Mapping the Political Ecology of the Edible Birds’ Nests Trade in Indonesia. This study examines the origins and impacts of the rapidly emerging edible birds’ nests (EBN) trade for rural livelihoods and ecologies in Southeast Asia. A high-value Chinese delicacy, the EBN trade has surged across rural Indonesia and beyond. In partnership with the WWF and Tropenbos, our pioneering study investigates how rural producers negotiate the uneven social, economic and environmental influences of the EBN co ....Mapping the Political Ecology of the Edible Birds’ Nests Trade in Indonesia. This study examines the origins and impacts of the rapidly emerging edible birds’ nests (EBN) trade for rural livelihoods and ecologies in Southeast Asia. A high-value Chinese delicacy, the EBN trade has surged across rural Indonesia and beyond. In partnership with the WWF and Tropenbos, our pioneering study investigates how rural producers negotiate the uneven social, economic and environmental influences of the EBN commodity chain in the threatened Heart of Borneo, Indonesia, and the major urban trading centres of Jakarta, Singapore, and Hong Kong. The project offers novel insights into the trade’s sustainability across rural and urban regions of Asia and informs policy for poverty reduction and environmental management in the region.Read moreRead less
Climate variability, water allocation and land use change impacts on surface-groundwater interactions and salinity discharge. This project contributes to the national research priority of an Environmentally Sustainable Australia and its three sub-priorities: Water-a critical resource; Overcoming salinity and acidity; and Responding to climate change and variability as well as to the National Water Initiative goal: connected surface and groundwater resources managed as a single resource. These em ....Climate variability, water allocation and land use change impacts on surface-groundwater interactions and salinity discharge. This project contributes to the national research priority of an Environmentally Sustainable Australia and its three sub-priorities: Water-a critical resource; Overcoming salinity and acidity; and Responding to climate change and variability as well as to the National Water Initiative goal: connected surface and groundwater resources managed as a single resource. These embody the clear imperative in Australia to improve the management and use of our stream and groundwater systems in the face of long-term climate variability and changing water use. Knowledge gained from this study of coupled surface-groundwater systems in nationally important catchments will be used to improve water allocation and use strategies and salinity mitigation. Read moreRead less
Understanding global warming using long-term glacier retreat records. This project will determine the sensitivity of climate to future global warming, contributing to understanding one of the greatest problems facing humanity today. We will take an historic approach, determining the effects of the greatest global warming in Earth's recent history after the last ice age 20,000 years ago. By constructing well-dated, accurate records of glacier retreat at key locations, we will quantitatively estim ....Understanding global warming using long-term glacier retreat records. This project will determine the sensitivity of climate to future global warming, contributing to understanding one of the greatest problems facing humanity today. We will take an historic approach, determining the effects of the greatest global warming in Earth's recent history after the last ice age 20,000 years ago. By constructing well-dated, accurate records of glacier retreat at key locations, we will quantitatively estimate temperature change as the planet warmed. These findings will help us understand the future effects of global warming so that we are better prepared for the environmental and economic costs. Read moreRead less
Ecohydrological forecasting: the pivotal role of root-zone soil moisture. This project aims to overcome the scientific and technological challenges preventing soil water and vegetation forecasting at useful land management scales (eg. 25 m). The significance is in enabling an unprecedented hyperresolution modelling capability for Australia through the integration of new ecohydrological theory with a range of satellite observations. Outcomes include more accurate, spatially-detailed information o ....Ecohydrological forecasting: the pivotal role of root-zone soil moisture. This project aims to overcome the scientific and technological challenges preventing soil water and vegetation forecasting at useful land management scales (eg. 25 m). The significance is in enabling an unprecedented hyperresolution modelling capability for Australia through the integration of new ecohydrological theory with a range of satellite observations. Outcomes include more accurate, spatially-detailed information of current soil water amounts, and reliable forecasts of vegetation condition several months into the future. This will greatly enhance timely decision making and forward planning by farmers, fire agencies, and other land and water managers, with corresponding increases in productivity, sustainability and community safety.Read moreRead less
The political ecology of forest carbon: mainland Southeast Asia's new commodity frontier? Spurred by international climate change policies, forest carbon markets are being promoted in mainland Southeast Asia to protect its forests against persisting rates of deforestation. This research examines the implications of this new commodity market for local livelihoods and cross-border forest product trade in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.
Long range toxic metal pollution in Australia and the Southern Ocean. This project aims to investigate how environmental change and human activities since industrialisation have impacted toxic metal transport and deposition on the south coast of Australia, Tasmania and Southern Ocean islands. This project expects to fill gaps in understanding of the global mercury cycle using a state-of-the-art multidisciplinary methodology including the role of sea salt aerosols and hemispheric-scale wind patte ....Long range toxic metal pollution in Australia and the Southern Ocean. This project aims to investigate how environmental change and human activities since industrialisation have impacted toxic metal transport and deposition on the south coast of Australia, Tasmania and Southern Ocean islands. This project expects to fill gaps in understanding of the global mercury cycle using a state-of-the-art multidisciplinary methodology including the role of sea salt aerosols and hemispheric-scale wind patterns . Anticipated outcomes involve a novel palaeo-atmospheric model that can be applied in other parts of the world. This should provide significant benefits, such as science-based evidence to ratify the Minamata Convention on Mercury and guide new regulations to reduce environmental/health risks from metal pollution.
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Vulnerabilities for environmental water outcomes in a changing climate. This project aims to assess the vulnerability of freshwater ecosystems to extended droughts in a variable and changing climate. Governments around the world are investing in the restoration of regulated river systems with environmental water. However, the risks of climate change for environmental water management are seldom considered. This project will model the change in environmental and consumptive water use during exten ....Vulnerabilities for environmental water outcomes in a changing climate. This project aims to assess the vulnerability of freshwater ecosystems to extended droughts in a variable and changing climate. Governments around the world are investing in the restoration of regulated river systems with environmental water. However, the risks of climate change for environmental water management are seldom considered. This project will model the change in environmental and consumptive water use during extended dry periods, and couple this to models of ecological dynamics and failure thresholds. This will improve the success of Australia’s major environmental water programs in sustaining benefits through future multi-year droughts.Read moreRead less
Groundwater flow age distributions: Understanding open pit mine hydrology. This project aims to improve the estimation of the age of groundwater. Understanding groundwater age is critical for sustainable management and environmental tracers are increasingly used for this purpose. However, groundwater samples are inevitably mixtures of water of different ages. Since for most tracers the relationship between tracer concentration and age is not linear, different tracers can produce different mean a ....Groundwater flow age distributions: Understanding open pit mine hydrology. This project aims to improve the estimation of the age of groundwater. Understanding groundwater age is critical for sustainable management and environmental tracers are increasingly used for this purpose. However, groundwater samples are inevitably mixtures of water of different ages. Since for most tracers the relationship between tracer concentration and age is not linear, different tracers can produce different mean ages for the sample. This project aims to determine whether it is possible to determine moments of the groundwater age distributions from measurements made with different environmental tracers. The project also aims to examine whether the degree of heterogeneity within the aquifer can be determined from the disparity between ages obtained with different tracers. This project aims to tackle the largest problem with using groundwater chemistry to estimate water age – that mixing processes in the subsurface are never known. Solving this problem will allow much more accurate estimates of groundwater velocity and aquifer recharge rates. The groundwater industry contributes an estimated $6.8 billion per annum to the Australian economy, and this project will contribute to the sustainable management of the groundwater resource.Read moreRead less
Origins and distributions of intraplate earthquakes. This project aims to investigate the behaviour and origin of intraplate earthquakes in Australia by developing a multi-million-year record of earthquakes using geological, geochronological, geospatial, seismological, statistical and numerical modelling data. It will use maximum credible magnitudes, maximum shaking intensities of intraplate earthquakes and spatiotemporal relationships between large prehistoric and contemporary earthquakes to im ....Origins and distributions of intraplate earthquakes. This project aims to investigate the behaviour and origin of intraplate earthquakes in Australia by developing a multi-million-year record of earthquakes using geological, geochronological, geospatial, seismological, statistical and numerical modelling data. It will use maximum credible magnitudes, maximum shaking intensities of intraplate earthquakes and spatiotemporal relationships between large prehistoric and contemporary earthquakes to improve models of future seismic hazard in Australia and globally. This will lead to improved predictions of future earthquake impacts in urban and natural environments and development of new paleoseismic techniques.Read moreRead less
Groundwater dynamics and surface water interactions in the Lower Murrumbidgee Catchment, New South Wales. Water is Australia's most limiting resource. This research will contribute to the sustainable management of groundwater resources in the regional and rural areas of the Lower Murrumbidgee catchment, an important agricultural and horticultural region of Australia. Strategies for sustainable use of water resources will be improved by understanding the impacts of irrigation on groundwater quali ....Groundwater dynamics and surface water interactions in the Lower Murrumbidgee Catchment, New South Wales. Water is Australia's most limiting resource. This research will contribute to the sustainable management of groundwater resources in the regional and rural areas of the Lower Murrumbidgee catchment, an important agricultural and horticultural region of Australia. Strategies for sustainable use of water resources will be improved by understanding the impacts of irrigation on groundwater quality and aquifer extractions. The project will train new scientists in current and new groundwater techniques and improve strategic linkages between the Industry and University sectors through support of student research and a Linkage Fellowship for the key industry partner participant.Read moreRead less