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MISA Charting the Course

September 2005

Vision
The Need
Capabilities
World-class Resources

MISA's Blueprint: Moving Forward

Marine Innovation SA - MISA - aims to position South Australia as a world-class centre for marine science, education and industry development.

MISA is an ambitious undertaking conceived five years ago with the purpose of uniting all sectors involved in the development of South Australia's seafood industry and the protection of its marine environment.

This document represents a watershed in the development of the initiative, setting out a shared understanding by the partners to take MISA from conception to synthesis.

Clearly recorded is an analysis of research facilities and research activities in South Australia. Noted are opportunities to move forward to realise the goals of the SA Seafood Food Plan.

MISA - Charting the Course - signifies the goodwill and collaboration of all partners - from the research lab to the global market place - working together to embrace an era that will transform industry through innovation in aquatic sciences. Partners in the MISA initiative are proud to have achieved such a high level of consensus that is rarely seen.

MISA - Charting the Course- crystallises the comprehensive, focused, intensive analysis and planning involved to bring MISA to fruition. Together partners have identified current capabilities and collaborative opportunities and pinpointed research and capability gaps that need to be addressed.

The authors of MISA - Charting the Course - thank the members, the research working partners and all the collaborators for their outstanding effort, dedication and hard work over many months to capture the resources needed to bring MISA's vision to being.

Signatures

Tim Ward 1, Anthony Cheshire 1, Grant Westphalen 1, John Carragher 1, Steven Clarke 1 and Ann-Maree O'Connor 2

1 SARDI Aquatic Sciences
2 Flinders University of South Australia

MISA - The Vision

Marine Innovation SA aims to position South Australia as a world-class centre for marine science, education and industry development.

MISA - The Need

The State's Seafood Food Plan sets out an ambitious target to more than double the value of seafood production to $2 billion by 2015.

South Australia seeks to be a national leader in pursuing innovation in the conservation of our precious marine environment through research and development on southern temperate marine systems.

Marine Innovation SA is a vital plank that will deliver the science capability to fulfil this direction.

THE PARTNERS ADDRESSING CAPABILITY

Marine Innovation South Australia (MISA) is a joint venture between the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI), Flinders and Adelaide Universities, the South Australian Museum and the seafood industries.

These organisations have a rich history of outstanding achievement in embracing innovation.

By integrating existing expertise and infrastructure in the education and research sectors and providing a basis for better collaboration between the partners, MISA will deliver the best outcomes for South Australia's seafood industry and protect its environment.

MISA will deliver research excellence in four high priority research streams or `nodes':

Seafood Product Quality and Value-adding
Aquaculture Innovation
Ecosystem Services
Biosecurity

These nodes will support the ecologically sustainable development of South Australia's fisheries, aquaculture and marine eco-tourism industries.

Consultations to progress the MISA initiative were organised in three tiers with stakeholders from contributing research bodies represented at all levels: steering committee; research, education and infrastructure working groups; and the research working parties.

MISA: The blueprint

Investing soundly - Targeting needs

This report encapsulates recommendations put forward by Research Working Parties assigned to investigate needs and opportunities within each of MISA's nodes:

Seafood Product Quality and Value-adding
Aquaculture Innovation
Ecosystem Services
Biosecurity

Knowing where to target expansion of current research capability and infrastructure within each of MISA's nodes starts from having a clear understanding of their current status in South Australia.

Research Working Parties (RWP), comprising representatives of South Australia's main aquatic research organisations and relevant industry partners were set up to thoroughly explore:

Past and current research activities
Current staff and post-graduate research student allocations
Existing infrastructure

Each Research Working Party undertook an analysis of strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats to develop a list of research capabilities and infrastructure requirements to support the development of South Australia's aquatic industries.

The process involved comprehensive, focused, intensive analysis and planning. Current capabilities and collaborator opportunities were identified. Research and capability gaps were pinpointed.

This report summarises our shared understanding and provides:

A summary of the needs identified at each research node
A synthesis of these needs across all nodes with proposals for relative allocation of MISA resources, and
A series of recommendations about these allocations for the MISA steering committee.

Seafood product quality and value-adding

Focus

The aim of the seafood product quality and value-adding node is to increase the post-harvest unit value of SA seafood products from both aquaculture and capture fisheries. This node has substantial links to other MISA nodes, in particular Aquaculture Innovation.

The Product Quality and Value-Adding Research Working Party identified the need to adopt a "market-pull" rather than a "producer-push" culture and will consider a number of issues including: food technology, processing, cold-chain management, packaging, branding, sensory analysis, market requirements, economics and new products.

Capabilities

A large number of research agencies and several seafood producers and processors have expertise and infrastructure that can contribute to activities in this node, including SARDI (Product Quality and Value-Adding Program at Aquatic Sciences and Food Safety Group), Flinders University Schools of Biological Sciences and Environmental Health, PIRSA's SASQAP and Food SA programs, Rural Solutions SA, Regency TAFE, and the University of South Australia's Marketing Science Centre.

Moving Forward

The Research Working Party identified that better coordinating these capabilities and infrastructure is critical to achieving the goal of the SA Seafood Food Plan 2005 to double the value of the SA seafood industry by 2015.

There are significant capabilities in SA in the areas of food safety but critical gaps in the disciplines of seafood marketing and processing science. New positions assigned a high priority for appointment or for accessing existing capability are:

Marketing scientists
Market analyst
Quality systems developer and HACCP validation expert
Supply logistics expert
Traceability IT expert
Food processing scientists
Packaging engineer
Seafood technologists/engineers
Seafood microbiologists
Seafood biochemist/physiologist

The Research Working Party also identified two critical infrastructure requirements. A core laboratory for seafood value-adding research and development is needed urgently. Regency TAFE already has significant related infrastructure but it is not currently well utilised by the seafood industry, though it has been identified as being well suited to support this development. A seafood science laboratory was also identified as a high priority for inclusion in the expansion of the Lincoln Marine Science Centre (LMSC).

Aquaculture Innovation

Focus

The Aquaculture Innovation node aims to increase the production (total value) and pre-harvest quality and marketability (unit value) of seafood aquaculture in SA.

Capabilities

Substantial aquaculture research capability currently exists within the state, particularly at SARDI, Flinders University, Adelaide University and the SA Museum. The University of Tasmania has a small fish health group based in Port Lincoln and several commercial aquaculture companies/associations also employ scientists in scientific/technical roles.

Moving forward

The Research Working Party identified long-standing deficiencies in the fields of fish health and engineering as impediments to the development of the aquaculture industry. Other important gaps that were identified include: socio-economics; nutrition, feed, feeding and feed technology; genetics; ecosystem modelling; and general taxonomic expertise in relation to taxa with particular significance for aquaculture production (eg. microalgae, macroalgae and sponges).

The following discipline areas were identified as the highest priorities for the appointment or for accessing existing capability through MISA:

Genetics and biotechnology
Fish health
Nutrition, feeds, feeding and feed technology
Propagation
Reproduction, growth and new industry development
Systems development and modelling
Economics to support business development

Significant additional infrastructure is needed to support the further development of the aquaculture industry. Portable infrastructure is needed at the SA Aquatic Sciences Centre (SAASC) and Lincoln Marine Science Centre (LMSC) to provide for pilot-scale trials on commercial farms. A small replicated tank system is also required at the LMSC. Similarly, nursery facilities are needed at SAASC to match the existing hatchery capability and provide sufficient fingerlings/spat/etc to undertake pilot scale trials on commercial farms.

There is an urgent need for facilities to support fish health studies in both Adelaide and Port Lincoln, including a biological containment facility at the SAASC. Adelaide and Flinders Universities need better access to recirculation systems at SAASC and LMSC.

Suitable accommodation in Port Lincoln was identified as being critical to attracting visiting research scientists to the LMSC and ensuring the success of the new infrastructure and capability developments in Port Lincoln.

Ecosystem services

Focus

The Ecosystems Services node emphasised that additional research is needed to underpin the management of the fishing, aquaculture and ecotourism industries, and to assess the implications of land-based activities for these industries.

The Research Working Party identified SA's estuarine and marine waters to a depth of 200 m as the region of primary interest, and noted that this encompasses an enormous area and diverse ecosystems including the Coorong, Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth, SA's unique gulfs, numerous offshore islands, and a large portion of the Great Australian Bight.

Capabilities

Extensive capability in benthic ecology, habitat mapping, environmental monitoring and related disciplines currently exist in a range of agencies including the Office of Coast and Marine and the Coast Protection Branch of the Department of Environment and Heritage, Adelaide and Flinders University and the SARDI's Environment and Ecology Program. SARDI Wild Fisheries and Adelaide University also have significant capability in population ecology, especially on fish. Flinders University has broad biological and ecological expertise, as well as involvement in ecotourism research.

Moving forward

The Research Working Party identified that the level of cooperation among the leading research providers could be improved and identified the need for additional or new capability in a wide range of fields such as: oceanography; chemistry, ecotoxicology, biogeochemistry, trophodynamics and ecosystem modelling; and numerous functional/taxonomic groups (seagrasses and macroalgae, phytoplankton, zooplankton, meio- and macro-invertebrates, seabirds, sharks and cetaceans). Several technical capabilities needed to underpin research in this node, included: marine remote sensing, hydro-acoustics, spatial risk modelling, restoration ecology and bioremediation ecology.

Participants unanimously agreed that there was a pressing need to establish a large-scale, ongoing, multidisciplinary research program involving: (1) broad-scale baseline monitoring; (2) focused assessments of individual industries; (3) investigations of ecological processes; and (4) data integration and modelling.

Research topics of particular concern, include:

Ensuring access rights and lease security
Understanding the Great Australian Bight
Underpinning regional marine planning and MPAs
Ecological performance assessment systems and indicators
Environmental assessment, management and rehabilitation
Carrying capacity and production efficiency
Ecological processes
Long term monitoring
Ocean and remote sensing (deepwater telemetry as well as satellite imagery)

Disciplines identified as being of special priority included: oceanography, marine chemistry, biogeochemistry, seagrass ecology, plankton, biology and ecology of large vertebrates and ecological modelling. It was agreed that it would be better to utilise MISA resources to establish significant capability within these disciplines rather than spread the limited resources too thinly among other areas of need.

Infrastructure needs that were identified by the Ecosystem Services Research Working Party include a modern offshore research vessel and ocean sensing systems. The need for enhanced facilities for training scientific divers was also identified as a priority.

Biosecurity

Focus

The Biosecurity node aims to deliver research outcomes that will facilitate the management and mitigation of risks to production systems. This is a relatively new area of marine research in SA but has substantial capacity for expansion, as government and community concerns over biosecurity continue to increase. This node will consider three broad research areas:

Marine pests
Fish pathogens and parasites
Nuisance / toxic microalgae (native or otherwise)

Ballast water translocations were noted as being particularly a significant risk to SA's ports and harbours, aquaculture, fisheries and tourism industries.

Capabilities

A large number of research stakeholders were identified within the biosecurity node, including SARDI Aquatic Sciences, PIRSA, Flinders University, Adelaide University, South Australian Museum, Australian Water Quality Centre (AWQC), the SA shellfish quality assurance program (SASQAP) and CSIRO.

There is remarkably little overlap between activities undertaken by these research providers: SARDI conducts research on fish diseases and parasites, including molecular detection systems, as well as eradication/control strategies for macro-algal marine pests; SASQAP has a significant monitoring role; AWQC has a strong emphasis on ecotoxicology and natural products; University of Adelaide and the South Australian Museum conduct research on the biology, ecology and invasion dynamics of fish parasites. CSIRO and Flinders University have a wider range of research interests, but with relatively minor overlap.

The lack of overlap between most organisations suggests that there is a broad range of biosecurity research capability in South Australia. However, the Research Working Party noted that the linkages between organisations have been relatively weak, and coordination of activities has generally been poor.

Moving Forward

The Biosecurity Research Working Party emphasised the need for MISA to take a research leadership role within the biosecurity area following the decision by CSIRO in 2003 to reduce resourcing for the Centre for Research on Introduced Marine Pests.

It was noted that there is a serious lack of high-level expertise in risk assessment related to biosecurity in SA. The positions that are needed to support biosecurity research in South Australia are:

Spatial risk analyst
Marine microalgal physiologist
Multi-disciplinary ecologist/eco-physiologist
Invertebrate taxonomist
Biological control - design and development
Fish veterinary scientists (immunology, other specific capabilities, etc)
Geneticist - mitigation and eradication
Scientific leader - communications/management
Operational and marine engineers

The level of physical containment required in SA to support biosecurity research (PC2 or PC3) must be assessed, as the cost differences between the two capabilities are significant. It should be noted that Australian guidelines for aquatic research laboratories at the Physical Containment 3 (PC3) level have yet to be developed. Creation of a containment facility in SA will require an investigation of existing facilities, close engagement with certifying organisations (such as the Office for Gene Technology Research) and consultation with a biosecurity engineer.

There is a need to expand current rapid diagnostic testing capabilities in SA, to provide a national facility for identifying and quantifying pathogens, parasites and marine pests in ballast water. This will provide potential for linkages between SARDI, the South Australian Museum and The University of Adelaide.

Synthesis

1. Capabilities & Resourcing

The Research Working Parties noted the need for leadership, coordination and communication across and within nodes to ensure that new and existing infrastructure and capability are utilised effectively. Along with effective leadership, the Research Working Parties identified as critical to MISA's success, the need to coordinate appointment processes and infrastructure development.

All four Research Working Parties noted the existence of significant overlaps in the capability requirements across nodes, and indicated that capabilities identified by several nodes should be afforded high priority. These synergies require new appointments or improved access to existing capabilities and include: marketing science, product development, fish health, plankton research, risk analysis, oceanographic and ecosystem modelling, and marine engineering (Table 1).

The Research Working Parties also agreed that appointments for accessing existing capability should be structured so as to maximise leverage from MISA funding and strengthen relationships between the major research, education and industry partners. Assessment of the costs and benefits of several potential models for "joint appointment" need to be assessed. There is also a need to identify other strategies that may assist in attracting "world's best" capability to the MISA positions.

The individual Research Working Parties did not specifically consider possible models for subdividing resources for the appointment of new positions among nodes. However, it was acknowledged from the outset that the starting position for resource sharing should be equal allocation among nodes (ie 25% of resources to each of the four nodes) with deviations from this starting point to be made on the basis of identifiable need and merit.

To assess the needs and merits of the four nodes, a meeting of the chairs of the nodes was convened. This discussion resulted in the establishment of the following principles and guidelines for the allocation of MISA funds for capability development in SA:

That 55% of resources should be allocated to the production nodes (Product Quality and Value-adding, Aquaculture Innovation) and 45% to the sustainability nodes (Ecosystem Services and Biosecurity).
That market, product, and value issues were priorities for Aquaculture Innovation and, hence, that 30% of MISA resources for capability development should allocated to the Product Quality and Value-adding node, with the remaining 25% of the funds allocated to the Aquaculture Innovation node.
That needs of the Biosecurity node would be enhanced by appointment or by accessing existing capabilities in the Ecosystem Services node and that the split between the 45% of resources allocated to the sustainability components of MISA should be 25% for Ecosystem Services and 20% for Biosecurity.
That all of the funding to the development of capability in the both Product Quality and Value-adding and Aquaculture Innovation nodes would provide direct benefits to the seafood industry (i.e. 55% of total funds, Table 2).
That approximately half of the funding to the Ecosystem Services and Biosecurity nodes would provide direct benefits to the seafood industry (i.e. 22.5% of total funds), with the remainder of funds providing benefits to a broader range of stakeholders including the ecotourism and transport industries, as well as conservation groups and the broader community (Table 2).

2. Infrastructure

The two major infrastructure developments that will occur through MISA (Table 3) are the extension of the Lincoln Marine Science Centre (LMSC) and the establishment of a biological containment facility at the South Australian Aquatic Science Centre (SAASC).

The developments at the LMSC must include laboratory facilities for seafood value-adding research, fish health, pilot-scale aquaculture trials, a small replicated tank system and environmental research.

Many individuals in the Research Working Parties expressed the view that the success of the LMSC development may depend on establishing suitable accommodation for visiting scientists in Port Lincoln.

The establishment of a biological containment facility at the SAASC is critical to the success of the Biosecurity node and fish health activities within the Aquaculture Innovation node. However, the level of containment that is required needs to be assessed in the light of likely research needs and the benefits and costs of PC2 and PC3 facilities.

The success of the Product Quality and Value-adding node will require, not only the establishment of laboratory facilities for value-adding research at the LMSC but also establishing a core laboratory for strategic seafood value-adding research and development in Adelaide. Regency TAFE, has significant infrastructure that is not utilised extensively by the seafood industry. This would be a suitable location for this facility. Existing MISA funds will not be sufficient to support the augmentation of this facility.

Infrastructure needs other than the developments at SAASC, LMSC and Regency TAFE should be further assessed after the new capabilities are appointed. It should be noted, however, that relatively few (if any) MISA infrastructure funds will remain after these new facilities are established. It seems likely that the additional infrastructure that will be needed to support MISA research, such as a modern, offshore research vessel, will need to be obtained from other sources.

Recommendations

Recommendations were put forward by Research Working Parties to the MISA steering committee and have been endorsed. The recommendations were that:

The capability priorities identified by the Research Working Parties for the four nodes listed in Table 1 be endorsed.
The following apportionment of resources be applied to the appointment of new capability: 30% for Product Quality and Value-adding, 25% for Aquaculture Innovation, 25% for Ecosystem Services and 20% for Biosecurity.
Laboratory facilities for seafood value-adding research, fish health, pilot-scale aquaculture trials (including a small replicated tank system) and environmental research, be included in the development of the Lincoln Marine Science Centre.
An assessment be undertaken of the relative benefits and costs of PC2 versus PC3 facilities to support the development of a suitable biological containment facility at the SAASC.
The development of a seafood value-adding research and development laboratory at Regency TAFE through augmentation of existing infrastructure be considered.
The Lincoln Marine Science Centre development makes provision for the establishment of suitable accommodation for visiting scientists.
There is a need to develop a position description to provide for effective leadership, coordination and communication of appointment processes and infrastructure development through MISA.

Table 1. Summary of priority capability requirements for MISA's four nodes

Product Quality& Value Adding	Aquaculture	Ecosystem Services	Biosecurity
Capabilities Needed
Marketing scientists	Fish health	Physical oceanography (shelf modelling)	Spatial risk analysis / invasion dynamics
Market analyst	Genetics and biotechnology	Physical oceanography (shelf observational)	Integrative modelling
Quality systems developer and HACCP validation expertise	Nutrition, feeds, feeding, and feed technology	Biological oceanography	Ecology/eco-physiology
Supply logistics expertise	Reproduction, growth & new industry development (new species)	Marine chemistry (science and technical)	Marine micro-algal systematics and taxonomy
Traceability IT expertise	Systems development and modelling	Sedimentology	Invertebrate taxonomy
Food processing scientist(s)	Economist	Seabird ecology	Biological control
Packaging engineer		Shark biology/ecology	Fish veterinary sciences
Seafood technologist(s)/ engineer(s)		Cetaceans	Genetics - mitigation and eradication
Seafood microbiologist(s)		Marine botany – algae taxonomy	Scientific leadership communications/ management
Seafood biochemist/ physiologist		Marine botany – seagrass ecology	Operational and marine engineering capability
		Biogeochemist
		Trophodynamic/ ecological modelling
		Marine collections manager
		Ecological risk modelling
		Phytoplankton
		Zooplankton

Table 2. Relative proportion of funding to be allocated to MISA research nodes and the nett benefits to the seafood industry and other stakeholders.

	Product Quality and Value-adding	Aquaculture Innovation	Ecosystem Services	Biosecurity	Total
Seafood Industry as beneficiary	30%	25%	12.5%	10%	77.5%
Other beneficiaries	0%	0%	12.5%	10%	22.5%
Total	30%	25%	25%	20%	100%

Table 3: Summary of Infrastructure requirements for MISA's four nodes

Product Quality& Value Adding	Aquaculture	Ecosystem Services	Biosecurity
Infrastructure Needed
Core laboratory at Regency TAFE	Portable infrastructure at SAASC & LMSC for pilot trials on commercial farms	Modern offshore research vessel	Physical Containment (PC3/2) at SAASC
Seafood science laboratory (LMSC)	Small replicated tank system in Port Lincoln.	Ocean sensing equipment	Expansion of SASQAP to provide research capacity
	Nursery facilities at SAASC	Diver training	Rapid diagnostic testing capability
	Fish health laboratories in Adelaide & Port Lincoln.		Ballast water research at AWQC
	Biological containment facility at SAASC.
	Further development and utilisation of recirculation facilities at SAASC & LMSC for teaching at Universities
	Suitable accommodation at Port Lincoln.

Formulating MISA - Acknowledgements to participants

(Alphabetical order)

Dr Nic Bax
Mr Vaughn Bollen
Mr James Bushell (Executive Officer)
Mr Leon Byass
Mr Grant Carnie
Dr John Carragher
Professor Anthony Cheshire
Mr Steven Clarke
Dr Sean Connell
Mr Graham Dickson
Mr John Dunbar
Mr Roger Edwards
Professor Peter Fairweather
Professor Howard Fallowfield
Mr Colin Freeman
Dr Bronwyn Gillanders
Dr Simon Goldsworthy
Mr Bruce Green
Mr Rod Grove-Jones
Mr Martin Hernen
Mr Richard Heyneman
Professor Bob Hill
Mr Wayne Hutchinson
Mr John Jefferson
Mr Brian Jeffriess
Dr Colin Johnston
Mr Mark Kerr
Mr Andrew Kravinskis
Dr Rob Lewis
Dr Stephen Madigan
Dr Graham Mair
Professor Chris Marlin
Mr Vic Neverauskas
Mr Ian Nightingale
Mr Bob Pennington
Dr Andrew Pointon
Mr Sean Reardon
Mr Martin Ross
Dr Kathy Schuller
Mr Martin Smallridge
Mr Mike Stockdale
Dr Simon Stone
Dr Jason Tanner
Dr Connor Thomas
Dr Tim Ward
Dr Grant Westphalen
Dr Ian Whittington
Mr Will Zacharin
Mr Garry Zippel

Source: Current database - please pass on names of people who should be acknowledged for the next reprint.