Kelp forests are declining due to marine heatwaves and over grazing by urchins.

This is a collaborative kelp restoration project to increase carbon capture by replanting kelp forests on the east coast of Australia. This project will be an information sharing project between Sea Health Kelp Lab, with skills and experience in growing kelp seedlings and Joonga Aboriginal Land and Sea Corporation, with thousands of years of traditional knowledge as well as expertise and experience in urchin removal. Joonga Aboriginal Land and Water Corporation has trained scientific divers and a permit to harvest sea urchins. The Joonga team will remove/cull urchins. Sea Health Kelp Lab has 8 years of expertise growing our local native species of kelp (Ecklonia radiata) . The small kelp sporophytes (seedlings) will be out planted and monitored as urchins are removed. Once the kelp is re-established, the amount of culling needed will decrease and another site can be restored.