Unravelling the drivers of greenhouse gas emissions in estuaries. The aim of this project is to understand and quantify the factors controlling the emission of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide from estuaries. Coastal systems play a disproportionately large role in the global emissions of greenhouse gases, but this is poorly quantified. The project plans to use a combination of continuous concentration and stable isotope measurements, process measurements and advanced numerical modelling ....Unravelling the drivers of greenhouse gas emissions in estuaries. The aim of this project is to understand and quantify the factors controlling the emission of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide from estuaries. Coastal systems play a disproportionately large role in the global emissions of greenhouse gases, but this is poorly quantified. The project plans to use a combination of continuous concentration and stable isotope measurements, process measurements and advanced numerical modelling across a range of undisturbed to disturbed systems. It is intended that this project will provide information for conceptualising, calibrating and verifying models, including green-house gas production. Good models, and the data that support them, such as that provided by this study, are critical for the efficient allocation of management resources in Australian coastal systems, including by our partners. The findings from this project will have direct implications to the management, rehabilitation and protection of waterways (including biodiversity) in Australia.Read moreRead less
Unravelling the cycling of nitrogen along a subtropical freshwater-marine continuum using a multi-isotope, multi-tracer and modelling approach. This project will significantly advance our understanding of the sources, cycling and pathways of nitrogen along a sub-tropical catchment-river-estuary. As such, the findings from this research will have direct implications to the management, rehabilitation and protection of waterways (including biodiversity) in Australia.
Hyper-accumulations of monosulfidic sediments: Exploring a biogeochemical extreme to resolve fundamental sulfur biomineralisation pathways. The hyper-accumulation of monosulfidic sediments has a directsocial, economic and environmental impact on communities in many parts of Australia, including highly valued wetland systems such as the Ramsar wetlands of the lower Murray Darling Basin and internationally recognised Peel-Harvey Estuary of WA. Maintenance dredging of these materials alone costs th ....Hyper-accumulations of monosulfidic sediments: Exploring a biogeochemical extreme to resolve fundamental sulfur biomineralisation pathways. The hyper-accumulation of monosulfidic sediments has a directsocial, economic and environmental impact on communities in many parts of Australia, including highly valued wetland systems such as the Ramsar wetlands of the lower Murray Darling Basin and internationally recognised Peel-Harvey Estuary of WA. Maintenance dredging of these materials alone costs the nation millions of dollars annually. The hyper monosulfidic sediments are also linked to severe environmental impacts. This project will inform how these materials develop and accumulate. This new knowledge will be of immediate relevance for the management of eutrophic estuaries.Read moreRead less
Environmental controls over Fe availability and transport in a forested coastal catchment. Iron is one of a number of elements that are mobilised in catchments, have recognised detrimental impacts to marine settings and are known to be nutrients for toxic cyanobacteria blooms. Knowledge of controls over distribution of Fe is important in catchment management and for sustainable forestry. The total catchment approach will result in an understanding of release and transport of Fe, and other heav ....Environmental controls over Fe availability and transport in a forested coastal catchment. Iron is one of a number of elements that are mobilised in catchments, have recognised detrimental impacts to marine settings and are known to be nutrients for toxic cyanobacteria blooms. Knowledge of controls over distribution of Fe is important in catchment management and for sustainable forestry. The total catchment approach will result in an understanding of release and transport of Fe, and other heavy metals. The outcomes of the study will enable useful comparison to coastal plantations elsewhere in Australia, and overseas. Determination of the relationship to rainfall and hydrological processes will enhance these comparisons plus consideration of climatic change.
Read moreRead less
Resolving the geochemistry of coastal floodplain blackwaters. Deoxygenated dead zones are a rapidly growing global crisis in coastal areas. A major cause of dead zones in our estuaries is the formation and release of blackwaters from coastal wetlands. This project will provide the knowledge necessary to manage blackwaters in these wetlands and to greatly improve the health and sustainability of our estuaries.
Unlocking the secrets of the groundwater cycle using Si and Li isotopes. This project aims to determine how non-conventional lithium and silicon isotopes can be used to understand groundwater processes using an innovative source-to-target approach. The project aims to apply these isotope tracers to trace the water cycle within a well constrained system: an island aquifer with a dense borefield which has been analysed using traditional isotopic techniques. Supporting hydrochemical data will be us ....Unlocking the secrets of the groundwater cycle using Si and Li isotopes. This project aims to determine how non-conventional lithium and silicon isotopes can be used to understand groundwater processes using an innovative source-to-target approach. The project aims to apply these isotope tracers to trace the water cycle within a well constrained system: an island aquifer with a dense borefield which has been analysed using traditional isotopic techniques. Supporting hydrochemical data will be used to determine the relationship of the isotopes with environmental processes. The project impact will be the development of new methods to help understand our groundwater resource. The improved process understanding will be translated to groundwater management in general. The projects' focus on carbonate aquifer systems typical of coastal regions of southern, eastern and western Australia will have relevance to groundwater management in urban areas such as Perth and in rural areas for tourism and viticulture, and for management of natural resources in National Parks.Read moreRead less
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
Unravelling the rhizosphere redox-cycling of iron, sulphur and carbon in re-flooded acidic wetlands. This project will reveal how major re-flooding will influence the cycling of iron, sulphur and carbon in re-flooded acidic, freshwater wetlands. By resolving current biogeochemical uncertainties, this project will generate the necessary knowledge platform to underpin wise long-term management of these sensitive and unique landscapes.
Unraveling the nitrogen cycle in a periodically anoxic estuary. Climate change is likely to lead to reduced river inflows to estuaries which can lead to oxygen depletion and major changes in nutrient cycling. This project will help inform the public and policy makers about the role of environmental flows in maintaining estuarine function, and thus guide future decisions on environmental flow requirements in the Yarra River Estuary. The benefits of this understanding will also flow on to improv ....Unraveling the nitrogen cycle in a periodically anoxic estuary. Climate change is likely to lead to reduced river inflows to estuaries which can lead to oxygen depletion and major changes in nutrient cycling. This project will help inform the public and policy makers about the role of environmental flows in maintaining estuarine function, and thus guide future decisions on environmental flow requirements in the Yarra River Estuary. The benefits of this understanding will also flow on to improved understanding and management of nitrogen loads to Port Phillip Bay. This project will form a close collaborative partnership between Monash University, Melbourne Water and the EPA. This collaboration will ensure the integration of cutting edge science with innovative management regimes Read moreRead less
Electron flow in iron hyper-enriched acidifying coastal environments: reaction paths and kinetics of iron-sulfur-carbon transformations. Iron hyper-enriched acidifying coastal lowlands have a direct social, economic and environmental impact on communities in many parts of Australia. This project will determine how iron transforms and accumulates. The new knowledge will be of immediate relevance for the remediation of coastal plains.