Reverting coastal acid sulfate soils to wetlands: Biogeochemical processes and environmental benefits. Reverting acid sulfate soils to wetlands offers an economically viable alternative management opportunity to lock up acidity, metals and nutrients to protect our rivers and estuaries. This study will re-establish a salt water and fresh water wetland in a severely degraded acid sulfate soil area and monitor the biogeochemistry to assess how well wetlands can reduce acid sulfate soil impacts. T ....Reverting coastal acid sulfate soils to wetlands: Biogeochemical processes and environmental benefits. Reverting acid sulfate soils to wetlands offers an economically viable alternative management opportunity to lock up acidity, metals and nutrients to protect our rivers and estuaries. This study will re-establish a salt water and fresh water wetland in a severely degraded acid sulfate soil area and monitor the biogeochemistry to assess how well wetlands can reduce acid sulfate soil impacts. The systematic and detailed investigation being proposed will greatly advance the national and international understanding of how acid sulfate soils can be managed to protect our precious coastal floodplain soils and water resources.Read moreRead less
New Techniques for Artificial Neural Network Modelling in Hydrology. In recent years, artificial neural networks (ANNs) have demonstrated the potential to provide improved predictions when compared with the more traditional hydrological modelling techniques in a number of areas. These include the prediction of rainfall, streamflow and water quality parameters. However, one of the major difficulties associated with the application of ANNs is the lack of an established methodology for their design ....New Techniques for Artificial Neural Network Modelling in Hydrology. In recent years, artificial neural networks (ANNs) have demonstrated the potential to provide improved predictions when compared with the more traditional hydrological modelling techniques in a number of areas. These include the prediction of rainfall, streamflow and water quality parameters. However, one of the major difficulties associated with the application of ANNs is the lack of an established methodology for their design and implementation. This research will develop new methods for constructing ANN models and test them on a number of case studies so that the full potential and genuine utility of ANNs for solving hydrological problems can be assessed.Read moreRead less
Ecohydrological feedbacks between vegetation and soil in natural and engineered landforms in arid Australia. We address 'An Environmentally Sustainable Australia'. 1. Water is the binding factor in our project, defining vegetation, geomorphology and hydrology. 2. Rehabilitation is an integral part of the mining business. Our project is instrumental in developing ecological engineering approaches to rehabilitation. 3. Ultimate goal of the project is to develop stable landforms, protecting underly ....Ecohydrological feedbacks between vegetation and soil in natural and engineered landforms in arid Australia. We address 'An Environmentally Sustainable Australia'. 1. Water is the binding factor in our project, defining vegetation, geomorphology and hydrology. 2. Rehabilitation is an integral part of the mining business. Our project is instrumental in developing ecological engineering approaches to rehabilitation. 3. Ultimate goal of the project is to develop stable landforms, protecting underlying rock. 4. We investigate locally adapted native plant species for use in arid-zone land rehabilitation, to preserve biodiversity. 5. The area of study is exposed to long droughts and cyclonic rainfall. Understanding the resilience of the landscape will provide pivotal insight into the impact and potential adaptive response to climate variability.Read moreRead less
Integrated Water Management in the Lower Richmond Catchment. Water quality in Richmond River estuary, NSW, is of critical concern to fishing, aquaculture, tourism and recreation industries. Upland horticulture on the Alstonville Plateau and drained acid sulfate soils in lowland floodplains discharge nutrient-rich, acidic water to the estuary. Previous studies have treated floodplains, upland and estuary separately. This study will develop an integrated catchment approach to water management in t ....Integrated Water Management in the Lower Richmond Catchment. Water quality in Richmond River estuary, NSW, is of critical concern to fishing, aquaculture, tourism and recreation industries. Upland horticulture on the Alstonville Plateau and drained acid sulfate soils in lowland floodplains discharge nutrient-rich, acidic water to the estuary. Previous studies have treated floodplains, upland and estuary separately. This study will develop an integrated catchment approach to water management in the Lower Richmond by treating surface water and groundwater as a single resource. The whole-of-system approach will help mitigate socio-economic and environment impacts of nutrient-rich and acidic drainage waters. It will be transferable to other "hot spots" in Australia.Read moreRead less
Do terrestrial processes intensify Australian droughts ? Australia's agricultural productivity is strongly affected by climate, climate variability and climate change. Recent climate changes in Western Australia forced adaptation strategies costing $500 million while the anomalously intense 2002 Murray-Darling Basin drought significantly affected agriculture. Any further intensification of droughts would affect Australia's rural economy. This proposal will assess the role of terrestrial processe ....Do terrestrial processes intensify Australian droughts ? Australia's agricultural productivity is strongly affected by climate, climate variability and climate change. Recent climate changes in Western Australia forced adaptation strategies costing $500 million while the anomalously intense 2002 Murray-Darling Basin drought significantly affected agriculture. Any further intensification of droughts would affect Australia's rural economy. This proposal will assess the role of terrestrial processes, linked to increasing CO2, in causing the drought intensification and declines in rainfall. This will provide knowledge that will guide the development of future environmental management strategies.Read moreRead less
Could porous pavements be a part of the urban water solution? With water demand in Australia approaching, and sometimes exceeding, limits of sustainability, there is a pressing need to find alternative water sources. At the same time, urban stormwater pollution remains a major environmental threat. These problems are particularly difficult in urban areas, due to space constraints. This project will test and refine porous pavement technology, which could help solve the 'urban water problem'. R ....Could porous pavements be a part of the urban water solution? With water demand in Australia approaching, and sometimes exceeding, limits of sustainability, there is a pressing need to find alternative water sources. At the same time, urban stormwater pollution remains a major environmental threat. These problems are particularly difficult in urban areas, due to space constraints. This project will test and refine porous pavement technology, which could help solve the 'urban water problem'. Replacing impervious areas with porous pavements will allow urban stormwater to be treated and harvested for re-use. Waterways will be protected from pollution, and the vast quantity of urban stormwater generated (similar to the total reticulated water supplied in Australia) can be harvested to sustain cities.Read moreRead less
Urban salinity in Kalgoorlie-Boulder: Causes, extent and treatment through revegetation - a pilot study for Australian rural towns. The National Land and Water Resources Audit suggests that salinity will threaten 200 towns in Australia by 2050. The City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder has a salinity problem caused by shallow, saline groundwater. This project will: (a) document and map the extent and causes of salinity, (b) determine whether salinity can be controlled through improved surface drainage an ....Urban salinity in Kalgoorlie-Boulder: Causes, extent and treatment through revegetation - a pilot study for Australian rural towns. The National Land and Water Resources Audit suggests that salinity will threaten 200 towns in Australia by 2050. The City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder has a salinity problem caused by shallow, saline groundwater. This project will: (a) document and map the extent and causes of salinity, (b) determine whether salinity can be controlled through improved surface drainage and revegetation, and (c) conduct adaptation trials of ornamental trees and shrubs for tolerance to salt, waterlogging and inundation. The work will be conducted in partnership with the City Council and local Urban Landcare Group. Outcomes will be disseminated through WA's Rural Towns Program, national conferences and scientific papers.Read moreRead less
Characterizing the hydrological cycle using water isotopes, land-surface models and satellite observations. Water is our most precious natural resource. In Australia, it is also our most precarious. The hydrological cycle describes the movement of water between the ocean, atmosphere and land. Understanding the effect and impact that a changing climate might have on the hydrological cycle is critical to securing Australia's water resources. To address these challenges, we must improve our basic u ....Characterizing the hydrological cycle using water isotopes, land-surface models and satellite observations. Water is our most precious natural resource. In Australia, it is also our most precarious. The hydrological cycle describes the movement of water between the ocean, atmosphere and land. Understanding the effect and impact that a changing climate might have on the hydrological cycle is critical to securing Australia's water resources. To address these challenges, we must improve our basic understanding of the water exchange processes within the Earth system. Our project will exploit new technology in ground and space based observation, combined with advanced modeling and measurement capabilities, to develop an improved understanding and characterization of Australian hydrological cycles and aid in assessing climate change related impacts. Read moreRead less
Development of Innovative Landform and Closure Designs for Potentially Contaminating Surface Waste Rock Dumps. In Australia, the conventional rehabilitation of mine sites is predicated on the perceived expectation of sparse grazing post-mining. This typically involves flattening the mined landform, topsoiling the surface, and planting pasture grasses, and in some cases has become enshrined in legislation. In Australia's dry climate, grazing is often not a sustainable land use. The aims of the ....Development of Innovative Landform and Closure Designs for Potentially Contaminating Surface Waste Rock Dumps. In Australia, the conventional rehabilitation of mine sites is predicated on the perceived expectation of sparse grazing post-mining. This typically involves flattening the mined landform, topsoiling the surface, and planting pasture grasses, and in some cases has become enshrined in legislation. In Australia's dry climate, grazing is often not a sustainable land use. The aims of the project are to prove that alternative landform design and surface treatment strategies for potentially contaminating surface waste rock dumps are more effective and sustainable than the conventional approach, and through reduced earthworks and the use of waste materials will achieve substantial cost savings.Read moreRead less
A Bayesian Hierarchical Approach for Simulating Multi-time Scale Hydrological Variability for Water Resource Planning. Assessments of future drought risks are dependent on simulations of hydrological inputs provided by stochastic models. The current models are limited to simulating variability at a single time scale using only local observed hydrological data. This data has only limited information on the long-term climate variability which is the cause of long-term severe droughts. The proposed ....A Bayesian Hierarchical Approach for Simulating Multi-time Scale Hydrological Variability for Water Resource Planning. Assessments of future drought risks are dependent on simulations of hydrological inputs provided by stochastic models. The current models are limited to simulating variability at a single time scale using only local observed hydrological data. This data has only limited information on the long-term climate variability which is the cause of long-term severe droughts. The proposed research will develop a new Bayesian framework for simulating multi-time scale variability in hydrological data. This will enable the dynamic processes which simulate long-term variability to be identified using auxiliary information in an uncertainty framework. This will provide water resource planners with more accurate assessments of long-term drought risks.
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