Restoring Moreton Bay Ramsar's ecological character

Protecting and enhancing the Moreton Bay Ramsar site through collaborative ecosystem management

New Ramsar project 2025_photo with mangrove at sunset Preserving this Ramsar’s internationally recognised biodiversity and ecological importancThis project implements conservation efforts to maintain and restore the ecological character of the Moreton Bay Ramsar area in South East Queensland.

Healthy Land & Water is partnering with First Nations peoples, university partners, Moreton Bay Shellfish Reef Restoration Reference Group, community and other key stakeholders to address environmental threats, protect key cultural landscapes, enhance biodiversity and build resilience against climate change through innovative and collaborative ecosystem management.

Addressing priority threats through the protection and enhancement of key cultural landscapes

What we are doing

Gully eroded by the floods, Mark Waud walking in it Enhancing priority shorebird roost sites through revegetation and threat reduction.

Our projects will focus on:

Protecting and improving habitat at culturally significant sites.
Enhancing priority shorebird roost sites through revegetation and threat reduction.
Propagating the endangered Swamp Daisy (Olearia hygrophila) to identify best practice for conservation efforts.
Reducing pest animals and invasive weeds in priority habitat areas.
Improving understanding of shellfish ecology and potential restoration in Moreton Bay

Measuring success

As a result of the projects, the following will be achieved:

Improving 2 ha of understory habitat on Yirin (Bribie Island).
Improved understanding of habitat conditions for shellfish restoration
Revegetation of migratory shorebird roost sites across 3 ha.
Propagation of the endangered Swamp Daisy.
Pest animal reduction across 400 ha of priority habitat.

Why this project is important

Moreton Bay was listed as an internationally important wetland under the Ramsar* Convention in 1993.

Covering more than 120,000 hectares, the Ramsar site includes many different coastal habitats and environments from freshwater wetlands, dunes, beaches, mud flats, saltmarsh, mangroves, coral reefs, and seagrass beds.

This critical habitat supports over 750 fish species, eight dolphin species, five whale species, all six Australian marine turtle species, and more than 50,000 wetland birds, including 28 migratory species.

The area holds profound cultural significance for Traditional Owners like the Kabi Kabi, Jagera, Turrbal, Yugambeh, and Quandamooka peoples. Archaeological evidence of human presence in Australia dates back more than 65,000 years making Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples the oldest contiguous civilisation in the world. The Moreton Bay Ramsar area is home to extensive, rich and diverse cultural records and culturally significant sites.

By addressing environmental threats and restoring habitat, this project aims to preserve the Ramsar’s internationally recognised biodiversity and cultural significance.

Project snapshot

Project name:	Restoring RAMSAR ecological character (2024 - 2028) $1,500,000
Project manager:	Gabriela Shuster, Healthy Land & Water
Project team:	Chelsea Kluske, Healthy Land & Water
Catchment:	Moreton Bay
Partnerships:	This project is funded by the Australian Government Natural Heritage Trust and delivered by Healthy Land and Water, a member of the Commonwealth Regional Delivery Partners Panel. Projects will be delivered in collaboration with First Nations peoples, University partners (including the University of Sunshine Coast, the University of Queensland and Griffith University), OzFish and community stakeholders.

What's next

There is huge potential to build on the success of this project with potential to attract more investment partners to deliver larger-scale results and resilience for the region.

Project collaborators

This project is funded by the Australian Government Natural Heritage Trust and delivered by Healthy Land and Water, a member of the Commonwealth Regional Delivery Partners Panel.

Projects will be delivered in collaboration with First Nations peoples, University partners (including the University of Sunshine Coast, the University of Queensland and Griffith University), OzFish and community stakeholders.

What is Ramsar
The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance is an international treaty that provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. Ramsar is the Iranian City where the Convention was adopted in 1971.