Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 4
Restoring Coasts and Connections on a
Southern Australian Coastline
MATTHEW FOX
With coastal populations steadily increasing in Victoria, pressures on coastal land-
scapes and ecosystems continue to mount. Increased human and vehicular traffic
threaten biodiversity values, while human settlements introduce pollutants to terres-
trial, intertidal, and marine ecosystems. Meanwhile, coastal habitat is cleared and
fragmented by residential and commercial development. There is some irony in the
fact that these mounting human pressures threaten to undermine the very attributes
people seek in their coastal lifestyle.
However, an opposing force has existed quietly for the past two decades, gathering
on weekends in small groups on the reserves along Victoria's 1,250-mile coastline.
Dedicated volunteers have braved the elements, struggled with red tape, overcome
funding challenges, and taken on physically arduous tasks in order to restore and pro-
tect their local environs. The impacts of individual actions may be small in scale, but
when considered collectively and over this extended time period, they constitute a
very significant set of achievements. Indeed, a whole suite of Victoria's coastal ecosys-
tems are now greatly improved, many in areas where they would otherwise not persist
in the face of intensive human activity.
At the heart of the restoration movement is a direct relationship between the vol-
unteer and the coast. These relationships differ from one person to the next, some of-
fering hope for the future, others providing validation within the community. Regard-
less of the reasons behind volunteer actions, restoration can also provide for deeper
engagement with ecology because restoring and improving ecological function places
us back within the ecosystem.
A Long History of People on the Coast
Indigenous people have inhabited Victoria's coastline for tens of thousands of years.
The continuous relationship between people and the coast is perhaps one of the
longest running anywhere. At the time of European settlement, five main clan groups
permanently occupied territories along the coastline we now know as Victoria. This
section of southern shoreline was the most densely populated area of the continent at
