Pia Winberg

Director

Room: Bld. 300 Shoalhaven Campus

Phone: +61 2 4229 1522 (x7522)

pia@uow.edu.au

Lab: Bld. 304 Shoalhaven Campus

Fax: 4229 1521

Research Interests

Pia Winberg is currently the Director of the Shoalhaven Marine and Freshwater Centre at the University of Wollongong. Pia’s main research interest and strategic focus at this new research Centre is in sustainable marine food production systems, integrated with the coastal and marine environment. Pia has developed pilot-scale, integrated, marine aquaculture systems with private industry, conducts research and development in collaboration with the aquaculture industries in three states, and has been a key driver of Seaweeds Australia, a new national network of research and industry partners to coordinate and drive the development of vertically integrated seaweed industries in Australia. Pia believes that marine farming opportunities in the ocean, if sensitiviely and ecologically incorporated into the ecosystem, are a necessary way forward to achieving sustainable food production technology for the future. A core aspect of this is the potential for seaweed cultivation for a range of markets ranging from food, health and medical products, agricultural and aquaculture applications and, maybe one day, biofuels.

Representative Publications

Winberg, P (2011) Scaling up for New Opportunities in the Practical Use of Algae (Applied Phycology). Technical Report. RIRDC Publication No. 11/174 RIRDC Project No. PRJ-007249. Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC). 25p.

Winberg, P. C., DeMestre, C., Willis, S. (2011) Evaluating Microdictyon umbilicatum bloom biomass as an agricultural compost conditioner for native and commercial plants. Report to Shoalhaven City Council (commercial).

Winberg, P.C., Skropeta, D., Ullrich, A. 2011. Seaweed cultivation pilot trials – towards culture systems and marketable products. Australian Government Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC Publication No. 10/184. PRJ - 000162). ISBN 978-1-74254-151-8  (hardcopy) ISSN 1440-6845 (online).

Kirkendale, L., Robertson-Anderson, D., Winberg, P. C. 2010. Review on the use and production of algae and manufactured diets as feed for sea-based abalone aquaculture in Victoria. Report to Fisheries Victoria Department of Primary Industries (commercial).

Heath, T. & Winberg, P. C. 2010. Impacts of Tidal Barriers on the Ecology of Flood Mitigation Drain Fish Assemblages. Report to Southern Rivers Catchment Management Authority (in press)
Joyce, A., Rubio, A., Winberg, P.C. 2010. Environmental and Socio-Economic Considerations for Aquaculture in Jervis Bay, NSW. FRDC Report Project 2009/328.11. ISBN 978-1-74128-186-6 (hardcopy) 978-1-74128-187-3 (online).

Winberg, P.C., Ghosh, D., Tapsell, L. 2009. Seaweed Culture in Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture: Nutritional Benefits and Systems for Australia. A report for the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. Publication no: 09-005 Pages: 39. https://rirdc.infoservices.com.au/items/09-005. ISBN 1 74151 811 3

Winberg, P.C. 2008 . Using Algae in the 21st Century - novel opportunities in a changing world. A report from the 11th International Conference on Applied Phycology for for the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. Publication no: 08-159 Pages: 19. https://rirdc.infoservices.com.au/items/08-159.

Winberg, P. C. 2008. Confronting the challenges of tidal flat conservation: spatial patterns and human impacts in a Marine Protected Area in southern NSW, Australia. 2008. PhD thesis, Institute for Conservation Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong.

Winberg, P. C., Lynch, T. P., Murray, A., Jones, A. R., Davis, A. R. 2007. "The importance of spatial scale for the conservation of tidal flat macrobenthos: An example from New South Wales, Australia." Biological Conservation.

Current Students

2011

Will Mulvaney (PhD candidate)

Offshore abalone farming development

Andrew Lawrence (Marine Science Honours)
Determining conditions for optimal gamete or spore release and settlement across Ulva spp.

Andrew Leach (Marine Science Honours)
Testing the efficacy of using heated seawater for managing marine pests in ships’ sea chests

Janice Mccauley (Biotech Honours)
The relative effects of phylogeny and environmental conditioning on the functional molecules and metabolite composition of Ulva spp.

Jessica Rugge (MSc candidate)
Biodiversity of subtidal reefs in Marine Protected Areas

2010

Will Mulvaney (BSc Honours)
A comparison of commercial formulated and macro-algae diets on the performance and growth rate of a hybrid species of abalone (Haliotis rubra x Haliotis laevigata)

Lechelle Van Breda (BSc Honours)
Australian Ulva species: A morphological, molecular and ecological comparison

Rachelle O’Neill (International BSc Honours)
A preliminary study assessing sub-lethal environmental water quality parameters on Sydney Rock Oyster (Saccostrea glomerata) performance in the Shoalhaven and Crookhaven River systems, NSW, Australia.

Tristan New (Marine Science Honours)
Assessing the Vagile Fauna Associated with Seagrass Habitats in Jervis Bay: Baited Remote Underwater Video Observations.

2009

Tom Heath (Marine Science Honours)
Impacts of Tidal Barriers on the Ecology of Flood Mitigation Drain Fish Assemblages

2008

Alex Ullrich (BSc Honours)
Nutrient Uptake by Co-occurring Intertidal Macroalgal Species: Is it Complementary?

Future Topics for Students

Seaweed cultivation and propagation for health, nutritional and other applications:
- Species selection
- Propagation
- Environmental conditioning
- Biochemistry (Co-supervisor Danielle Skropeta)
- Nutritional applications (co-supervisors at IHMRI)
- Aquaculture feed applications
- Agricultural applications
- Health applications (co-supervisors at IHMRI)

Integrated Multi-trophic Aquaculture Systems (IMTA) for Australia
- Shellfish and macroalgae

Climate change and the oyster industry

- How has the genetic population of oysters been influenced by translocation practices? (Co-supervisor Lisa Kirkendale)
- Morphological and genetic comparisons between tropical and temperate species of the Saccostrea genus. (Co-supervisor Lisa Kirkendale)
- Is there evidence for climate change effects on the geographical range of tropical species? (Co-supervisor Lisa Kirkendale)
- How will oyster food sources be impacted by climate change? (Co-supervisor Ana Rubio)
- Diatoms and particulate organic matter: what is the preferred food source of Sydney Rock Oysters vs. Pacific Oysters? (Co-supervisor Ana Rubio)

Abbreviated CV

2008 - curr Director, Shoalhaven Marine and Freshwater Centre, University of Wollongong Shoalhaven Campus, Executive Officer Seaweeds Australia.
2008 Director Sustainable Seafood – IMTA aquaculture research and development company
2006 - 2008 Marine Research Officer Jervis Bay Marine Park, NSW Marine Park Authority.
2002 - 2008 PhD - Institute for Conservation Biology, University of Wollongong.
2004 – 2006 Rockpool Theatre – founded marine educational puppet show for children
2001 Environmental Monitoring Officer at Shoalhaven City Council
1999 Consultant Environmental Scientist at Australian Water Technologies (AWT) Environmental Science and Technology
1998 Bachelor of Science (1st class Hons) in marine ecology - Stockholm University, Sweden. Research: Marine and Systems Ecology. Thesis: Denitrification and nutrient dynamics in a closed recycling shrimp farming system in Sri Lanka.