Using statistics, researchers can use observation data of whale numbers to predict how many whales are not seen, giving a better estimation of the overall population. Counting whales, future water availability and preventing marine pests entering Australian waters will be some of the topics discussed today when Australia's leading environmental statisticians meet in Melbourne as part of the Australian Statistical Conference. El-Shaarawi from Canada's National Water Research Institute presents his work on issues in the development of water quality indices. ...