School of Life and Environmental Sciences
Faculty of Science and Technology
CatchmentsResearch within the Catchment theme encompasses fundamental reseach into landscape and waterscape processes and ecology, in addition to applied research emphasising human impacts on catchments and associated management implications.
Research areas within this theme include:
Human land-uses have brought about major changes to terrestrial landscapes. An important challenge is to understand how landscape-scale disturbance processes such as habitat loss and fragmentation, fire regimes, salinisation, spread of exotic plants and animals, urbanisation, and harvesting of natural resources, affect the conservation of native species and the functioning of ecological processes.
There are many situations where current land-use is not ecologically sustainable, and restoration and careful management are required. Revegetation in agricultural environments, bushland protection and restoration in urban environments, and management of pest plants and animals, are examples. Development of indicators of the ecological health of catchments will assist land managers to set priorities for restoration and management activities.
The recent extended drought has focused attention on water use by primary industries. Water re-use (eg. in dairy farming), delivery systems, irrigation techniques and drainage are all areas where water use efficiencies are possible. The relationships between soil health and water use/re-use must be understood (eg. sodicity or hydrophobicity of soils).
Point sources of pollution are now largely regulated and the attention of managers is turning to diffuse sources such as farming activities and the impacts these have on steam water and groundwater quality. Increasing diversion of water for domestic and agricultural use threatens the health of aquatic ecosystems as do the impacts of nutrients and other pollutants – including endocrine disruptors and agricultural chemicals. Modelling of pollutant transport and water movement in the landscape can assist prediction of effects.
Ecology and conservation of native biotaTo understand the impacts of changes in land use and to set goals for sustainable use of natural resources, we must first understand the factors that influence the distribution and abundance of native plants and animals. This includes the habitats and resources that species use, and their interaction with other species.
Industry is increasingly conscious of the need to adopt a “whole-of-life” approach to manufacturing products and waste streams. Cleaner production aims to reduce environmental impacts through waste minimisation and re-use. There is a need for smarter water management by industry, innovative water treatment processes and integrated stormwater management. Urban water re-use is a key focus of current government policy. The degree to which this is utilised depends on factors such as public health risks, economic considerations and community values and attitudes.
