Tiny Engineers Help Marine Ecosystem

102.5 ABC Perth

Marine Biology

Wednesday, 8 July 2026, 6:14 pm

Mussels attach to ropes and help seaweed grow.

Millions of tiny marine engineers work in Cockburn Sound.

A project uses mussels to restore the sound's health.

Glenn Dibbin worked in Cockburn Sound's mussel farming for nearly 40 years.

Glenn Dibbin was part of the mussel farming industry.

The industry had many ups and downs, and much of the equipment was left unused.

Now, some of that equipment is being used for a new purpose.

The blue mussel is native to Cockburn Sound.

The Byssal project was started by Glenn Dibbin and others.

Glenn Dibbin says the ropes are like artificial reefs but cheaper.

Mussels are nature's water filters.

Mussels filter water and make it clearer.

An adult mussel can filter up to three liters of water per hour.

When there are many mussels, they can filter a lot of water.

The project is named after the threads mussels use to attach to things.

Most of the seagrass in Cockburn Sound has been lost.

Seagrass is important for the environment and animals.

The mussel farm is near a jetty.

Murky water is bad for seagrass.

Mussels help clean the water so seagrass can grow.

Mussels can filter a lot of water.

Mussel farms help many animals.

The Byssal project is simple and uses ropes and buoys.

Baby mussels attach to the ropes and grow.

The team has to thin out the mussels so the ropes don't break.

As the mussels grow, they help create a complex ecosystem.

Many animals live among the mussels and seaweed.

The area becomes a nursery for many animals.

The growing mussels attract many visitors.

Feeding the food web

Cockburn Sound is home to many pink snapper.

The snapper used to eat the mussels and hurt the farming business.

Now, the snapper are part of the project's success.

Glenn Dibbin hopes the snapper will come and eat the mussels.

The mussel ropes are a food source for many fish.

The snapper used to eat a lot of mussels at night.

Now, the snapper help the project.

The mussel ropes attract many marine animals.

Recfishwest's chief executive, Andrew Rowland, says the project can help fishing.

The project helps the environment and fish stocks.

Andrew Rowland says the community is important for the project's success.

The community must support the project for it to work.

The next step is to make the project bigger.

They want to produce a thousand tons of mussels per year.

The ropes provide a place for baby mussels to attach.

Expanding restoration through 'greenwalling'

The Byssal project helps establish mussels in other places.

They move mussels from the ropes to rock walls.

The first round of mussel reseeding has been done.

The project is a nature-based solution for sustainable port operations.

Ports can use their infrastructure to help the environment.

The project can be a model for other ports.

Initiatives like Byssal help build environmental resilience.

The marine ecosystems can respond better to shocks.

Everyone should look for solutions like Byssal.

Wednesday, 8 July 2026, 6:14 pm

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