Darwin Harbour Integrated Marine Monitoring and Research Program

The Darwin Harbour Integrated Marine Monitoring and Research Program (IMMRP) is a 40-year voluntary environmental offset program funded by INPEX-operated Ichthys LNG.

The Program is a joint venture between the Northern Territory Government (NTG) and INPEX Operations Australia Pty Ltd on behalf of Ichthys Partners.

The IMMRP aims to enhance monitoring and research activities undertaken in the harbour across 4 key themes to assess changes in harbour condition through time:

• anthropogenic pressures
• water quality
• benthic sediment quality
• biological health.

_{Figure 1: Overview of the Darwin Harbour Integrated Monitoring and Research Program (IMMRP)}

The IMMRP applies long-term environmental monitoring underpinned by a suite of pilot studies. Further information on how these studies informed the long-term monitoring plans is available below.

Program data and reports

Monitoring data and annual reports are available via Territory Stories and below:

What we've established so far

• Baseline datasets to assess change in Harbour condition.
• Monitoring captures natural variability and provides context for assessing impacts of coastal development.
• Pressures on Darwin Harbour are increasing and changing in response to population growth, economic development and land-use change.
• Water quality is generally good to very good, but there are persistent localised areas of poorer condition associated with point-source inputs, including Buffalo and Myrmidon Creeks.
• Wastewater outflows appear to be having a localised impact on sediment health, particularly in Buffalo Creek, where excessive organic matter loading results in low oxygen levels and suppression of microbial populations, leading to reduced sediment function.
• Sediment health is generally good, but localised areas of enrichment, particularly in East Arm and urbanised coastal creeks, and emerging contaminants requiring ongoing surveillance.
• Mangroves health is generally good, with no evidence of widespread deterioration in mangrove extent or canopy condition. Post-construction monitoring shows capacity for recovery to near-natural conditions relatively quickly and with limited impact.
• Darwin Harbour remains in good overall condition.
• Ongoing monitoring, research and environmental management is needed to maintain harbour condition under increasing anthropogenic pressures and climate change.

How information is shared

Information from the program is shared online via annual program reports (above) and with the Darwin Harbour Integrated Monitoring Research Coordination Committee.

The Committee is responsible for coordinating the integration and sharing of information across various monitoring and research activities undertaken in Darwin Harbour.

Committee members include:

• INPEX Pty Ltd
• Santos
• Power and Water Corporation
• Darwin Port Operations
• Charles Darwin University
• Australian Institute of Marine Science
• Australian Government Department of Defence
• City of Darwin
• NT Fisheries
• Department of Lands, Planning and Environment.

Contact

For more information, call the Program Manager on 08 8999 3629.