Development of a geographic information system for coastal management : a case study in Jervis Bay, New South Wales

Abstract

The primary objective of coastal management around much of Australia's coastline is to achieve a balance between environmental conservation, recreational use and commercial development. This objective is particularly appropriate for the coastal environment of Jervis Bay on the New South Wales coastline. Large areas of this embayments hinterland remain in a relatively pristine condition, fronting onto white sandy beaches and deep sheltered waters. In the past, the physical attributes of the environment have attracted the attention of potential commercial and industrial developers. Proposals for development have been numerous and large-scale. While all have been abandoned or denied approval, the environmental risks posed by large-scale developments, such as marinas or naval facilities, still remain. The environment is also endangered by the insidious growth of urbanisation and the bay's increasing popularity as a recreational destination. If a viable management plan is to be developed for this coastal environment then it is essential to develop an understanding of the sedimentary zone as a system, and to identify the relationships between physical characteristics of the environment and human activities. The majority of human activities that occur within Jervis Bay, and those that are proposed to occur, impact the stability of the sedimentary zone, either directly or indirectly. While there have been numerous environmental studies of the bay, few have given regard to this highly dynamic element of the physical environment. Not surprisingly, there is little information pertaining to variability within the sedimentary zone, while the information that does exist is of highly variable quality. For this reason, a geographic information system (GIS) is employed to aid in the task of information collation, synthesis, analysis and presentation. It is proposed that through the gathering and interrelation of fragmented information records, an understanding of the processresponse mechanisms operating in the sedimentary environment can be attained. Show more