00:00A window of calm weather allows these scientists to get out on the Don Trocasto channel between
00:12Bruni Island and mainland Tasmania.
00:17They're running a major new monitoring project.
00:20Today underwater cameras are recording the condition of rocky reefs in the channel.
00:25So we're usually towing in about three to five metres of water and I guess the challenge
00:30in some of these areas is it's quite shallow reefs.
00:34These cameras are part of a baseline survey which will also include diver observations.
00:40There's long been chatter about changes beneath the surface of the channel.
00:45That's where you get the stories about, you know, oh, we didn't see any of this, you know,
00:4920 years ago or whatever else so, yeah, it'll be good to put it all together and see what's
00:54happening.
00:55Tourism operator Rob Pennicott has joined the scientific team on board.
01:00His philanthropic foundation has given the Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies $900,000 for
01:08the study.
01:09I've been snorkeling in the Don Trocasto channel for probably about 40, 50 years and in
01:15the last 20, 30 years it's gone from what to me looks very pristine to some areas still
01:21very good.
01:22Other areas are like dead zones.
01:24The Don Trocasto channel is absolutely sparkling today.
01:28You can see why boaties and residents along its shores love it.
01:33But there's actually a lot going on here.
01:35Salmon farms up and down the channel, commercial industry, growing coastal towns and of course,
01:42climate change.
01:43There's definitely more nutrients entering the water from salmon farms than there was 30 years
01:48away.
01:49But also you have a lot of other activity in the channel that has increased over the last
01:52couple of decades.
01:54With the majority of Tasmania's salmon farming leases and licences in the channel, there's
02:00questions about their impacts.
02:02I've had meetings with salmon farms and they think there's a good chance that it's agriculture
02:07or global warming.
02:09And for me, it's finding the truth and then working with the truth for better results.
02:14And researchers admit monitoring has fallen behind development.
02:19For some of those habitats like Rocky Reef, as the industry expanded, monitoring hasn't
02:23kept up.
02:24And there's certainly information on Rocky Reefs, but we've never had the opportunity to provide
02:29this really holistic, systematic approach.
02:33Private money stepping in to protect a waterway.
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