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Ecohydrological feedbacks between vegetation and soil in natural and engineered landforms in arid Australia. We address 'An Environmentally Sustainable Australia'. 1. Water is the binding factor in our project, defining vegetation, geomorphology and hydrology. 2. Rehabilitation is an integral part of the mining business. Our project is instrumental in developing ecological engineering approaches to rehabilitation. 3. Ultimate goal of the project is to develop stable landforms, protecting underly ....Ecohydrological feedbacks between vegetation and soil in natural and engineered landforms in arid Australia. We address 'An Environmentally Sustainable Australia'. 1. Water is the binding factor in our project, defining vegetation, geomorphology and hydrology. 2. Rehabilitation is an integral part of the mining business. Our project is instrumental in developing ecological engineering approaches to rehabilitation. 3. Ultimate goal of the project is to develop stable landforms, protecting underlying rock. 4. We investigate locally adapted native plant species for use in arid-zone land rehabilitation, to preserve biodiversity. 5. The area of study is exposed to long droughts and cyclonic rainfall. Understanding the resilience of the landscape will provide pivotal insight into the impact and potential adaptive response to climate variability.Read moreRead less
Mitigation of Impacts on Groundwater Dependent Vegetation Through Adaptive Abstraction Regimes. Apart from loss of habitat, biodiversity, ecological function and aesthetics, tree decline and death is a financial burden to land managers. Lost groundwater production from existing borefield infrastructure due to environmental risk also represents a significant economic loss to industry. By adapting borefield operation strategies to be more sympathetic to environmental demands for groundwater, susta ....Mitigation of Impacts on Groundwater Dependent Vegetation Through Adaptive Abstraction Regimes. Apart from loss of habitat, biodiversity, ecological function and aesthetics, tree decline and death is a financial burden to land managers. Lost groundwater production from existing borefield infrastructure due to environmental risk also represents a significant economic loss to industry. By adapting borefield operation strategies to be more sympathetic to environmental demands for groundwater, sustainable use of the resource can be maximized under otherwise 'high-risk' scenarios. This project will result in environmental benefits such as reduced impacts of borefields and economic benefits such as recovery of lost production from 'high-risk' borefields, increased viability of planned schemes and reduced customer cost of water services.Read moreRead less
Turning water into carbon: a synthesis of plant water-use efficiency from leaf to globe. The efficiency with which plants use water to gain carbon is a fundamental aspect of plant growth that has been frequently measured but is poorly understood. Using our new theory to draw together major datasets, the project will make a dramatic advance in our ability to understand and predict this key aspect of ecosystem function.
Impacts of groundwater extraction on ecophysiology of Australian trees. The aim of this project is to determine the response of trees to the extraction of shallow groundwater. Groundwater-dependent ecosystems rely on a supply of groundwater to maintain ecosystem health, structure and function, and excessive depletion of groundwater resources has a negative impact on these ecosystems. The project intends to combine a field-scale experimental depletion of groundwater resources simultaneously with ....Impacts of groundwater extraction on ecophysiology of Australian trees. The aim of this project is to determine the response of trees to the extraction of shallow groundwater. Groundwater-dependent ecosystems rely on a supply of groundwater to maintain ecosystem health, structure and function, and excessive depletion of groundwater resources has a negative impact on these ecosystems. The project intends to combine a field-scale experimental depletion of groundwater resources simultaneously with alterations in rainfall input and measurements of tree responses. The results of the project are intended to inform industry regulators and the water supply industry on how to improve management of both groundwater and vegetation resources.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354740
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,000.00
Summary
CaGaWaLo: regulation of carbon gain and water loss by woody vegetation. Trees and shrubs are widely perceived as central to solving problems of national and international significance. Seed funding is sought to facilitate establishment of a research network focused on their ability to sequester carbon and transmit water to the atmosphere. The proposed network is broadly based in plant physiology and ecology and contains a strong cross-section of leading international expertise in relevant sub- ....CaGaWaLo: regulation of carbon gain and water loss by woody vegetation. Trees and shrubs are widely perceived as central to solving problems of national and international significance. Seed funding is sought to facilitate establishment of a research network focused on their ability to sequester carbon and transmit water to the atmosphere. The proposed network is broadly based in plant physiology and ecology and contains a strong cross-section of leading international expertise in relevant sub-disciplines. By leveraging the huge pool of international expertise and focusing on a range of scales (from molecular to biosphere scales), this network will yield new ideas and approaches that will produce outputs and outcomes of national significance.Read moreRead less
Tree-mediated methane fluxes: A new frontier in the global carbon cycle. Methane is an extremely potent greenhouse gas. Recent evidence suggests that tree-mediated fluxes may be a significant, but overlooked source of methane to the atmosphere. This project aims to quantify the magnitude and drivers of tree-mediated methane fluxes from Australia’s dominant forest types. Innovatively, we will be using a novel combination of empirical field based measurements, gas tracer experiments, microbial ana ....Tree-mediated methane fluxes: A new frontier in the global carbon cycle. Methane is an extremely potent greenhouse gas. Recent evidence suggests that tree-mediated fluxes may be a significant, but overlooked source of methane to the atmosphere. This project aims to quantify the magnitude and drivers of tree-mediated methane fluxes from Australia’s dominant forest types. Innovatively, we will be using a novel combination of empirical field based measurements, gas tracer experiments, microbial analysis and modelling methods. Expected outcomes are a mechanistic understanding of tree-mediated methane fluxes, helping to constrain regional, national and global methane budgets. The results of this study will help inform publicly funded greenhouse gas abatement strategies, ensuring a maximal return on investment.Read moreRead less
Enhancing native seed performance for minesite restoration and biodiversity conservation. The knowledge and practical outcomes generated from this project will facilitate more effective restoration of degraded native ecosystems through the return of a wider range of key understorey plant taxa and more efficient use of seed supplies. Availability of a broader suite of species will increase biodiversity, improve ecosystem resilience to change, and help in the conservation and recovery of nationall ....Enhancing native seed performance for minesite restoration and biodiversity conservation. The knowledge and practical outcomes generated from this project will facilitate more effective restoration of degraded native ecosystems through the return of a wider range of key understorey plant taxa and more efficient use of seed supplies. Availability of a broader suite of species will increase biodiversity, improve ecosystem resilience to change, and help in the conservation and recovery of nationally threatened taxa. By increasing the range of species with horticultural potential available for commercial propagation, it will also reduce the harvest of wild flowers. More efficient production and use of seed stocks will reduce the pressure on limited seed resources from seed harvesting.Read moreRead less
Seagrass tolerance of oil spills - scaling of pollution impacts. Seagrasses provide vital ecosystem services (such as sediment stabilisation and habitat provision) in Australian coastal waters. The contribution of pollutants to current seagrass decline is poorly understood. The Australian shipping industry is the 5th largest in the world but there is very little data on the impacts of petroleum hydrocarbons on intertidal seagrasses and hence no information for coastal resource managers to use in ....Seagrass tolerance of oil spills - scaling of pollution impacts. Seagrasses provide vital ecosystem services (such as sediment stabilisation and habitat provision) in Australian coastal waters. The contribution of pollutants to current seagrass decline is poorly understood. The Australian shipping industry is the 5th largest in the world but there is very little data on the impacts of petroleum hydrocarbons on intertidal seagrasses and hence no information for coastal resource managers to use in decision-making in the event of an oil spill. This project will assess the relative toxicities of a number of petroleum hydrocarbons on Australian seagrass species to provide necessary data for the development of effective management practice.Read moreRead less
Comparative eco-physiology of two contrasting arid-zone woodlands in Central Australia: hydrological niche separation and ecosystem resilience. This proposal addresses two fundamental questions: how do co-occurring species co-exist and why do Australian ecosystems have larger ecosystem water-use-efficiencies than those in the USA? This proposal will: determine the resilience of two contrasting arid-zone woodlands; compare variation in hydraulic-related plant traits across co-existing species; an ....Comparative eco-physiology of two contrasting arid-zone woodlands in Central Australia: hydrological niche separation and ecosystem resilience. This proposal addresses two fundamental questions: how do co-occurring species co-exist and why do Australian ecosystems have larger ecosystem water-use-efficiencies than those in the USA? This proposal will: determine the resilience of two contrasting arid-zone woodlands; compare variation in hydraulic-related plant traits across co-existing species; and, determine the relative contribution of changes in assimilation and stomatal conductance to variation (across species and time) in water-use-efficiency. Outcomes of this work include a mechanistic understanding of the behaviour of water-limited woodlands in current and future climates. This is significant because such biomes are globally important and are home to two billion people. Read moreRead less
AirLIFT – an airborne active chlorophyll fluorescence sensing system for assessment of photosynthetic activity in plant canopies. Assessment of plant health and productivity is vital to ensure future food security of the global population under a changing climate. Chlorophyll fluorescence (CF), a signal emitted by green plants, can reveal this information. Although CF has revolutionised photosynthetic research, current measurements are limited to individual plants. Remote sensing of canopy CF is ....AirLIFT – an airborne active chlorophyll fluorescence sensing system for assessment of photosynthetic activity in plant canopies. Assessment of plant health and productivity is vital to ensure future food security of the global population under a changing climate. Chlorophyll fluorescence (CF), a signal emitted by green plants, can reveal this information. Although CF has revolutionised photosynthetic research, current measurements are limited to individual plants. Remote sensing of canopy CF is required for efficient management of agricultural crops, forests, and natural ecosystems and is crucial for accurate estimation of plant carbon assimilation and production. This project will deliver remote sensing technology to bridge the gap between leaf and canopy productivity and pave the way for understanding both artificial and solar induced canopy CF measured from space.Read moreRead less