominic McAfee and Prof Sean Connell, the bloom is far too widespread for large-scale chemical, physical, or microbial trials. Instead, prevention and resilience are key. Oysters in affected areas are feeding on algae, mussels are cleared of toxins, and SA has committed to restoring 15 hectares of shellfish reefs. As climate change fuels more marine heatwaves and floods, HABs will return. Investing in oyster reef restoration and nature-based solutions could future-proof our coasts.

Restorative Bivalve Aquaculture Offers New Hope for Climate and Coastal Ecosystems

Environment Institute member Dr Alice Jones latest research explores the role of restorative bivalve aquaculture in supporting blue carbon ecosystems and reducing the climate footprint of food production. With over 51,000 bivalve farms now operating globally, there’s growing interest in “blue foods” that offer both nutrition and environmental benefits. Dr Jones’s work highlights how, when carefully designed, shellfish farming can help protect coastal habitats like seagrasses, mangroves, and tidal marshes—all critical to oceanic carbon storage.

Harmful Algal Bloom and Human Wellbeing Impact

The harmful algal bloom (HAB) affecting our coastal waters in recent months is more than an environmental problem, it’s a public health, economic, and community wellbeing crisis. Its effects are rippling through coastal communities, disrupting livelihoods in fisheries, aquaculture, and tourism while posing direct threats to physical health, from respiratory irritation to eye and skin discomfort. Hear what our Environment Institute members have said. 

Environment Institute Members Win 2025 Young Tall Poppy Science Awards

We’re proud to share that Environment Institute researchers Dr Georgina Falster and Dr Nina Wootton have been recognised with South Australia’s 2025 Young Tall Poppy Science Awards! Dr Falster studies how Australian droughts are changing by tracing shifts in the water cycle using climate data and isotopes. Dr Wootton investigates the impacts of plastic pollution on seafood species and works with industry to drive sustainable change.

Local Action: The Key to the Murray-Darling Basin Recovery

The latest evaluation of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan is out, and the message is clear: fixing flows alone won’t fix the Basin. We need to restore the land itself. As co-author, Environment Institute member Professor Seth Westra highlights, we must go beyond water volumes and fix the land itself—rewetting wetlands, restoring floodplains, and supporting nature-based regeneration.