Evaluate traditional and contemporary approaches to the management and protection of one
ecosystem at risk
Stable dunes are necessary to the health of Wanda Beach, providing a crucial defense to erosion,
properties and infrastructure. The harsh dune ecosystem experiences the erosive power of waves,
tumultuous weather and everchanging conditions. To manage and protect the ecosystem, a number of
traditional and contemporary management strategies have been implemented, including fire and
conservative management strategies, sand fences, boardwalks, revegetation and dune reconstruction.
To assess the effectiveness of these methods in terms of its protection and management of the coastal
dune ecosystem, four success criteria have been developed: its intragenerational and intergenerational
equity: the ability for current and future populations to access the ecosystem, precautionary approach:
the extent the strategy minimizes and protects the ecosystem from future human and natural impacts,
and its biological diversity: the extent at which the strategy affects the ecosystems functioning.
Traditional dune management strategies were implemented at Bate Bay by Indigenous Australians who
mainly used conservative strategies as well as fire to manage and protect the dunes. The original
inhabitants of Bate Bay, the Gweagal people who were a clan of the Tharawal tribe, occupied the region
for thousands of years. Their conservative approaches included applying sustainable hunting methods of
which they frequently moved around certain areas to allow the animals to repopulate and maintain the
ecosystem’s natural state of dynamic equilibrium. This strategy considers intergenerational equity and
biological diversity as the tribes’ relocation allowed for the future generations to harness the
ecosystems utility value while also maintaining genetic diversity and species population levels. They also
instilled strategies involving the use of fire, such as cool burning. Cool burning consisted of lighting a
slow fire in order to burn the undergrowth, and expose the dunes which allowed for creation of
migrating dunes and favor aeolian transport, improving biological diversity by increasing the
ecosystem’s functioning and creating a more suitable environment for species to thrive as well as
enhancing natural processes. This strategy also considers intergenerational equity by allowing for the
future generation to utilize the area by allowing and supporting dune formation, preserving the area.
Both of these traditional management practices implemented by the Indigenous Australians are both
somewhat effective at managing and protecting the ecosystem, satisfying at least 2 of the success
criteria.
Sand Fences and Boardwalks are one of the various contemporary management strategies implemented
at Bate Bay, with the aim of providing protection to the coastal dunes. Sand fences or sandbreaks
involve providing a barrier to force windblown, drifting sand to accumulate and construct the coastal
dunes. These fences have panels of woven material, allowing for the passage of air, but trapping
airborne sand, which is very effective at reconstructing dunes following storm damage. Once the sand is
rebuilt, vegetation can then begin to colonize the dune, further aid in trapping sand, increasing its
overall stability, shown by the 90% increase in dune accumulation at Bate Bay after implementing this
strategy. Boardwalks are also present at Bate Bay and are constructed using timber slats joined by
lengths of chain. Due to their flexibility, they can conform to the shape of the dune, and the timber slats
aid in reducing the effects of wind erosion on the exposed sand, allowing for tourists and beachgoers to
access the beach without trampling the sand which causes the dune to move and disintegrate. This
strategy is highly effective as it reduces the human impact as well as the hydrological and atmospheric
impacts to the dunes, evident as after installing boardwalks at Bate Bay, trampling related incidents
reduced by 80%. Both of these contemporary strategies are significantly effective at managing and
protecting the ecosystem, satisfying all four success criteria by allowing for natural processes to occur
(biological diversity), reducing the ecosystem’s susceptibility to natural and human impacts
(precautionary approach) as well as protecting the area for current and future generations to use (inter
and intragenerational equity). This allows for the dunes to remain in the ecosystem and grow without
any external factors impeding the natural processes.
Revegetation is a cost efficient, self-maintaining, contemporary dune management strategy, usually
conducted after extreme weather conditions at Bate Bay. This strategy involves volunteers replanting
and revegetating the dunes in order to protect the dunes against erosion, and allow for long term
stabilization. This method is carried out by developing a plant succession on the sand dunes over a
number of years, and carefully selecting the plant species as they must be resilient to the harsh coastal
environment. This is done to replicate the ways plants colonize an undisturbed dune under natural
conditions. Once the vegetation is developed, the dunes are able to grow in size due to the vegetation
being able to trap windborne sand. This improves the resilience of the ecosystem as when the dunes are
re-constructed with the assistance of re-vegetation, they are less susceptible to damage from extreme
weather and humans, and can easily recover, adapting to change, satisfying the criteria of biological
diversity by improving the ecosystem’s functioning as well as the precautionary approach by reducing
the impact of human and natural stresses. This is evident as the amount of sediment present at Bate Bay
increased by 68% 1 year following dune revegetation. Overall, revegetation is a successful dune
management strategy in managing and protecting the Bate Bay ecosystem, as it aims to recreate natural
processes that have been destroyed by erosion, and preserves the ecosystem for present and future
generations (intra and intergenerational equity).
Beach renourishment is a more extreme contemporary management strategy, being highly costly and
only temporary. After cases of extreme weather, such as storms and cyclones, sand from other locations
is used to increase beach width and combat erosion. This strategy allows the beach to be used for
recreational purposes, protects property and creates new natural environments (intragenerational
equity). With the addition of new sand, the beach is temporarily returned to its original aesthetic
condition. Due to an increase in beach width, the beach is much more effective at absorbing the high
amounts of energy produced from storm/cyclone waves, becoming temporarily more resilient to
erosion. However, this strategy is not a long-term solution to erosion as it is inevitable for the new sand
to erode after another storm or cyclone, hence must be repeated periodically, is very expensive, not
satisfying intergenerational equity. Another disadvantage of this strategy includes how the existing
species on the beach may not adapt to the new sand and can possibly be buried, interfering with
ecological processes, not satisfying the criteria of biological diversity. Overall, this technique is
somewhat ineffective compared to the other techniques discussed earlier at managing and protecting
the ecosystem due to its satisfaction of only one criteria and short term benefit.
In conclusion, the traditional and contemporary management strategies implemented at Bate Bay have
provided both short term and long-term benefits to the coastal dune ecosystem. The traditional
management strategies are somewhat effective and simple to operate, but do not satisfy the criteria of
the precautionary approach. The contemporary management strategies of fences, boardwalks and
revegetation however, provide long term protection against the erosive power of the sea and wind and
satisfy all four criteria. On the other hand, not all contemporary strategies provide these benefits as
beach renourishment solely has aesthetic purposes, only satisfying one criteria. Overall, the most
effective strategy in terms of managing and protecting the dunes is revegetation due to its satisfaction
of all four criteria and is economically viable and self-maintaining.
Management Approaches:
Preservation
Conservation
Utilization
Exploitation
Include which Attitude:
Environmental Imperialism
Utilitarianism
Stewardship
Romanticism
Radical Environmentalist
Indicators of management and protection:
Conservation of Limited Resources
Health of ecosystem – nutrient cycling
Species diversity and population fluctuations
Introduction:
Cronulla Coastal Sand Dunes are located in Bate Bay, approximately 15km south of Sydney’s CBD with a
latitude of 33°03’S and a longitude of 115°09’E. Stretching 4.8km long, it has an east to south east
aspect, which exposes it to the strong south east onshore prevailing winds from the Pacific, allowing for
effective dune formation, serving as a natural barrier between the land and the sea. The ecosystem’s
resilience (IE. ability to resist change) is limited due to the immense power of waves and winds which
limit its ability to resist change. On the other hand, Cronulla Coastal Sand Dunes has relatively high
resilience (IE. ability to cope with change) when natural processes of erosion and deposition are allowed
to carry out. However in recent years, due to the drastic increase in urbanisation and climate change
effects, the ecosystem is beginning to get pushed beyond its dynamic equilibrium, referring to the
continual state of balanced change, preventing it from being able to respond to this change in
environment in such a short period of time. As this occurs, this makes the ecosystem vulnerable and at
risk to collapse. This can be managed/countered through the implementation of effective management
strategies, either traditional or contemporary, such fire management, sand fences and revegetation.
Fire management is a traditional management strategy that was initially implemented at Bate Bay by
Indigenous Australians to protect and manage the ecosystem by increasing its long-term resilience. The
original inhabitants of Bate Bay, the Gweagal people who were a clan of the Tharawal tribe, occupied
the region for thousands of years. Their fire management strategy involves the deliberate burning of old
vegetation which was preventing the growth of new sprouts that would otherwise attract animals. To
ensure subsistent vegetation regrowth as well as prey population recoveries for the next year, the
Indigenous would light controlled fires or “cool burning”. This consisted of lighting a slow fire in order to
burn the undergrowth, which exposed the sand to onshore winds, therefore allowing aeolian processes
to occur. This hence lead to the formation of migration sand dunes, which allowed the ecosystem to
absorb natural changes such as storm damage and erosion, increasing the ecosystem’s resilience. This
was evident in 2018 following a severe storm at Cronulla, where despite the erosive power of the waves
and wind, the sand dunes were able to absorb this change and migrate, reaching a new dynamic
equilibrium. Following cool burning, in the short term, presence of flora and fauna was reduced,
however after 3 months when foragers returned, biodiversity was significantly increased. This
management strategy is highly effective as it promotes nutrient cycling, maintains species population
levels, improves resilience and maintains intergenerational equity. This strategy also considers the
precautionary approach, as it aims to increase resilience to future natural and human stresses and
increase ecosystem productivity. Consequently, this strategy leads to the domination only of vegetation
that are fire-resistant, reducing the ecosystem’s biodiversity, increasing its vulnerability. But, as this
strategy does lower the number of wildfire threats, this issue is presented as a low opportunity cost.
Overall, this strategy displays the stewardship attitude and is highly effective at managing and
protecting the Cronulla sand dunes, satisfying 2 of the criteria.
Revegetation is a cost efficient, self-maintaining, contemporary dune management strategy, that has
effectively managed and protected the Cronulla Sand Dune ecosystem through restoration and
stabilization. This strategy involves volunteers replanting and revegetating the dunes in order to protect
the dunes against erosion, and allow for long term stabilization. This method is carried out by replanting
native vegetation in regions where previous flora has been removed by either human or natural
stresses, leaving them vulnerable to erosion and/or trophic level collapse. This is done to replicate the
ways plants colonize an undisturbed dune under natural conditions. Costs are often low due to a large
number of willing volunteers being available. For example, the Soil Conservation Service has actively
been revegetating Cronulla Beach for over 40 years, causing a significant reduction in erosion of almost
40%, while generating a corridor linkage of nearby ecosystems, such as national parks, which preserves
the wildlife amongst a large area. Once the vegetation is developed, the dunes are able to grow in size
due to the vegetation being able to trap windborne sand, reducing erosion during the prevalence of
destructive waves with strong backwashes. This allows for a steady recovery of disturbed ecosystems,
being able to form an effective protective barrier to non-salt resistant secondary and tertiary vegetation.
Evidently, this improves the resilience of the ecosystem as when the dunes are re-constructed with the
assistance of re-vegetation, they are much more capable at absorbing impacts. This considers both
intragenerational and intergenerational equity as the benefit of revegetation is immediate and ensures
long term sustainability. The criteria of biological diversity is satisfied as the added vegetation entices
fauna to the area as well as new resources. Precautionary approach is also considered as the
implementation of this strategy is done to prevent future natural and human induced stresses from
further damaging the area. Overall, revegetation is a successful dune management strategy in managing
and protecting the Bate Bay ecosystem, as it aims to recreate natural processes that have been
destroyed by erosion, and preserves the ecosystem for present and future generations (intra and
intergenerational equity).
Sand Fences and Boardwalks are one of the various contemporary management strategies implemented
at Bate Bay, with the aim of providing protection to the coastal dunes. Sand fences or sandbreaks
involve providing a barrier to force windblown, drifting sand to accumulate and construct the coastal
dunes. These fences have panels of woven material, allowing for the passage of air, but trapping
airborne sand, which is very effective at reconstructing dunes following storm damage. Once the sand is
rebuilt, vegetation can then begin to colonize the dune, further aid in trapping sand, increasing its
overall stability, shown by the 90% increase in dune accumulation at Bate Bay after implementing this
strategy. Boardwalks are also present at Bate Bay and are constructed using timber slats joined by
lengths of chain. Due to their flexibility, they can conform to the shape of the dune, and the timber slats
aid in reducing the effects of wind erosion on the exposed sand, allowing for tourists and beachgoers to
access the beach without trampling the sand which causes the dune to move and disintegrate. This
strategy is highly effective as it reduces the human impact as well as the hydrological and atmospheric
impacts to the dunes, evident as after installing boardwalks at Bate Bay, trampling related incidents
reduced by 80%. Both of these contemporary strategies are significantly effective at managing and
protecting the ecosystem, satisfying all four success criteria by allowing for natural processes to occur
(biological diversity), reducing the ecosystem’s susceptibility to natural and human impacts
(precautionary approach) as well as protecting the area for current and future generations to use (inter
and intragenerational equity). This allows for the dunes to remain in the ecosystem and grow without
any external factors impeding the natural processes.