Directional wave buoy deployed off Geraldton’s coast to better inform skippers and collect valuable data

A new directional wave buoy has been launched off the coast of Geraldton to give fishers and boaters better access to information on ocean conditions. The buoy, which was deployed by the Department of Transport (DoT), will record the height and direction of waves. Its data will be used in improving infrastructure and the future development of the coast. Funding was provided by the State Government’s CoastWA initiative. DoT oceanographic services manager Tony Lamberto said skippers should keep an eye out for it. “No fishing is allowed within 100 metres of the buoy due to the risk of damage that could jeopardise the collection of wave data,” Mr Lamberto said. “The data collected by the buoy will provide greater insight to the four known coastal erosion hotspots under active management along the Geraldton coast.” The buoy is about 14 nautical miles southwest of the Point Moore lighthouse in Geraldton and is the eighth along the State’s coast after the first was installed in 2004.