Catchment Facts

  • Total area: 1,523km2
  • Many of SEQ’s major rivers and creeks flow into Moreton Bay
  • Area of all catchments discharging into Moreton Bay:22,000km2
  • Moreton Bay is enclosed on three sides but well flushed in the eastern and central zones
  • The toxic cyanobacterium Lyngbya majuscula is a threat to the ecosystem health of Moreton Bay

Marine results

Deception Bay

  • Increases in phytoplankton abundance and nitrogen concentrations.
  • Improvement in biological health rating.
  • Reduced seagrass depth range at Godwin beach.
  • Continued low sewage nitrogen signal.

Central Bay

  • Increases in phytoplankton abundance and nitrogen concentrations.
  • Decline in water clarity and biological health rating.
  • Reduced seagrass depth range at Victoria Point.

Bramble Bay

  • Increases in phytoplankton abundance, nitrogen concentrations and sewage nitrogen signal.
  • Decrease in water clarity.
  • Decrease in salinity at sites near the Brisbane River mouth in December 2008 and from April – June 2009, related to increases in flows from the Brisbane River.

Waterloo Bay

  • Significant decline in grade.
  • Increases in phytoplankton abundance, sewage nitrogen signal, Lyngbya.
  • Decreases in water clarity and biological health rating with slightly reduced coral cover.

Eastern Bay

  • Increases in phytoplankton abundance and Lyngbya.
  • Improvement in biological health rating.
  • Reduced seagrass depth range at Peel Island and Pelican Banks.

A-  Eastern Banks

  • Excellent water quality.
  • Improved water clarity and reduced phytoplankton abundance.
  • Greater extent of Lyngbya.

Southern Bay

  • Significant decline in grade with a decline in all indicators except for Lyngbya (not reported).
  • Sewage nitrogen plume detected from the Logan river mouth extending up to Peel Island.
  • Large decline in salinity in April 2009, indicative of large freshwater inputs to the region.

Broadwater

  • Generally good water quality.
  • Increase in nitrogen concentrations.
  • Increase in sewage nitrogen signal detected.

B-  Overall Moreton Bay

  • The overall health of Moreton Bay in 2008-2009 has significantly declined since last year with slight improvements in the Pumicestone Passage and Eastern Banks offset by dramatic decreases in water quality in the Waterloo, Bramble and Southern Bay regions