Hi there,

We’ve been making steady progress towards the next stages of this project. There is a lot to do, so forgive the time it’s taking : )

All the information you provided and the insights you gave us meant we could rework of the scientific model to fit your needs. These foundations are really important. Like building a house, the layout and construction from here on has to sit in that framework.

Here is a glimpse at the structure of what we’re putting together. The ‘system’ if you like. In the image below I’ve highlighted in yellow, the parts that we’ve been filling in during the workshops. We did over 62,000 connection points between those levels. But because some of the categories can be combined, we’ve also been creating a hierarchy, so when it comes to the next stage, we can fold up the model to make it more convenient for everyone to follow.

The idea is to have this model working fully before we begin the exciting work of action planning in the new year. Meanwhile, there is a lot more going on.

The other work we’ve been doing is also foundational. It’s to review the ecological connections that will link to the wonderful information you’ve been gathering in the workshops. Everything that’s gathered will then be integrated to form the story about how we connect to the bay. Then this will be used by our community to map out actions that, when implemented, will measurably restore ecosystem features and grow community values.

Coastal birds and seabirds

Among other things, we’ve been reviewing data and knowledge about the connection between seabirds and the various environmental and biological properties (see above). This information will connect to the services and values data you gathered.

*Several hundred cormorants on or near Cerberus in August 2025.*

By reviewing current and surface data from satellites, we’ve been able to work out the main feeding areas for seabirds. Winter is really important. Pied Cormorants appear on this part of the coastline in huge abundance. Unusually, they breed in winter in Werribee and most feed near this part of the coastline.

The nutrient input is significant and may be driving the entire natural input for this part of the bay every year. Seabirds are considered to be the principal driver for nutrient budgets for most natural coastal systems. The cormorants may therefore be responsible for the health of our bay, reefs and activities including fishing, throughout the whole of summer.

The report for this is ongoing and in time we’ll be able to share this, as it will form part of the backbone of the information that will feed the model before the new year.

Recreational fishing

We were delighted to have the chance to meet with the Sandringham Anglers Club recently after the club invited us to talk to them about the project. It was a great evening with some outstanding findings.

Probably the most interesting was the very strong focus on community sense of belonging and mental health. It isn’t that surprising really. Except one might imagines that all anyone would want to talk about is fishing. However, fishing is no different to any community activity in that it brings people together. In fact, the club’s views precisely mirror the values that our workshop participants presented weeks earlier.

This just serves to demonstrate the compatability of groups when we focus on shared values. Too much community work is done to amplify conflict but as this serves to remind us, we share a lot more in common than we think.

Coastal erosion baseline

A while ago we wrote to you about measuring coastal erosion using robots.

This sophisticated method is about the most cost-effective way possible to measure change. Yet it’s not been applied to this area. Once again, the information we gather here will go into our community database, giving us one of the most sophisticated decision tools available to anyone.

The following two images are actual data from that work. By using stereo vision, we have accurately mapped the surface. By coming back later, we can show how the coast has changed to a resolution of as little as 3cm.