How we helped
This project intended to expand the capacity of the existing Papua New Guinea Liquefied Natural Gas Plant (LNG plant).
Mangrove communities exist in the intertidal area between the onshore facilities, including the LNG plant, and facilities in the marine environment, including the gas pipeline and LNG plant jetty.
Trinity undertook ongoing assessments of the mangrove communities between 2011 and 2023 to inform the project environmental impact statement in 2011, and then with subsequent monitoring during construction and operation of the project.
The key aspects of the monitoring program were to determine past and present mangrove communities, and their health status, to determine if operations affected the communities over time. And, if impacts were detected, to provide high-level solutions to mitigate potential issues.
More about our monitoring
We used both in situ mangrove monitoring and water quality techniques to determine mangrove community composition, as well as hydrological pathways of tides and wastewater discharge from plant activities. Information gathered from ground surveys was used to produce high-quality management solutions, leveraging satellite and aerial photogrammetry and Geographical Information Systems (GIS).
Part of our technical analysis involved the use of tracer dyes to determine wastewater pathways downstream of the plant. Fluorescent dye was used to track the water discharge using drone photogrammetry.
Gathering data using a weight-of-evidence approach enabled Trinity to paint a long-term picture of the mangrove communities and any main drivers for changes in those communities over time. The techniques used included in-situ mangrove surveys, water quality analysis, remote sensing using LIDAR point cloud data, sediment analysis, groundwater analysis and the use of fluorescent tracers to produce high-quality maps.
This information was used to deliver a management solution on a local and regional scale within the Papua New Guinea industry sector.
