Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE160100066
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$260,000.00
Summary
Enhanced modelling capacity for the Industrial Ecology Virtual Laboratory. Enhanced modelling capacity for the Industrial Ecology Virtual Laboratory:
This project aims to enable Australian research leaders working on the integrated sustainability assessment of policies, products and projects to collaborate in the Industrial Ecology Virtual Laboratory (IELab). It seeks to develop and implement an enhanced modelling capability and suite of online analytical tools to support sustainability scienti ....Enhanced modelling capacity for the Industrial Ecology Virtual Laboratory. Enhanced modelling capacity for the Industrial Ecology Virtual Laboratory:
This project aims to enable Australian research leaders working on the integrated sustainability assessment of policies, products and projects to collaborate in the Industrial Ecology Virtual Laboratory (IELab). It seeks to develop and implement an enhanced modelling capability and suite of online analytical tools to support sustainability scientists and analysts from Australia and abroad conducting research projects of national and international significance. In particular, the project would provide policy-makers, investors and communities with detailed and tailored information to help make better decisions about a sustainable future. By upgrading IELab hardware and analytical and modelling software, the project would be versatile and flexible and remain up to date.Read moreRead less
Smart metering founding a holistic evidence-based performance evaluation framework and demand forecasting model for diversified water supply schemes. The Australian water industry faces the challenge of catering for the potable water demand of a rapidly expanding population with reduced reliability on supply imposed by an increasingly variable climate. Diversified water supply schemes (DWSS) incorporating decentralised systems or reuse sources are touted as a means to handle the inherent weaknes ....Smart metering founding a holistic evidence-based performance evaluation framework and demand forecasting model for diversified water supply schemes. The Australian water industry faces the challenge of catering for the potable water demand of a rapidly expanding population with reduced reliability on supply imposed by an increasingly variable climate. Diversified water supply schemes (DWSS) incorporating decentralised systems or reuse sources are touted as a means to handle the inherent weaknesses of centralised urban water supply schemes by potentially drawing 30-50 per cent less demand on their reserves. This research study will provide evidence to support the implementation of best practice DWSS based on an evidence based holistic assessment of their performance considering potable water savings, capital and operation costs, energy demand, as well as environmental and community impacts.Read moreRead less
Diagnosing river health using invertebrate traits and DNA barcodes. Diagnosing river health using invertebrate traits and DNA barcodes. This project aims to develop indices that link change in invertebrate communities to specific environmental stressors, and combine these indices with innovative, low cost molecular approaches to species identification to rapidly identify the causes of decline. River health assessment methods, usually based on aquatic invertebrates, identify if rivers are impaire ....Diagnosing river health using invertebrate traits and DNA barcodes. Diagnosing river health using invertebrate traits and DNA barcodes. This project aims to develop indices that link change in invertebrate communities to specific environmental stressors, and combine these indices with innovative, low cost molecular approaches to species identification to rapidly identify the causes of decline. River health assessment methods, usually based on aquatic invertebrates, identify if rivers are impaired but must be developed to identify the causes of decline. The intended outcomes are improved sustainable water resource management within and among states, and improved natural resource policy development.Read moreRead less
Quantifying the effects of criteria air pollutants on child health - setting Australian air quality standards. The project is proposed and supported by the National Environment and Heritage Protection Council, who will be reviewing Australian air quality standards from 2005. The study aims to determine whether current air quality standards adequately protect the health of Australian school children, and to provide nationally-based information to inform any changes to the current standards. A cr ....Quantifying the effects of criteria air pollutants on child health - setting Australian air quality standards. The project is proposed and supported by the National Environment and Heritage Protection Council, who will be reviewing Australian air quality standards from 2005. The study aims to determine whether current air quality standards adequately protect the health of Australian school children, and to provide nationally-based information to inform any changes to the current standards. A cross-sectional study will examine cumulative effects; a nested panel study will quantify day-to-day effects of air pollution in sensitive children. Sampling will ensure national representation and generalisability of findings. This will be the first nationally-based study of the relationship between air quality and child health in Australia.Read moreRead less
Advancing vegetation classification and mapping to meet conservation needs. The project aims to develop advanced statistical and modelling techniques to classify and map vegetation over very large areas, using the most extensive and detailed vegetation data set in Australia and new methods to evaluate these classifications. Such classifications and maps provide the data needed to make biodiversity conservation decisions, yet current operational methods are limited over very large areas, and cann ....Advancing vegetation classification and mapping to meet conservation needs. The project aims to develop advanced statistical and modelling techniques to classify and map vegetation over very large areas, using the most extensive and detailed vegetation data set in Australia and new methods to evaluate these classifications. Such classifications and maps provide the data needed to make biodiversity conservation decisions, yet current operational methods are limited over very large areas, and cannot deal with varied sources of uncertainty. Expected outcomes and benefits include a fine-scale vegetation classification and map for almost a million square kilometres, and associated analytical tools and guidelines for large-scale vegetation classification and global mapping.Read moreRead less
Identifying cost-effective reforestation approaches for biodiversity conservation and carbon sequestration in the Australian wet tropics. There is great potential for rainforest reforestation to help in the protection of Australia's tropical flora and fauna. Little is known, however, about how to reforest pasture to rainforest for the purpose of maximising the recovery of native biodiversity. We propose a unique experimental study of rainforest reforestation practices with biodiversity conservat ....Identifying cost-effective reforestation approaches for biodiversity conservation and carbon sequestration in the Australian wet tropics. There is great potential for rainforest reforestation to help in the protection of Australia's tropical flora and fauna. Little is known, however, about how to reforest pasture to rainforest for the purpose of maximising the recovery of native biodiversity. We propose a unique experimental study of rainforest reforestation practices with biodiversity conservation as a primary goal. Reforestation is currently an unlikely option for most landholders in Australia's tropics given the lack of data on the economic benefits obtainable from such efforts. Our study examines the profits obtainable through the carbon market for each reforestation approach with the goal of increasing the feasibility of rainforest reforestation in North Queensland.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0347262
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$150,000.00
Summary
Upgrading of Wind Tunnel Research Facility with Oxford Lasers VisiSizer. Bringing together expertise within five collaborating research Centres in two Universities, an Oxford Lasers VisiSizer will be used to study the atomisation of pesticide sprays and droplet behaviour in moving flow fields. This equipment, in conjunction with the construction of a new working section in a pesticide wind tunnel research facility, will enable the simultaneous measurement of particle size and droplet velocity. T ....Upgrading of Wind Tunnel Research Facility with Oxford Lasers VisiSizer. Bringing together expertise within five collaborating research Centres in two Universities, an Oxford Lasers VisiSizer will be used to study the atomisation of pesticide sprays and droplet behaviour in moving flow fields. This equipment, in conjunction with the construction of a new working section in a pesticide wind tunnel research facility, will enable the simultaneous measurement of particle size and droplet velocity. The VisiSizer will construct images of the atomisation process and enable the interaction of spray droplets and plant canopies to be studied. Data will support modelling of pesticide transport processes and accelerate leading Australian expertise in pesticide science.Read moreRead less
Integrating the conservation and ecosystem-service value of Australia's catchments. This project addresses the Priority Goal of Sustainable Use of Biodiversity by explicitly linking the intrinsic value of biodiversity and supporting ecosystems with the services they provide to humanity (e.g. carbon storage and nutrient cycling). It will employ a comprehensive, innovative approach to integrating conservation, market and non-market values of land holdings in Australia's catchments using the concep ....Integrating the conservation and ecosystem-service value of Australia's catchments. This project addresses the Priority Goal of Sustainable Use of Biodiversity by explicitly linking the intrinsic value of biodiversity and supporting ecosystems with the services they provide to humanity (e.g. carbon storage and nutrient cycling). It will employ a comprehensive, innovative approach to integrating conservation, market and non-market values of land holdings in Australia's catchments using the concept of nature's services. Through extensive collaboration among leading scientists and land managers, the project will identify sites of high value requiring special attention, yield important theoretical advancements to how we value ecosystems, and provide practical and easily applied guidelines for land managers. Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100141
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$420,000.00
Summary
High-resolution ITRAX XRF core scanning facility for global change research. This facility will enable researchers to obtain high-resolution geochemical profiles in the study of environmental change and climate variability. It will provide archive data on the variation of density and chemical element composition along sediment and soil cores, rock cores, wood samples, speleothems and corals. These archives contain important information such as human activity, climate variability, water quality c ....High-resolution ITRAX XRF core scanning facility for global change research. This facility will enable researchers to obtain high-resolution geochemical profiles in the study of environmental change and climate variability. It will provide archive data on the variation of density and chemical element composition along sediment and soil cores, rock cores, wood samples, speleothems and corals. These archives contain important information such as human activity, climate variability, water quality changes, pollution histories, recent geomorphological change, land-use change, introduction of invasive species and the occurrence of bushfires. A better understanding of the occurrence and timing of these major environmental issues is of national and regional importance.Read moreRead less
Coral resilience and the optimal management of biodiversity. This project aims to examine the resilience of coral biodiversity to disturbances and build on recently developed genomic resources to explore the genotypic traits that confer thermal tolerance. The project will research how coral biodiversity responds to climatic disturbances; the potential for acclimation and adaptation; and the best ways to monitor, manage and restore biodiversity. The project is expected to generate tangible outcom ....Coral resilience and the optimal management of biodiversity. This project aims to examine the resilience of coral biodiversity to disturbances and build on recently developed genomic resources to explore the genotypic traits that confer thermal tolerance. The project will research how coral biodiversity responds to climatic disturbances; the potential for acclimation and adaptation; and the best ways to monitor, manage and restore biodiversity. The project is expected to generate tangible outcomes and strategies to optimise the management of Australia’s coral biodiversity while engaging the public through museum-based outreach, in collaboration with government, regulatory sectors and an industry group. Read moreRead less