The City of Greater Geelong and the University of Melbourne recently hosted a Reefs for Resilience event at Clifton Springs and the Dell Eco Reef.
The event brought together scientists, academics, volunteers, community members and City employees to showcase the City's artificial reef initiative and research being undertaken by the University of Melbourne.
The Dell Eco Reef, installed in 2022, is made up of 46 sculptural reef modules, created from eco-friendly concrete, that help to reduce wave energy and provide a habitat for oysters, mussels and other native species to thrive.
The designers of both Dell Eco Reef and Ramblers Reef had ambitious goals – to reduce coastal erosion and the impacts of inundation, restore marine habitats and build resilience into our shoreline ecosystems.
These two projects have not only achieved their goals but also surpassed all expectations. They have prevented further erosion, while delivering habitat creation and restoration – and local marine reef communities are regenerating. The Dell Eco Reef and the City are now the recipients of multiple awards including the Victorian Marine and Coastal Award for Excellence in Marine and Coastal Design.
At the recent event, marine scientists from the University of Melbourne presented data, insights and evidence on how far-reaching the benefits of the reef are and how those benefits could be replicated in other coastal areas to help mitigate the impacts of climate change.
Event participants then put on their waders and headed out to the reef to conduct a count on the 1,000 critically threatened juvenile native flat oysters that were seeded on the modules last year.
Greater Geelong Mayor Stretch Kontelj OAM
The multi award winning Dell Eco Reef will pave the way for future projects.The innovative Dell Eco Reef is showing us that there are effective and scalable nature-based solutions to protect our coastlines.
Murradoc ward Councillor Rowan Story AM, RFD
It was wonderful to see so many people come down to Clifton Springs to hear about the positive impact the Dell Eco Reef has had on our shoreline.These projects, which blend innovative design and environmental management are building coastal resilience and restoring marine ecosystems.
