RESTORING OUR LOST SHELLFISH REEFS

Shellfish reefs have the unenviable distinction of being the most critically endangered marine ecosystem on the planet. Globally, they are disappearing at a rate greater than the losses reported for coral reefs, mangroves and seagrasses. In Australia, shellfish reefs once thrived in bays and estuaries from Noosa in Queensland around the southern coastline to Perth in Western Australia. Today, as a result of overharvesting, dredging, disease and pollution, less than 10 per cent of these vital habitats remain and are considered 'functionally extinct' in many locations.

However, one conservation