A Fundamental Understanding of Methane Driven Denitrification. Eutrophication in waterways due to the presence of nutrients including nitrogen is a well-recognised environmental problem. Moreton Bay, for example, used to receive 3,300 tons of nitrogen each year from point sources. Stringent nitrogen discharge limits have therefore been imposed on most wastewater treatment systems across Australia. Nitrogen removal from wastewater is commonly accomplished in a biological way involving the use of ....A Fundamental Understanding of Methane Driven Denitrification. Eutrophication in waterways due to the presence of nutrients including nitrogen is a well-recognised environmental problem. Moreton Bay, for example, used to receive 3,300 tons of nitrogen each year from point sources. Stringent nitrogen discharge limits have therefore been imposed on most wastewater treatment systems across Australia. Nitrogen removal from wastewater is commonly accomplished in a biological way involving the use of bacteria. The project aims to investigate a particular bacterial community, which is able to perform nitrogen removal from wastewater with methane as a renewable carbon source. The project will therefore lead to more sustainable wastewater treatment systems.Read moreRead less
Multiphase flow and transport in complex coastal wetland systems. Salt marshes play an essential role in maintaining Australia's coastal bio-diversity. They also function as barriers to fluxes of terrestrial pollutants to our coastal sea. Australia has a large number of salt marshes listed by the Ramsar Convention as coastal wetlands of international importance but many of them are subject to loss and degradation due to competing land uses. This project, examining in detail the flow and transpor ....Multiphase flow and transport in complex coastal wetland systems. Salt marshes play an essential role in maintaining Australia's coastal bio-diversity. They also function as barriers to fluxes of terrestrial pollutants to our coastal sea. Australia has a large number of salt marshes listed by the Ramsar Convention as coastal wetlands of international importance but many of them are subject to loss and degradation due to competing land uses. This project, examining in detail the flow and transport processes in marsh soils, will lead to (1) better understanding of the marsh's response to anthropogenic stress; and (2) improvement of strategies and methods for marsh wetland preservation and restoration.Read moreRead less
Research and development of devices to improve the quality of stormwater by removal of gross pollutants such as soil, litter and sediment. Oil,litter and sediment are serious pollutants in stormwater which go hand in hand with human and industrial activity. An outcome of this research will be to develop a device capable of removing such gross pollutants from stormwater at higher efficiencies than that currently commercially available. Vital wetland resources such as Moreton Bay near Brisbane, a ....Research and development of devices to improve the quality of stormwater by removal of gross pollutants such as soil, litter and sediment. Oil,litter and sediment are serious pollutants in stormwater which go hand in hand with human and industrial activity. An outcome of this research will be to develop a device capable of removing such gross pollutants from stormwater at higher efficiencies than that currently commercially available. Vital wetland resources such as Moreton Bay near Brisbane, a wetland of international significance that contributes around $400 million to the local economy,are under threat from polluted stormwater. Similar problems are occuring right around the entire coast of Australia and also in some inland waterways.Read moreRead less
Adaptation of Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) to Climate Change, Changing Transport Patterns and Urban Form. This research will (a) provide guidance on future adaptations of stormwater quality infrastructure, (b) provide better scientific understanding of pollutant movements in urban systems and (c) provide methodology to 'future proof' infrastructure design against the pressures of climate change and urban population growth. Project outputs will (a) enable water-sensitive urban designs to b ....Adaptation of Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) to Climate Change, Changing Transport Patterns and Urban Form. This research will (a) provide guidance on future adaptations of stormwater quality infrastructure, (b) provide better scientific understanding of pollutant movements in urban systems and (c) provide methodology to 'future proof' infrastructure design against the pressures of climate change and urban population growth. Project outputs will (a) enable water-sensitive urban designs to be applied reliably and (b) minimise the cost of re-building assets before the end of their design life due to climate change. The ultimate benefit is the reduction in water pollution from roadways leading to improved human and ecosystem well-being of urban communities.Read moreRead less
Understanding Fugitive Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Wastewater Systems for Reliable Accounting and Effective Mitigation. Climate change caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is one of the most serious challenges facing mankind. Substantial reductions in emissions must be achieved, with responsibility shared by all industrial sectors. Wastewater systems contribute to GHG emission through not only energy consumption but also direct emissions of fugitive GHG such as methane and nitrous oxide. T ....Understanding Fugitive Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Wastewater Systems for Reliable Accounting and Effective Mitigation. Climate change caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is one of the most serious challenges facing mankind. Substantial reductions in emissions must be achieved, with responsibility shared by all industrial sectors. Wastewater systems contribute to GHG emission through not only energy consumption but also direct emissions of fugitive GHG such as methane and nitrous oxide. This project aims to deliver the urgently needed knowledge and technology support to the Australian wastewater industry to achieve reductions in fugitive emissions. The research will also provide support to the greenhouse office via more reliable estimation of such emissions.Read moreRead less
Cost effective in-line filtration system to improve water quality in rainwater tanks. This research will provide the basis for developing an affordable and innovative water treatment solution for domestic rainwater collection systems. The main elements of this research are:
. Provision of a cost -effective submerged membrane operated under gravity to provide water of potable standard.
. Establishing an adaptive membrane cleaning system using the concept of volume control.
. Characterisati ....Cost effective in-line filtration system to improve water quality in rainwater tanks. This research will provide the basis for developing an affordable and innovative water treatment solution for domestic rainwater collection systems. The main elements of this research are:
. Provision of a cost -effective submerged membrane operated under gravity to provide water of potable standard.
. Establishing an adaptive membrane cleaning system using the concept of volume control.
. Characterisation protocol of membrane fouling and stored rain water.
. Sizing of a permeate tank for storing treated water through demand management.
This project will increase the use of rainwater tanks, helping available water resources to go further.Read moreRead less
The application of inverse methods for resolving velocity, density and mixing fields in lakes and estuaries. The two techniques to be developed and tested here will allow the measurement of the 3D density and velocity fields in lakes and estuaries using only simple instruments and with minimum lake obstruction. Coupled with a Real Time Management System, these techniques can be used to validate numerical models and to simulate scenarios, such as future flood events, which have the potential fo ....The application of inverse methods for resolving velocity, density and mixing fields in lakes and estuaries. The two techniques to be developed and tested here will allow the measurement of the 3D density and velocity fields in lakes and estuaries using only simple instruments and with minimum lake obstruction. Coupled with a Real Time Management System, these techniques can be used to validate numerical models and to simulate scenarios, such as future flood events, which have the potential for contamination of water quality. The output from these simulations is then used, again in real time, to evaluate the new Index of Sustainable Functionality of the water body. When augmented with the results from this research we would have a tool that would help manage lakes and reservoirs to optimize the water quality, while maintaining the supply.Read moreRead less
Phytocapping for sustainable waste containment systems and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and odour from waste disposal sites. Landfills remain the main method of waste disposal in Australia and are a major source of groundwater contamination and greenhouse and odour emissions. This national research program will establish, under a wide range of Australian conditions, whether landfill phytocaps can meet regulatory performance criteria for water infiltration into and gas emissions from clo ....Phytocapping for sustainable waste containment systems and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and odour from waste disposal sites. Landfills remain the main method of waste disposal in Australia and are a major source of groundwater contamination and greenhouse and odour emissions. This national research program will establish, under a wide range of Australian conditions, whether landfill phytocaps can meet regulatory performance criteria for water infiltration into and gas emissions from closed landfills more effectively, efficiently and sustainably than conventional capping systems. The project will produce (a) a scientific basis for site owners and regulators to agree on the performance and cost of conventional and phyto cover technologies, (b) a manual for the design and permitting of alternative covers and (c)improved scientific prediction of cover performance.Read moreRead less
Riparian rehabilitation and ecohydraulics: interactions between flow, sediment, vegetation and bank erosion in longstem tubestock rehabilitation works. Riparian lands are important for maintaining viable ecosystems, improving water quality and reducing sediment yields in rivers and streams. Research in Australia has shown that streambank erosion is the most significant processes in the continuing physical and ecological degradation of riparian zones. The recently developed longstem tubestock sys ....Riparian rehabilitation and ecohydraulics: interactions between flow, sediment, vegetation and bank erosion in longstem tubestock rehabilitation works. Riparian lands are important for maintaining viable ecosystems, improving water quality and reducing sediment yields in rivers and streams. Research in Australia has shown that streambank erosion is the most significant processes in the continuing physical and ecological degradation of riparian zones. The recently developed longstem tubestock system has shown promise in controlling streambank erosion using native vegetation. However, rehabilitation practices rely on ad-hoc recipes without a thorough scientific understanding of near-bank processes. This research will fill this gap by combining field and laboratory experiments on tubestock plantings in order to develop guidelines and predictive tools for riparian zone management.Read moreRead less
Ecological renovation of constructed wetlands: changing state from algae to macrophyte dominated systems. Mars Confectionary's constructed wastewater treatment wetlands no longer purify its waste waters. Over-burdening has tipped the balance from a plant dominated, clear water system to an algae dominated, turbid system. This project will aid restoration of the Mars wetlands by (1) improving our understanding of alage-macrophyte dynamics in shallow water basins; (2) producing a series of soft en ....Ecological renovation of constructed wetlands: changing state from algae to macrophyte dominated systems. Mars Confectionary's constructed wastewater treatment wetlands no longer purify its waste waters. Over-burdening has tipped the balance from a plant dominated, clear water system to an algae dominated, turbid system. This project will aid restoration of the Mars wetlands by (1) improving our understanding of alage-macrophyte dynamics in shallow water basins; (2) producing a series of soft engineering, ecologically based techniques for the management / rehabilitation of natural and constructed shallow water bodies which receive high nutrient loads; (3) improve decision support tools for the renovation and sustainable management of the Mars Confectionary, and similar food processing industry constructed wetlands.Read moreRead less