NATIONAL ALGAL BLOOM RESEARCH HUB OPENS IN ADELAIDE

Australia's first dedicated national hub for algal bloom research has officially opened in Adelaide.

The three-point-two million dollar Office for Algal Bloom Research has been established within the South Australian Research and Development Institute, forming part of a broader 37 million dollar investment by the Federal and South Australian Governments.

The new centre will bring together oceanographers, data modellers and phytoplankton specialists to improve understanding of how harmful algal blooms form, spread and affect marine environments.

Researchers will focus on developing better monitoring, forecasting and response tools aimed at protecting ecosystems, coastal communities and industries that rely on healthy marine environments.

The office builds on momentum generated by this month's Algal Bloom Research Symposium in Adelaide, which attracted more than 200 researchers, industry representatives and government officials from Australia and overseas.

The hub forms part of the governments' wider 162-and-a-half million dollar response package following South Australia's recent harmful algal bloom event.