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
The Southern Ocean's role in determining atmospheric CO2 levels: new insights from novel biogenic silica records of seawater pH. About half the emissions from the burning of fossil fuel since the Industrial Revolution have been absorbed by the oceans. However, considerable uncertainty surrounds the consequences of and the extent to which the oceans will continue to sequester CO2 into the future. This research will improve existing limited knowledge of the key biological and related ocean process ....The Southern Ocean's role in determining atmospheric CO2 levels: new insights from novel biogenic silica records of seawater pH. About half the emissions from the burning of fossil fuel since the Industrial Revolution have been absorbed by the oceans. However, considerable uncertainty surrounds the consequences of and the extent to which the oceans will continue to sequester CO2 into the future. This research will improve existing limited knowledge of the key biological and related ocean processes that transfer CO2 between the surface and depth, and the poorly understood effects on marine ecosystems of increasing ocean acidity due to CO2 absorption. This knowledge will contribute to predicting the course of future climate change and gauging the impacts on marine life and production systems.Read moreRead less
THE CORAL RECORD OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS IN THE GREAT BARRIER REEF:QUANTIFICATION OF ANTHROPOGENIC FLUXES. The objective of this proposal is to quantify the environmental impacts of enhanced terrestrial fluxes and climate change on the coral reefs in the Great Barrier Reef. This will be achieved by using an integrated approach based on coral proxy records of river plumes and sea surface temperatures that are preserved in carbonate skeletons of the long-lived (200-400 year old) Porites coral. ....THE CORAL RECORD OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS IN THE GREAT BARRIER REEF:QUANTIFICATION OF ANTHROPOGENIC FLUXES. The objective of this proposal is to quantify the environmental impacts of enhanced terrestrial fluxes and climate change on the coral reefs in the Great Barrier Reef. This will be achieved by using an integrated approach based on coral proxy records of river plumes and sea surface temperatures that are preserved in carbonate skeletons of the long-lived (200-400 year old) Porites coral. This will be integrated with monitoring and process studies of river flood plumes and coral reefs and provide a scientific basis to ensure the long-term sustainability of the GBR.Read moreRead less
Environmental change, carbon cycling and human impact in tropical Australia. This fellowhip will provide the fundamental science outputs required to understand the complex linkages between terrestrial ecosystems, environmental change and human impact in the tropics - in Australia and globally - thereby assisting in
(i) predicting the response of tropical ecosystems to future environmental change and respond to the impacts of tropical climate variability
(ii) developing and validating method ....Environmental change, carbon cycling and human impact in tropical Australia. This fellowhip will provide the fundamental science outputs required to understand the complex linkages between terrestrial ecosystems, environmental change and human impact in the tropics - in Australia and globally - thereby assisting in
(i) predicting the response of tropical ecosystems to future environmental change and respond to the impacts of tropical climate variability
(ii) developing and validating methodologies for improved carbon sequestration, verifiable carbon accounting and emissions trading
(iii) achieving sustainability in the utilization of the natural resource base of tropical Australia by optimizing the balance between wealth creation and environmental impact
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A new paradigm for the geochemistry of mineral precipitation and dissolution in aquatic systems: Polymer-based numerical modelling. The ability to predict the formation and dissolution of solids (minerals and precipitates) in aquatic systems is currently constrained by limitations of the traditional thermodynamic approach. A new approach based on the kinetics of the underlying chemical reactions is expected to overcome these limitations and greatly improve the ability to describe these processes ....A new paradigm for the geochemistry of mineral precipitation and dissolution in aquatic systems: Polymer-based numerical modelling. The ability to predict the formation and dissolution of solids (minerals and precipitates) in aquatic systems is currently constrained by limitations of the traditional thermodynamic approach. A new approach based on the kinetics of the underlying chemical reactions is expected to overcome these limitations and greatly improve the ability to describe these processes. This new fundamental knowledge will be useful in many diverse fields including aquatic geochemistry, soil chemistry, water engineering, and nanotechnology. The new approach will be specifically applied to improve understanding of processes related to the globally significant environmental issues of marine iron fertilisation, ocean acidification and acid sulfate soils.Read moreRead less