Restoring Port Phillip Bay: Kelp Cultivation, Seedbank Innovation, and Urchin Management

The Port Phillip Bay Golden Kelp restoration project is leading efforts to revive one of Victoria's critical marine ecosystems. Over the past two decades, kelp forests in Port Phillip Bay have experienced significant decline due to overgrazing by native Purple Urchins and other environmental pressures. To combat this, scientists at the Queenscliff Marine Science Centre have been growing juvenile Golden Kelp in the lab on twine and gravel, ready for replanting in targeted areas. This collaboration involves The Nature Conservancy, the University of Melbourne, Deakin University, and Parks Victoria, and is supported by the Victorian Government.
A key component of the project involves managing the overabundant Purple Urchin populations that have contributed to the creation of barren rocky reefs, devoid of kelp. By reducing urchin numbers to sustainable levels, the team is working to restore balance in the ecosystem, allowing kelp and other seaweeds to recover and thrive once again.
In addition to cultivating kelp and managing urchins, researchers are establishing Victoria's first Golden Kelp seedbank at Deakin's Queenscliff Marine Science Centre. This seedbank will preserve the genetic diversity of Golden Kelp, ensuring its resilience and long-term conservation. Collected from various locations around Port Phillip Bay, reproductive material will provide crucial resources for future restoration efforts, and the seedbank is being expanded to include sites along Victoria’s coastline. The Kelping the Bay project is supported by the Victorian Government through the Port Phillip Bay Fund.
Additional footage in this GSRF video was supplied by The Nature Conservancy.
Learn more about restoration on the GSR
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[@matthewtraeger4115]

great job guys it is really good to see the before and after shots of the urchin barren and what the area looks like after the kelp has had a chance to come back and flourish