Treating wastewater for potable reuse: removal of chemicals of concern using advanced oxidation processes. The project promotes Australia as a leader in water reuse technology and is of benefit to reuse schemes globally. Several major reuse schemes are planned for Australia and it is well recognised that robust science is needed for public confidence. Community perception is a serious barrier to potable reuse and the results from this project will provide essential and independent information fo ....Treating wastewater for potable reuse: removal of chemicals of concern using advanced oxidation processes. The project promotes Australia as a leader in water reuse technology and is of benefit to reuse schemes globally. Several major reuse schemes are planned for Australia and it is well recognised that robust science is needed for public confidence. Community perception is a serious barrier to potable reuse and the results from this project will provide essential and independent information for informed decision making. The oxidation processes proposed will improve the quality of both recycled water and waste brine, providing environmental and economic benefit. This is particularly significant for regional Australia, where there is substantial demand for both water reuse and cost-effective waste disposal in the absence of ocean discharge.Read moreRead less
Multi-Scale Analysis of the Vulnerability of Coral Reefs to Ocean Acidification. The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is one of Australia's biggest icons, and represents more than 10% of the world's coral reefs. It is a World Heritage Area and is home to more than 1 million species. The GBR provides Australia with more than $6 billion in annual national revenue. To help manage for sustained resilience of the GBR in an era of climate change, Australia needs to understand the major threats, in particular ....Multi-Scale Analysis of the Vulnerability of Coral Reefs to Ocean Acidification. The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is one of Australia's biggest icons, and represents more than 10% of the world's coral reefs. It is a World Heritage Area and is home to more than 1 million species. The GBR provides Australia with more than $6 billion in annual national revenue. To help manage for sustained resilience of the GBR in an era of climate change, Australia needs to understand the major threats, in particular ocean acidification. By producing an innovative framework for assessing acidification risks, the project will help Australia demonstrate continued stewardship of one of the world's richest and most sensitive ecosystems.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0560956
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$397,100.00
Summary
World-leading elemental and isotopic microanalysis and chemical speciation facilities for an environmentally sustainable Australia. We propose to establish a world-leading centre for the study of the elemental and isotopic composition of key environmental, archaeological and mineral samples. This will be based upon ultra-short wavelength laser ablation and speciation methods, combined with new advanced ICP-MS technologies developed in Australia. This will give the centre unrivalled capabilities ....World-leading elemental and isotopic microanalysis and chemical speciation facilities for an environmentally sustainable Australia. We propose to establish a world-leading centre for the study of the elemental and isotopic composition of key environmental, archaeological and mineral samples. This will be based upon ultra-short wavelength laser ablation and speciation methods, combined with new advanced ICP-MS technologies developed in Australia. This will give the centre unrivalled capabilities and allow new areas of research to be undertaken in global climate change, the impact of increased salinity and pollution on the sustainability of Australia's inland waterways and coastal environments, and the history of the first humans who inhabited Australia. This will provide a baseline and new quantitative measures to better plan for an environmentally sustainable Australia.Read moreRead less
An Investigation into Oceanic CO2 Variability and its Influence on Atmospheric CO2 Concentrations. Carbon dioxide is a powerful greenhouse gas whose observed atmospheric increase is the central cause
of climate change. The associated environmental, social and economic impacts to Australia could be
staggering via coral reef degradation, loss of agricultural production, coastal erosion and extreme climate
events. This work aims to better our understanding of how the oceans may mediate the effec ....An Investigation into Oceanic CO2 Variability and its Influence on Atmospheric CO2 Concentrations. Carbon dioxide is a powerful greenhouse gas whose observed atmospheric increase is the central cause
of climate change. The associated environmental, social and economic impacts to Australia could be
staggering via coral reef degradation, loss of agricultural production, coastal erosion and extreme climate
events. This work aims to better our understanding of how the oceans may mediate the effects of climate
change for Australia and therefore has a strong national benefit. Quantifying the importance Australia's
oceanic CO2 sink will be important for Australian policy makers within international climate negotiations
and also for better management practices to ensure the future prosperity of Australia's coral reef
ecosystem.Read moreRead less
Quantifying the role of the Southern Ocean for anthropogenic CO2 uptake. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the most important greenhouse gas contributing to global warming and climate change. Climate change is likely to have dramatic economic and environmental consequences for Australia. Knowledge and understanding of the complex carbon cycle is fundamental for predicting future atmospheric CO2 levels and managing climate change. The aim of the work proposed here is to quantify and improve our understan ....Quantifying the role of the Southern Ocean for anthropogenic CO2 uptake. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the most important greenhouse gas contributing to global warming and climate change. Climate change is likely to have dramatic economic and environmental consequences for Australia. Knowledge and understanding of the complex carbon cycle is fundamental for predicting future atmospheric CO2 levels and managing climate change. The aim of the work proposed here is to quantify and improve our understanding of the oceans role in controlling atmospheric CO2 levels. This will be done by combining modeling and observational expertise among UNSW and CSIRO (Marine Research) researchers. Our work will be the first to assess the extent of which the Southern Ocean (and Australian waters) acts as a carbon sink. This will reduce modeling uncertainties in predicting future atmospheric CO2 levels and will also be valuable to the federal government in future international negotiations on climate change.Read moreRead less
Impacts of climate change on coastal floodplain wetland biogeochemistry and surface water quality. The most vulnerable Australian landscapes to global warming driven sea-level rise are our low-lying coastal floodplains. Seawater inundation dramatically affects soil chemistry and water quality. Over 74,000 km2 of the low-lying coastal floodplains of Australia contain acid sulfate soils. For these soils, seawater inundation has the potential to greatly enhance the release of acidity, with a high c ....Impacts of climate change on coastal floodplain wetland biogeochemistry and surface water quality. The most vulnerable Australian landscapes to global warming driven sea-level rise are our low-lying coastal floodplains. Seawater inundation dramatically affects soil chemistry and water quality. Over 74,000 km2 of the low-lying coastal floodplains of Australia contain acid sulfate soils. For these soils, seawater inundation has the potential to greatly enhance the release of acidity, with a high capacity to severely degrade wetlands, estuaries and farmland. This project will directly contribute to our national capacity to assess and manage impacts from climate change, providing greater protection of our coastal floodplains resources.Read moreRead less
Southern Ocean productivity and carbon dioxide (CO2) exchange under current and future climate regimes. This project will contribute to Australian ocean science expertise in key areas of data synthesis, satellite oceanography and the understanding of marine ecosystems' response to climate change. Collaborations will be developed and strengthened among Australian research institutions, and between Australia and the United States. The focus of the research is the Southern Ocean, which impacts glob ....Southern Ocean productivity and carbon dioxide (CO2) exchange under current and future climate regimes. This project will contribute to Australian ocean science expertise in key areas of data synthesis, satellite oceanography and the understanding of marine ecosystems' response to climate change. Collaborations will be developed and strengthened among Australian research institutions, and between Australia and the United States. The focus of the research is the Southern Ocean, which impacts global climate, and on which Australia's southern coastal ecosystems depend. The expertise and techniques developed will have application to other Australian regional seas.Read moreRead less
Atmospheric CO2, global temperature, and surface ocean acidity response to fossil carbon burning - insights from an ancient analogue. Sequestration of anthropogenic CO2 emissions by the oceans and the impacts of resulting ocean acidification and greenhouse warming upon marine ecosystems are vital to understanding the course of future environmental change. This research will improve knowledge of the biological and chemical responses in the ocean to past changes in atmospheric CO2 levels and incre ....Atmospheric CO2, global temperature, and surface ocean acidity response to fossil carbon burning - insights from an ancient analogue. Sequestration of anthropogenic CO2 emissions by the oceans and the impacts of resulting ocean acidification and greenhouse warming upon marine ecosystems are vital to understanding the course of future environmental change. This research will improve knowledge of the biological and chemical responses in the ocean to past changes in atmospheric CO2 levels and increased ocean acidity. This will assist in predicting the consequences of different fossil fuel burning scenarios for climate and marine life, especially the future viability of organisms like corals, molluscs, and calcareous plankton that underpin key tourism and marine production systems.Read moreRead less
Iron in the Antarctic sea ice zone and its role in the past and future climate. The Antarctic sea ice environment has remained poorly investigated for decades as it is difficult to access. Recent scientific advances have revealed that melting sea ice may provide a significant amount of the plant micro-nutrient iron to the Southern Ocean. Given that polar waters are iron-deficient and seasonal sea ice affects ~14 million square kilometres of ocean, the importance of iron fertilisation from deca ....Iron in the Antarctic sea ice zone and its role in the past and future climate. The Antarctic sea ice environment has remained poorly investigated for decades as it is difficult to access. Recent scientific advances have revealed that melting sea ice may provide a significant amount of the plant micro-nutrient iron to the Southern Ocean. Given that polar waters are iron-deficient and seasonal sea ice affects ~14 million square kilometres of ocean, the importance of iron fertilisation from decaying sea ice and its effect on global climate urgently need to be evaluated. This proposal aims at improving our understanding of Earth's complex system, and will inform future climate change policy in Australia.
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Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100013
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$170,000.00
Summary
Eddy correlation lander array. The proposed Eddy Correlation Lander Array will be the first in world and, as such, will allow ground-breaking research to be undertaken resulting in advances in a variety of fields. As such, this equipment will significantly enhance many core research programs at Southern Cross University and Monash University and enhance our ability to deliver high quality research in the National Research Priority Area of An Environmentally Sustainable Australia, with priority g ....Eddy correlation lander array. The proposed Eddy Correlation Lander Array will be the first in world and, as such, will allow ground-breaking research to be undertaken resulting in advances in a variety of fields. As such, this equipment will significantly enhance many core research programs at Southern Cross University and Monash University and enhance our ability to deliver high quality research in the National Research Priority Area of An Environmentally Sustainable Australia, with priority goals in water resources, responding to climate change and variability, overcoming soil loss, salinity and acidity and sustainable use of Australia's biodiversity.Read moreRead less