Science Capabilities and Achievements 2004-2010 www.environment.sa.gov.auwww.environment.sa.gov.au Table of Contents Chief Executive Message ..................................................................................................................................1 Head of Science Message ............................................................................................................................... 2 Context ..............................................................................................................................................................3 Scientific and Research Expertise ..................................................................................................................... 5 Science and Research Outputs ...................................................................................................................... 23 Projects ............................................................................................................................................................ 58 Supervision ....................................................................................................................................................... 79 Collaborations ................................................................................................................................................. 84 Presentations ....................................................................................................................................................92 Research Infrastructure Supported by DENR .................................................................................................108 Glossary ..........................................................................................................................................................111 Chief Executive Message South Australia faces many challenges in its quest to protect and enhance our environment and natural re- sources. But these challenges are not insurmountable. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources is meeting them equipped with a sound foundation of science, information, knowledge and strong partner- ships. Good science is the basis for good results that benefit all South Australians. This report demonstrates the breadth and strength of our scientific endeavour. It documents the work we have done and the partnerships we have put in place during the past five years. We employ scientific methodolo- gies and commission research covering a wide range of issues to inform our decisions on how best to man- age the state’s natural assets. The Department’s expertise plays an important role in helping South Australia address the complex goal of achieving sustainability. By documenting our expertise and research interests, we hope to encourage collaborations and partnerships, and the sharing of expertise to better meet the chal- lenges ahead. Allan Holmes Chief Executive Department of Environment and Natural Resources Government of South Australia 1 Head of Science Message Historically, science has been seen as the realm of scholars and universities, but now the public wants to know the scientific basis of decisions that are made about issues such as climate change and water shortages. These issues are having a very real impact on people’s lives today, so it’s critical that scientists continue to examine and test their knowledge, and learn how to engage in a more dynamic way with the public. As national science broadcaster Dr Robyn Williams says, “If people are making decisions in a vacuum, they’re usually bad decisions. Science information concerns everybody.” The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is the main agency in South Australia for con- servation of the environment and sustainable use of natural resources. It has made significant progress over the last year to harness and focus its scientific activities and partnerships around critical policy issues for the state’s community, issues such as sustainability, fire, climate change and terrestrial and marine conservation. DENR strives to continually keep our scientific knowledge up to date to ensure we make the best possible decisions about managing South Australia’s environmental assets. However, we still need to do more to involve South Australians in our planning and decision making. This achievements report provides a snapshot of the scientific capacity and expertise within DENR. It outlines the extensive contribution that DENR scientists have made to the body of scientific knowledge over the past five years. It details recent and current projects and collaborations that DENR is involved in as well as scientific publications. I hope this report stimulates an interest in sharing the knowledge that DENR has gained through its science and research. Our aim is to help South Australians become excited about opportunities to use science to secure the economic, social and environmental future of our state. Prof Andrew Lowe Head of Science & Professor of Plant Conservation Biology Science Resource Centre DENR & University of Adelaide 2 Context The Department of Environment & Natural Resources (DENR) uses science and research to support our con- servation and management decisions. We manage South Australia’s public land, which includes our national parks, marine parks, botanic gardens and coastline, and oversee the sustainable use of natural resources. We have defined nine key scientific and research capabilities that relate to our lines of business and policy. • Plant systematics research uses contemporary taxonomic tools to find out what types of plants and marine algae occur in SA and where they are found in the landscape. Through this work we improve the knowledge of the taxonomy and distribution of the state’s biota. If you don’t know what you have, what it looks like or where it is, you can’t manage it! Researchers in this area collaborate with the South Australian Museum, the Australian Centre of Evolutionary Biology and Biodiversity and the Australian Biological Resources Study as well as other institutions. • Species and populations research in DENR involves collecting detailed information on the size, distribution, abundance, growth, birth rates and mortality in species and populations of marine and terrestrial plants and animals. This work covers threatened and non-threatened native biota, as well as exotic pests, including biota that are likely to pose a biosecurity threat. • Ecological processes research is about uncovering how plants and animals are affected by fundamental processes that affect their persistence and distribution across the landscape. Some of these processes in- clude fire, grazing, germination and seed dormancy, water regimes and interactions between these pro- cesses. Research in this theme covers empirical studies and modelling, which provides a robust ability to predict changes in populations and communities. • Seascapes, landscapes and communities research is closely linked to management of natural resources across the landscape and seascape, and includes both social and physical elements. Research in this area includes mapping of vegetation, terrestrial and marine ecology, development of more integrated ways of landscape restoration and restoration of ecological communities. Researchers in this theme are linked to work occurring on private and public lands in the Natural Resource Management regions. • Natural resources condition research is responsible for monitoring land condition in the rangelands. Moni- toring progress towards the South Australia Strategic Plan (SASP) target for soil protection and rangelands condition is done using information from roadside surveys and pastoral lease assessments and inspections. A remote sensing approach to monitoring land condition has the potential to significantly improve data accessibility, flexibility and statistical validity while also reducing costs. For this reason DENR is working in part- nership with the University of Adelaide and the Australian Government’s Department of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries, to develop a remote sensing method for monitoring soil cover in the agricultural areas and land condition in the rangelands. • Sustainable production system research involves promoting, developing and applying more sustainable perennial plant technologies to primary production systems in agricultural areas of South Australia. Our work is primarily carried out through our research partnership with the Future Farm Industries CRC (FFI CRC). The CRC provides a national collective research effort into new fodder shrub production systems, developing woody crop industries, and into understanding of the biodiversity benefits of perennials. Furthermore, our work involves promoting the adoption of perennial plant options through improved collaboration between DENR, FFI CRC Partners, NRM regions, farmers, agricultural industry, Rural Solutions SA and participating re- search organisations such as the University of Adelaide and SARDI. • Water research focuses on improving our capacity to sustainably allocate water resources, with the broad aim of protecting and managing water quality and quantity for community prosperity and healthy ecosys- tems. Collaborations between scientists, managers and the community ensure water security for industrial, domestic and agricultural purposes as well as maintaining the health of rivers, streams and wetlands. Water research is also necessary to underpin decision making in the