A new method for identifying actual groundwater contributions to base flow using both stream flow and groundwater head data. Estimating the groundwater contribution to river flow is difficult but critical for managing water resources and protecting stream environments. This project will deliver better methods for estimating these contributions using existing stream flow and groundwater data.
Predicting water quality at the catchment scale: learning from two decades of monitoring. Poor water quality affects many rivers and receiving waters such as the Great Barrier Reef and Gippsland Lakes. This project aims to use Bayesian hierarchical models of statewide water quality data to quantify the effects of a range of factors on stream water quality including climate, land use, river flow, vegetation cover, etcetera. The analysis intends to extract information from the entire data set rath ....Predicting water quality at the catchment scale: learning from two decades of monitoring. Poor water quality affects many rivers and receiving waters such as the Great Barrier Reef and Gippsland Lakes. This project aims to use Bayesian hierarchical models of statewide water quality data to quantify the effects of a range of factors on stream water quality including climate, land use, river flow, vegetation cover, etcetera. The analysis intends to extract information from the entire data set rather than concentrating on individual sites. It intends to underpin a new predictive capacity including response to land use and management changes and climatic variations based on long-term data sets, as well as a water quality prediction capability. It is intended that the models developed will jointly model a range of inter-related water quality parameters.Read moreRead less
Automated groundwater level mapping: a tool for catchment scale estimation of aquifer storage changes, fluxes and hydrogeological properties. Cutting-edge groundwater mapping tools will be developed by this project and made freely available. Water table maps will be derived for Victoria and used to quantify aquifer properties, recharge and the groundwater balance. Fundamental limitations to quantitative groundwater management will be overcome and the Bureau of Meteorology intend to adopt the fin ....Automated groundwater level mapping: a tool for catchment scale estimation of aquifer storage changes, fluxes and hydrogeological properties. Cutting-edge groundwater mapping tools will be developed by this project and made freely available. Water table maps will be derived for Victoria and used to quantify aquifer properties, recharge and the groundwater balance. Fundamental limitations to quantitative groundwater management will be overcome and the Bureau of Meteorology intend to adopt the findings.Read moreRead less
The role of turbulence in transporting waterborne material within streambed sediments and across the sediment-water interface. The sediments of rivers, lakes and coastal ocean filter waterborne contaminants. This project uses novel experimental techniques to investigate the role of turbulence in transporting contaminants between water and boundary sediments. This project will inform better management of waterborne contaminants with benefits for human and ecosystem health.
Hydrogeological drivers and fate of spring flow in a semi-arid setting. In arid and semi-arid climates, aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems often rely on groundwater springs. Spring hydrology depends on complex relationships between underlying aquifers and surface conditions, leading to high uncertainties in understanding aquifer-spring-wetland hydrology, which is critical for spring ecosystem protection and to inform management of relevant groundwater-affecting activities. This project will appl ....Hydrogeological drivers and fate of spring flow in a semi-arid setting. In arid and semi-arid climates, aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems often rely on groundwater springs. Spring hydrology depends on complex relationships between underlying aquifers and surface conditions, leading to high uncertainties in understanding aquifer-spring-wetland hydrology, which is critical for spring ecosystem protection and to inform management of relevant groundwater-affecting activities. This project will apply novel hydrogeophysical and hydrochemical methods, and computer modelling, to investigate the source aquifer of, and fate of discharge from the Doongmabulla Springs Complex (DSC), located in an area of future development. Project results will inform spring vulnerability to development pressures and climate effects.Read moreRead less
Linking terrestrial–aquatic fluxes to rectify the Australian carbon balance. This project aims to rectify the Australian carbon balance by determining the amount of terrestrial carbon that is lost to streams and rivers across the country. Through a novel integration of high-resolution hydrochemical and gas measurements, remote sensing and machine learning algorithms, the project intends to generate new knowledge about the links between terrestrial carbon sequestration and aquatic carbon export. ....Linking terrestrial–aquatic fluxes to rectify the Australian carbon balance. This project aims to rectify the Australian carbon balance by determining the amount of terrestrial carbon that is lost to streams and rivers across the country. Through a novel integration of high-resolution hydrochemical and gas measurements, remote sensing and machine learning algorithms, the project intends to generate new knowledge about the links between terrestrial carbon sequestration and aquatic carbon export. Expected outcomes include a refined estimate of the net carbon sequestration potential across Australian biomes and seasons. This should provide significant benefits such as avoiding misalignment of greenhouse gas abatement policies and advancing carbon cycling models and predictions.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE150100139
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$160,000.00
Summary
Isotope analyser with delta17O capability to examine water fluxes. Isotope analyser with delta-17-O capability to examine water fluxes: This project aims to investigate a range of processes, including quantifying evaporative losses, moisture recycling, groundwater-surface water interactions, and records of past climate in ice cores using novel capabilities for continuous measurement of triple oxygen isotopes (16-O, 17-O, 18-O) in water vapour. Enhanced understanding of water cycles is critical f ....Isotope analyser with delta17O capability to examine water fluxes. Isotope analyser with delta-17-O capability to examine water fluxes: This project aims to investigate a range of processes, including quantifying evaporative losses, moisture recycling, groundwater-surface water interactions, and records of past climate in ice cores using novel capabilities for continuous measurement of triple oxygen isotopes (16-O, 17-O, 18-O) in water vapour. Enhanced understanding of water cycles is critical for understanding the discrete changes occurring in water regimes under changing climates and land use to efficiently manage our limited freshwater resources. The instrumentation is intended to put Australia at the forefront of new and emerging research in d17O analysis of water, an area that has potential to greatly improve our understanding of the water cycle within arid climates including Antarctica.Read moreRead less