Adapting for an uncertain future: farmer behaviour in water-stressed basins. Given the future risk of water scarcity, farmers will need to plan for greater farm-level adaptation. Drought and policy reform have inflicted significant economic, social and personal stress upon Murray-Darling Basin rural communities. This project aims to aid water managers and policy makers with a greater understanding of transformational farmer adaptation in order to plan for the economic, social and health impacts ....Adapting for an uncertain future: farmer behaviour in water-stressed basins. Given the future risk of water scarcity, farmers will need to plan for greater farm-level adaptation. Drought and policy reform have inflicted significant economic, social and personal stress upon Murray-Darling Basin rural communities. This project aims to aid water managers and policy makers with a greater understanding of transformational farmer adaptation in order to plan for the economic, social and health impacts of future water scarcity from climate change and water reform-related policies. The focus will be on the Murray-Darling Basin, as well as undertaking a comparative analysis with water stressed basins in the United States.Read moreRead less
How effective are environmental flows? Novel approaches for monitoring and assessing ecological responses to large-scale flow alteration. Australia has begun a multi-billion dollar program to return water to stressed rivers as environmental flows. However, during times of unprecedented water scarcity, such an investment in the environment can be controversial because the ecological benefits of released water are mostly poorly understood. This project will demonstrate the effectiveness of environ ....How effective are environmental flows? Novel approaches for monitoring and assessing ecological responses to large-scale flow alteration. Australia has begun a multi-billion dollar program to return water to stressed rivers as environmental flows. However, during times of unprecedented water scarcity, such an investment in the environment can be controversial because the ecological benefits of released water are mostly poorly understood. This project will demonstrate the effectiveness of environmental flows, and promote greater understanding of the links between flow patterns and river health. The project will build upon existing knowledge to create a sound framework for planning, monitoring, and evaluation of environmental watering decisions across regional Australia, greatly improving our ability to sustainably manage rivers into the future.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140101608
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$394,655.00
Summary
Water resources in a changing climate: impact of climate variability, climate and land-use change on surface water dynamics and ecosystem connectivity. Climate and land use change act synergistically to affect scarce water resources, already under enormous pressure in Australia. This cross-disciplinary project aims to quantify the climate-driven variability and impact of climate and land use change on surface water dynamics and connectivity. This research will take a holistic approach integratin ....Water resources in a changing climate: impact of climate variability, climate and land-use change on surface water dynamics and ecosystem connectivity. Climate and land use change act synergistically to affect scarce water resources, already under enormous pressure in Australia. This cross-disciplinary project aims to quantify the climate-driven variability and impact of climate and land use change on surface water dynamics and connectivity. This research will take a holistic approach integrating remote sensing and climate data, land use science, graph theory and spatial statistics. Findings will, for the first time, assess the impact of multiple drivers of change (climate, land use) on scarce water resources by integrating empirical observations on surface water variability with global climate model projections and land use scenarios.Read moreRead less
Forecasting fish resilience to environmental change in northern Australia. This project aims to use a traits-based modelling framework, incorporating variability both within and between species, to forecast the resilience of freshwater fishes in northern Australia to impending environmental change. While northern Australian rivers are among the most pristine and productive on earth, they face profound change due to human activity. Emerging evidence suggests that flexibility in functional traits ....Forecasting fish resilience to environmental change in northern Australia. This project aims to use a traits-based modelling framework, incorporating variability both within and between species, to forecast the resilience of freshwater fishes in northern Australia to impending environmental change. While northern Australian rivers are among the most pristine and productive on earth, they face profound change due to human activity. Emerging evidence suggests that flexibility in functional traits (e.g. life history, physiology, behaviour, diet) may result in resilience to environmental change. This project aims to provide decision-makers with essential information and new tools to underpin future planning and resource management.Read moreRead less