Better water management through more focus on ecological and social sciences. Current water resources management, focusing on gains of economic efficiency in the short term under the assumption of steady-state conditions, has generally failed to respond to both catchment environmental degradation and to the increasing complexity of human–environment interactions. This project will develop a new approach to water resources management by relating management practices based on ecological understand ....Better water management through more focus on ecological and social sciences. Current water resources management, focusing on gains of economic efficiency in the short term under the assumption of steady-state conditions, has generally failed to respond to both catchment environmental degradation and to the increasing complexity of human–environment interactions. This project will develop a new approach to water resources management by relating management practices based on ecological understanding to the social mechanisms behind these practices at water catchments. It will improve the predictability and precision of water resources management and increase our ability to maintain our options for a sustainable future. This will have a profound effect on catchment sustainability, a globally significant problem.Read moreRead less
Recasting solutions to the Murray-Darling Basin crisis: recognising and valuing the role of Indigenous people. This project will investigate the significance of water to Indigenous people of the Murray-Darling Basin, examine the effect of changes in water governance and management on Indigenous communities and draw on international and local models to evaluate options for effective and equitable means of addressing Indigenous claims for water and recognition. It will test the feasibility of Indi ....Recasting solutions to the Murray-Darling Basin crisis: recognising and valuing the role of Indigenous people. This project will investigate the significance of water to Indigenous people of the Murray-Darling Basin, examine the effect of changes in water governance and management on Indigenous communities and draw on international and local models to evaluate options for effective and equitable means of addressing Indigenous claims for water and recognition. It will test the feasibility of Indigenous water plans to address Indigenous values and knowledge, give effect to Indigenous management objectives and articulate with statutory water plans. Results will contribute to geographical theory, transform water planning processes and enhance Indigenous capacity to influence allocation decisions, water policy and regional development solutions.Read moreRead less
Adaptive ecotyping of the toxic cyanobacterium Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii to predict its invasive capacity. We change the world while other organisms adapt to these new conditions. Cyanobacteria (blue green algae) increasingly dominate water bodies that were previously free of these harmful blooms. To minimise the spread of these algae, this project will study the genetic basis that determines how rapidly they can evolve and adapt to a changing planet.
Farmer Adoption of Sustainable Land Management Practices in the Fitzroy Basin, Central Queensland. The research project will identify the barriers to, and facilitators of, the adoption of sustainable land management practices in the grazing industry in the Fitzroy Basin, Central Queensland. Current agricultural extension approaches to environmental innovations in grazing have been criticised for their inability to facilitate rapid implementation of necessary on-ground changes. This research is s ....Farmer Adoption of Sustainable Land Management Practices in the Fitzroy Basin, Central Queensland. The research project will identify the barriers to, and facilitators of, the adoption of sustainable land management practices in the grazing industry in the Fitzroy Basin, Central Queensland. Current agricultural extension approaches to environmental innovations in grazing have been criticised for their inability to facilitate rapid implementation of necessary on-ground changes. This research is significant in identifying key socio-economic and environmental factors that need to be considered in developing regional policy approaches to sustainable agricultural development. Outcomes will include better uptake of environmental measures by graziers and policy advice to government and industry on sustainable development options.Read moreRead less
Revolutionising water-quality monitoring in the information age. In today’s information age, automated low-cost sensors distributed in the environment have the potential to revolutionise the way we monitor and manage air, water and soil. This project aims to develop novel statistical methods to detect anomalies in the data generated from these in-situ sensors with computationally efficient modelling on river networks through space and time, with the applied goals of automating anomaly detection ....Revolutionising water-quality monitoring in the information age. In today’s information age, automated low-cost sensors distributed in the environment have the potential to revolutionise the way we monitor and manage air, water and soil. This project aims to develop novel statistical methods to detect anomalies in the data generated from these in-situ sensors with computationally efficient modelling on river networks through space and time, with the applied goals of automating anomaly detection in water-quality data and generating predictions of sediment and nutrient concentrations throughout river networks in near-real time. This will represent a fundamental increase in scientific knowledge, which will be immediately useful in the domains of aquatic science, environmental monitoring, and statistics.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR200200186
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$230,583.00
Summary
Water resources management: past transformations for future sustainability. This project aims to develop a more systemic understanding of how culture, technology and institutional regulations have together transformed water resources management in Australia since the 1850s. Water resources in Australia have suffered multiple environmental and socio-economic crises. This project will identify the cultural and technological factors that have historically influenced allocations and access to water ....Water resources management: past transformations for future sustainability. This project aims to develop a more systemic understanding of how culture, technology and institutional regulations have together transformed water resources management in Australia since the 1850s. Water resources in Australia have suffered multiple environmental and socio-economic crises. This project will identify the cultural and technological factors that have historically influenced allocations and access to water resources for economic development, and the institutional regulations needed for tackling contemporary water crises. A deeper understanding of how public attitudes, institutions and socio-economic drivers redefined water resources management will help shape Australia’s capacity to prepare for a sustainable future. Read moreRead less
Food System Shocks: Managing Transitions to Future Food Security. Recent food system shocks such as bushfires, floods, drought, and the impact of Covid-19 on the harvesting and distribution of agricultural products, are having profound on-farm impacts. Farmers, as land managers, are on the front line of navigating these major disruptions whilst also maintaining continuity of supply that supports Australia's national and regional food security. Situating the farmer as the 'expert' of managing and ....Food System Shocks: Managing Transitions to Future Food Security. Recent food system shocks such as bushfires, floods, drought, and the impact of Covid-19 on the harvesting and distribution of agricultural products, are having profound on-farm impacts. Farmers, as land managers, are on the front line of navigating these major disruptions whilst also maintaining continuity of supply that supports Australia's national and regional food security. Situating the farmer as the 'expert' of managing and accommodating shocks, this project will co-produce a range of evidence-based transition and innovation scenarios for the horticultural industry to enhance future preparedness for shocks and support rural livelihoods. Read moreRead less
Integrating measures of Indigenous land management effectiveness. Land management is the fastest growing Indigenous employment sector in Australia yet methods for assessing its effectiveness are poorly developed. This project will work with Indigenous land managers and their major environmental service delivery partners to develop and agree on measures of land management effectiveness to meet multiple objectives.
Diffusion and transport of saltwater in coastal aquifers. Saltwater intrusion is a severe environmental problem in coastal regions of Australia, resulting in loss of agricultural land at an alarming rate. This project aims to develop a three-dimensional mathematical model for the simulation and prediction of saltwater intrusion into complex coastal aquifers based on recent advances in the theory of anomalous diffusion, stochastic modelling and numerical methods. The parameters of the model such ....Diffusion and transport of saltwater in coastal aquifers. Saltwater intrusion is a severe environmental problem in coastal regions of Australia, resulting in loss of agricultural land at an alarming rate. This project aims to develop a three-dimensional mathematical model for the simulation and prediction of saltwater intrusion into complex coastal aquifers based on recent advances in the theory of anomalous diffusion, stochastic modelling and numerical methods. The parameters of the model such as hydraulic conductivity and porosity will be estimated using multifractal techniques based on field data at the microscale. Once validated from measurements, the model will be used directly for resource management and planning.Read moreRead less
Delivering Benefits from Nature in a Highly Connected World . This project aims to improve knowledge of the implications of global flows of ecosystem services (the benefits people receive from nature) for achieving sustainable land use by developing novel predictive models and decision tools. The project is significant because it will resolve the complex challenge of assessing land use strategies when land use change has impacts on ecosystem service provision locally and globally. Expected outco ....Delivering Benefits from Nature in a Highly Connected World . This project aims to improve knowledge of the implications of global flows of ecosystem services (the benefits people receive from nature) for achieving sustainable land use by developing novel predictive models and decision tools. The project is significant because it will resolve the complex challenge of assessing land use strategies when land use change has impacts on ecosystem service provision locally and globally. Expected outcomes will be new evidence for the effect of land use change on the global distribution of ecosystem service benefits and how ecosystem services trade-off against each other. This should provide significant benefits by enabling better assessment of land use policy in an increasingly highly connected world.Read moreRead less