Wetlands

Wetland condition

The Great Barrier Reef Wetland Monitoring Program tracks long-term trends in the pressures on and condition of natural freshwater wetlands as part of the Paddock to Reef program. Wetlands from the Normanby catchment to the Mary River catchment are monitored. The monitoring program focusses on vegetated swamps (palustrine wetlands) and lakes (lacustrine wetlands) occurring on floodplains within the Great Barrier Reef catchment area. One set of indicators is used to assess the pressures on these wetlands associated with pest introductions, habitat modification, water regime change and pollutant inputs. Another set is used to determine the state of wetlands in terms of their biological and physical integrity, local hydrology and connectivity to nearby wetlands and native vegetation. The results of individual wetland assessments are rolled up to give an overall pressure and state grade for Great Barrier Reef catchment wetlands in the Reef Water Quality Report Card. This assesses progress towards the objective of improved wetland condition.

For more information, see the Program’s publications and methods guides.

Wetland extent

The change in extent of wetlands is based on the Queensland Wetlands Program wetland mapping which draws on remote sensing, topographic mapping and regional ecosystem mapping to identify wetlands based on both water bodies and vegetation. The extent of wetlands is updated every four years to assess progress towards the 2025 target of ‘no loss of the extent of natural wetlands’. For more information, visit WetlandInfo.