The main objective of the Stage 2 task was the formulation of a Water Quality Management Strategy for the waterways. It was recognised that no previous study of Moreton Bay and/or catchments had been done and much of the required information was lacking.
To address this, a set of key tasks was defined by the Scientific Advisory Group, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and the Environmental Protection Agency, in conjunction with stakeholders. Stage 2 comprised 17 tasks designed to provide the necessary data and information to both quantify and verify the relative importance of the various processes in the conceptual model. The integration of the different tasks, illustrated in the diagram below, has a numerical Receiving Water Quality Model at its core.
Stage 2 focussed on Moreton Bay and its estuaries, and the agreed outcomes were the Water Quality Strategy and monitoring program for Moreton Bay estuaries. This focus was triggered by the immediate need by water quality engineers from local councils to plan and implement sewage treatment plant upgrades. The spotlight on point sources and their impacts was designed to serve as a pilot study for more thorough, longer-term studies in Stage 3. Consequently, Stage 2 was completed within 18 months so sewage treatment plant upgrades could be based on the best possible scientific understanding.
