Bruce Hodgson

Biography

Dr Hodgson is an aquatic ecologist with over 20 years’ experience in design, project managing and assessing large water quality monitoring programs in freshwater and estuarine systems over long time frames. From 1976 to 2018 these were for power related infrastructure projects. This gave a detailed understanding of estuarine ecological processes including the thermal tolerance of seagrass and responses to effects of catchment (forested, rural, urban and industrial) inputs of nutrients and silt on the inshore aquatic plants of macroalgae and benthos and phytoplankton. Studies undertaken also include assessments of the effects of catchment and point source inputs of trace metals and metaloids on both inshore and deep waters of freshwater storages and coastal lagoons.

Research

Recent studies have been on fish catch relationships with areas of seagrass, mangroves and saltmarsh as proxies for biological production of estuaries. This led to develop relationships for fish catch with biological production in coastal and shelf areas for ecosystem-based fishery management. He has produced over 90 reports, scientific papers and chapters in books as well as water quality, trace metal and aquatic life chapters in EISs and EAs.