DOCSLIB.ORG

Ecohydrological Regionalisation of Australia: a Tool for Management and Science

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Ecohydrological Regionalisation of Australia: a Tool for Management and Science knowledge for managing Australian landscapes Technical report Ecohydrological regionalisation of Australia: A tool for management and science Principal Investigators: Brad Pusey1, Mark Kennard1, Mike Hutchinson2 and Fran Sheldon1 Project Associates: Janet Stein2, Julian Olden3 and Steve McKay1 Affiliations: 1.Australian Rivers Institute, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland 2. Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Canberra ACT 3. School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA Funding: This project was funded by the Land & Water Australia Innovation Program with additional start-up funds provided by the Australian Rivers Institute, Griffith University. Published by: Land & Water Australia Product Code: PN22591 Project Number: GRU36 Electronic ISBN: 978-1-921544-73-6 Program: Innovation Postal address: GPO Box 2182, Canberra ACT 2601 Office Location: Level 1, The Phoenix 86-88 Northbourne Ave, Braddon ACT Telephone: 02 6263 6000 Facsimile: 02 6263 6099 Email [email protected] Internet: lwa.gov.au Land & Water Australia © April 2009 Disclaimer The information contained in this publication is intended for general use, to assist public knowledge and discussion and to help improve the sustainable management of land, water and vegetation. It includes general statements based on scientific research. Readers are advised and need to be aware that this information may be incomplete or unsuitable for use in specific situations. Before taking any action or decision based on the information in this publication, readers should seek expert professional, scientific and technical advice. To the extent permitted by law, the Commonwealth of Australia, Land & Water Australia (including its employees and consultants) the authors, and its partners do not assume liability of any kind whatsoever resulting from any person’s use or reliance upon the content of this publication. Project objectives • To develop and validate continental-scale ecohydrological classifications of Australia’s rivers using a combination of empirical and deductive approaches. • To assess the extent to which within-drainage variation in regime exceeds variation at broader spatial scales (i.e. confounds regional classification) and understand the factors responsible for this variation. • To test whether the developed classification is consistent across all key ecologically relevant aspects of the riverine flow regime. • To provide a rigorous foundation for the incorporation of ecohydrological principles into scientific investigation and management of Australia’s rivers. Project final milestones • Final validated continental-scale ecohydrological classifications of Australia’s rivers. • Consistency of the classifications across key ecologically relevant aspects of the flow regime. • Understanding of the extent to which within-drainage variation in flow regime exceeds variation at broader scales. • Clear documentation of the River Analysis Package (RAP). • Flow data prepared and stored according to Land & Water Australia guidelines. • Knowledge and adoption plan completed. An introduction to the project’s aims and methodologies underpinning the examination are given in Appendix 1. a) and b) Continental-scale classification of Australia’s rivers and validation Empirical classification A review of classification methods and of other hydrological classifications for Australia and elsewhere was undertaken (Appendix 2). A review of anthropogenic factors influencing streamflow in unregulated streams was undertaken (Appendix 3). These reviews provide the background to the process of classifying contemporary streamflow data and the context in which classifications relate to the natural flow regime. From these reviews, we constructed a protocol for the classification, outlining all significant methodological steps required. Flow information was obtained for 830 gauges. The minimum period of record within these 830 gauges was 15 years. Whilst this relatively short record length was initially considered sub-optimal for the estimation of some flow metrics, their inclusion greatly increased geographic coverage and accordingly, substantial work was undertaken to estimate, and control for, the effect of the inclusion of these short-record length gauges in the classification. Significant work was also undertaken in screening the data to satisfy our criteria for inclusion and infilling periods of missing record (see Appendix 4). Classification was undertaken using a Bayesian soft clustering technique. The resultant classification (Appendix 5) was composed of 12 groups broadly separated according to 1 predictability, timing of flows and degree of intermittency. The fidelity of group membership was very high for the majority of gauges and groups. Comparison of classification outputs resulting from the total data set, long term gauge data only and short term gauge data only, revealed high concordance, thus lending confidence in the final classification in which all 830 gauges were included. Similarly, the use of different error terms (based on the long or short gauge records) to inform the clustering process did not result in widely divergent classification outcomes. Many of the classification groups were very widely distributed but a clear distinction between tropical/subtropical and temperate regions was detected. ANOSIM (Analysis of similarity) and regression tree analysis revealed that flow regime group membership could be significantly predicted based on a limited set of landscape oriented variables, thus allowing greater confidence in the outcome of the modelled (deductive) classification process. Comparison of the classification scheme with other regionalisation/classification schemes (not necessarily hydrological) at the continental scale was undertaken. Concordance was frequently poor. For example, the Australian Water Resources Advisory Council (AWRAC) basin classification is a poor description of flow regime variation except at the broadest scale of tropical versus temperate. Nonetheless, AWRAC drainage divisions remain a convenient construct for discussion of differences in flow regime type. Deductive classification A spatial framework was developed to supply the spatial units for the deductive classification and the representation of surface drainage pathways necessary for the attribution of catchment climatic and landscape characteristics on which the classification is based (Appendix 7). It was derived using new methods of drainage analysis that accommodate the uncoordinated and distributary drainage systems found over much of the Australian continent, underpinned by the latest revision of the national 9 second digital elevation model (DEM). Although the significant delays in the completion of the DEM update affected the timelines for this task this was justified by the improved accuracy of the outcomes that resulted. We generated a number of environmental classifications of the 1.2 million stream reaches with a non-hierarchical clustering method, varying the sets of attributes, their weighting and transformations and the number of groups (Appendix 8). A 30 group ‘hydroecological/environment’ classification was selected for further analysis, based on its ability to recover the flow regime classes generated by the empirical classification, its classification strength and the ease with which the classification might be communicated. The groups are primarily differentiated by attributes describing the catchment climate and water balance and secondarily by attributes characterising catchment morphology, substrate and vegetation cover. The performance of the classification was mixed. The classification strength was relatively high (75% of that for a comparable empirical classification). The groups differentiated significant variation in flow characteristics though less reliably for those metrics describing the frequency and duration of extreme events. However, the classes defined by the empirical classification were only moderately well recovered by the hydroecological environment groups. We suggested some ways in which this might be improved including better characterisation of some hydrological processes, notably those that control the groundwater contribution to streams, and alternative classificatory strategies. These would be the subject of future research. The classification is available from the author (Stein). It is provided as a Geographic Information System (GIS) layer of the stream network with associated attribute tables indicating the group membership and summary statistics of both the environmental attributes from which it was derived and the flow metrics. c) Spatial variation at different scales As mentioned above, the clear distinction between the flow regimes present in northern and southern Australia was one outcome of the classification and not surprisingly reflects differences in climate. Arid zone streams (Divisions VII, X and XII) grouped with tropical divisions (see 2 Appendix 6). These arid zones divisions contained a low diversity of flow regime types. More flow regime types were present in southern than northern Australia, reflecting the greater complexity of the landscape and weather patterns generating stream runoff. Division I in northern Australia and Division II in southern Australia were the most hydrologically diverse. Northern flow regime types were distributed across the region with little spatial pattern. In southern Australia, two flow types (6 and 9: predictable
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Mobile Coverage Report Organisation of Councils
    Far North Queensland Regional Mobile Coverage Report Organisation of Councils Far North Queensland Regional Organisation of Councils Mobile Coverage Report 4 August 2019 Strategy, Planning & Development Implementation Programs Research, Analysis & Measurement Independent Broadband Testing Digital Mapping Far North Queensland Regional Mobile Coverage Report Organisation of Councils Document History Version Description Author Date V1.0 Mobile Coverage Report Michael Whereat 29 July 2019 V2.0 Mobile Coverage Report – Michael Whereat 4 August 2019 updated to include text results and recommendations V.2.1 Amendments to remove Palm Michael Whereat 15 August 2019 Island reference Distribution List Person Title Darlene Irvine Executive Officer, FNQROC Disclaimer: Information in this document is based on available data at the time of writing this document. Digital Economy Group Consulting Pty Ltd or its officers accept no responsibility for any loss occasioned to any person acting or refraining from acting in reliance upon any material contained in this document. Copyright © Digital Economy Group 2011-19. This document is copyright and must be used except as permitted below or under the Copyright Act 1968. You may reproduce and publish this document in whole or in part for you and your organisation’s own personal and internal compliance, educational or non-commercial purposes. You must not reproduce or publish this document for commercial gain without the prior written consent of the Digital Economy Group Consulting Pty. Ltd. Far North Queensland Regional Mobile Coverage Report Organisation of Councils Executive Summary For Far North QLD Regional Organisation of Councils (FNQROC) the challenge of growing the economy through traditional infrastructure is now being exacerbated by the need to also facilitate the delivery of digital infrastructure to meet the expectations of industry, residents, community and visitors or risk being left on the wrong side of the digital divide.
    [Show full text]
  • Cape York Peninsula Parks and Reserves Visitor Guide
    Parks and reserves Visitor guide Featuring Annan River (Yuku Baja-Muliku) National Park and Resources Reserve Black Mountain National Park Cape Melville National Park Endeavour River National Park Kutini-Payamu (Iron Range) National Park (CYPAL) Heathlands Resources Reserve Jardine River National Park Keatings Lagoon Conservation Park Mount Cook National Park Oyala Thumotang National Park (CYPAL) Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park (CYPAL) Great state. Great opportunity. Cape York Peninsula parks and reserves Thursday Possession Island National Park Island Pajinka Bamaga Jardine River Resources Reserve Denham Group National Park Jardine River Eliot Creek Jardine River National Park Eliot Falls Heathlands Resources Reserve Captain Billy Landing Raine Island National Park (Scientific) Saunders Islands Legend National Park National park Sir Charles Hardy Group National Park Mapoon Resources reserve Piper Islands National Park (CYPAL) Wen Olive River loc Conservation park k River Wuthara Island National Park (CYPAL) Kutini-Payamu Mitirinchi Island National Park (CYPAL) Water Moreton (Iron Range) Telegraph Station National Park Chilli Beach Waterway Mission River Weipa (CYPAL) Ma’alpiku Island National Park (CYPAL) Napranum Sealed road Lockhart Lockhart River Unsealed road Scale 0 50 100 km Aurukun Archer River Oyala Thumotang Sandbanks National Park Roadhouse National Park (CYPAL) A r ch KULLA (McIlwraith Range) National Park (CYPAL) er River C o e KULLA (McIlwraith Range) Resources Reserve n River Claremont Isles National Park Coen Marpa
    [Show full text]
  • Normanby River Basin
    143°30'E ! 144°E 144°30'E 145°E King Island Stanley Waters in National Parks, Cape Flinders Pipon Island conservation estate Island Cape Melville Blackwood Flinders Island Island DRAFT 13 Normanby estuarine e Denham Island n waters (incl. Bizant, i l Bathurst Bay Normanby, Saltwater G Temple o Ck r and others adjacent ge e C k m Princess Charlotte Bay) ! Princess u ¬12 «¬14 l « Ebagoola Charlotte P Stewart Basin Bay «¬13 Annie R iver «¬13 Bewick Island Ba t M t e D 14 Princess Charlotte Bay r in B k a k e S n r S ' y e ' C e e C iza r r 0 r n e 0 3 e r r C 3 ° r ek 13 t C ° i 4 e «¬ e a 4 e t k 1 d 1 k R t Cape Bowen o i n v o R u e k . m a a 13 r r «¬ r W teen a Fif Mile 01 11 C «¬ «¬ B Coleman r k e Birt r h e C d e vi r k a 11 e R k «¬ y t Basin C k a e k ic e W k 11 D w r «¬ C e e o C s e r t r t H i e y Nymph Island t C h a k w r ile C lt e W c Five M reek a B o e i S k r R r k t F e k h e our M r e Cree d v ile C r a i te er y R iv 12 C ie a R ¬ « r tw e n l n n a an e H k a Sa ter Creek S e ltwa J k N ee k r k 11 C C o «¬ C e r m s le l te i i i t eek r h r a A k C Be ttie J e a n n i e B a s i n M C M e K e re s k r k n C South Five Mile Cree e n e r k e e o e e nt in C t te urpe H Port v f T n i i h e S n i cke F ig r tt ta r R R iv of Cape E e e a e n .
    [Show full text]
  • Surface Water Resources of Cape York Peninsula
    CAPE YORK PENINSULA LAND USE STRATEGY LAND USE PROGRAM SURFACE WATER RESOURCES OF CAPE YORK PENINSULA A.M. Horn Queensland Department of Primary Industries 1995 r .am1, a DEPARTMENT OF, PRIMARY 1NDUSTRIES CYPLUS is a joint initiative of the Queensland and Commonwealth Governments CAPE YORK PENINSULA LAND USE STRATEGY (CYPLUS) Land Use Program SURFACE WATER RESOURCES OF CAPE YORK PENINSULA A.M.Horn Queensland Department of Primary Industries CYPLUS is a joint initiative of the Queensland and Commonwealth Governments Recommended citation: Horn. A. M (1995). 'Surface Water Resources of Cape York Peninsula'. (Cape York Peninsula Land Use Strategy, Office of the Co-ordinator General of Queensland, Brisbane, Department of the Environment, Sport and Territories, Canberra and Queensland Department of Primary Industries.) Note: Due to the timing of publication, reports on other CYPLUS projects may not be fully cited in the BIBLIOGRAPHY section. However, they should be able to be located by author, agency or subject. ISBN 0 7242 623 1 8 @ The State of Queensland and Commonwealth of Australia 1995. Copyright protects this publication. Except for purposes permitted by the Copyright Act 1968, - no part may be reproduced by any means without the prior written permission of the Office of the Co-ordinator General of Queensland and the Australian Government Publishing Service. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to: Office of the Co-ordinator General, Government of Queensland PO Box 185 BRISBANE ALBERT STREET Q 4002 The Manager, Commonwealth Information Services GPO Box 84 CANBERRA ACT 2601 CAPE YORK PENINSULA LAND USE STRATEGY STAGE I PREFACE TO PROJECT REPORTS Cape York Peninsula Land Use Strategy (CYPLUS) is an initiative to provide a basis for public participation in planning for the ecologically sustainable development of Cape York Peninsula.
    [Show full text]
  • A Re-Examination of William Hann´S Northern Expedition of 1872 to Cape York Peninsula, Queensland
    CSIRO PUBLISHING Historical Records of Australian Science, 2021, 32, 67–82 https://doi.org/10.1071/HR20014 A re-examination of William Hann’s Northern Expedition of 1872 to Cape York Peninsula, Queensland Peter Illingworth TaylorA and Nicole Huxley ACorresponding author. Email: [email protected] William Hann’s Northern Expedition set off on 26 June 1872 from Mount Surprise, a pastoral station west of Townsville, to determine the mineral and agricultural potential of Cape York Peninsula. The expedition was plagued by disharmony and there was later strong criticism of the leadership and its failure to provide any meaningful analysis of the findings. The authors (a descendent of Norman Taylor, expedition geologist, and a descendent of Jerry, Indigenous guide and translator) use documentary sources and traditional knowledge to establish the role of Jerry in the expedition. They argue that while Hann acknowledged Jerry’s assistance to the expedition, his role has been downplayed by later commentators. Keywords: botany, explorers, geology, indigenous history, palaeontology. Published online 27 November 2020 Introduction research prominence. These reinterpretations of history not only highlight the cultural complexity of exploration, but they also During the nineteenth century, exploration for minerals, grazing demonstrate the extent to which Indigenous contributions were and agricultural lands was widespread in Australia, with expedi- obscured or deliberately removed from exploration accounts.4 tions organised through private, public and/or government spon- William Hann’s Northern Expedition to Cape York Peninsula sorship. Poor leadership and conflicting aspirations were common, was not unique in experiencing conflict and failing to adequately and the ability of expedition members to cooperate with one another acknowledge the contributions made by party members, notably in the face of hardships such as food and water shortages, illness and Jerry, Aboriginal guide and interpreter.
    [Show full text]
  • Groundwater Resources of Cape York Peninsula
    NATURAL RESOURCES ANALYSIS PROGRAM (NRAP) GROUNDWATER RESOURCES OF CAPE YORK PENINSULA A.M.Horn, E. A. Derrington, G.C. Herbert, R. W. Lait and J.R. ~illiir' Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Australian Geological Survey Organisation 1995 r-I AGSO CYPLUS is a joint initiative of the Qr~eenslandand Commonwealth Governments CAPE YORK PENINSULA LAND USE STRATEGY (CYPLUS) Natural Resources Analysis Program GROUNDWATER RESOURCES OF CAPE YORK PENINSULA A.M.Horn, E.A. Demngton, G.C. Herbert, R. W. Lait and J.R. Hillier Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Australian Geological Survey Organisation 1995 -_ - CYPLUS is a joint initiative of the Queensland and Commonwealth Governments Final report on project: NR16 - GROUNDWATER RESOURCES Recommended citation: Horn, A.M., Derrington, E.A., Herbert, G.C., Lait, R.W., Hillier, J.R. (1995). 'Groundwater Resources of Cape York Peninsula'. (Cape York Peninsula Land Use Strategy, Office of the Co-ordinator General of Queensland, Brisbane, Department of the Environment, Sport and Territories, Canberra, Queensland Department of Primary Industries, Brisbane and Mareeba, and Australian Geological Survey Organisation, Mareeba.) Note: Due to the timing of publication, reports on other CYPLUS projects may not be fully cited in the BIBLIOGRAPHY section. However, they should be able to be located by author, agency or subject. ISBN 0 7242 6232 6 @ The State of Queensland and Commonwealth of Australia 1995. Copyright protects this publication. Except for purposes permitted by the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any means without the prior written permission of the Office of the Co-ordinator General of Queensland and the Australian Government Publishing Service.
    [Show full text]
  • Fitzroy Basin Resource Operations Plan
    Fitzroy Basin Resource Operations Plan September 2014 Amended September 2015 This publication has been compiled by Water Policy—Department of Natural Resource and Mines. © State of Queensland, 2015 The Queensland Government supports and encourages the dissemination and exchange of its information. The copyright in this publication is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia (CC BY) licence. Under this licence you are free, without having to seek our permission, to use this publication in accordance with the licence terms. You must keep intact the copyright notice and attribute the State of Queensland as the source of the publication. Note: Some content in this publication may have different licence terms as indicated. For more information on this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/deed.en The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The Queensland Government shall not be liable for technical or other errors or omissions contained herein. The reader/user accepts all risks and responsibility for losses, damages, costs and other consequences resulting directly or indirectly from using this information. Contents Chapter 1 Preliminary .............................................................................. 1 1 Short title ............................................................................................................. 1 2 Commencement of the resource operations plan amendment ............................. 1 3 Purpose of plan ..................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Surface Water Ambient Network (Water Quality) 2020-21
    Surface Water Ambient Network (Water Quality) 2020-21 July 2020 This publication has been compiled by Natural Resources Divisional Support, Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy. © State of Queensland, 2020 The Queensland Government supports and encourages the dissemination and exchange of its information. The copyright in this publication is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence. Under this licence you are free, without having to seek our permission, to use this publication in accordance with the licence terms. You must keep intact the copyright notice and attribute the State of Queensland as the source of the publication. Note: Some content in this publication may have different licence terms as indicated. For more information on this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The Queensland Government shall not be liable for technical or other errors or omissions contained herein. The reader/user accepts all risks and responsibility for losses, damages, costs and other consequences resulting directly or indirectly from using this information. Summary This document lists the stream gauging stations which make up the Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy (DNRME) surface water quality monitoring network. Data collected under this network are published on DNRME’s Water Monitoring Information Data Portal. The water quality data collected includes both logged time-series and manual water samples taken for later laboratory analysis. Other data types are also collected at stream gauging stations, including rainfall and stream height. Further information is available on the Water Monitoring Information Data Portal under each station listing.
    [Show full text]
  • Lands of the Isaac-Comet Area, Queensland
    IMPORTANT NOTICE © Copyright Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (‘CSIRO’) Australia. All rights are reserved and no part of this publication covered by copyright may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means except with the written permission of CSIRO Division of Land and Water. The data, results and analyses contained in this publication are based on a number of technical, circumstantial or otherwise specified assumptions and parameters. The user must make its own assessment of the suitability for its use of the information or material contained in or generated from the publication. To the extend permitted by law, CSIRO excludes all liability to any person or organisation for expenses, losses, liability and costs arising directly or indirectly from using this publication (in whole or in part) and any information or material contained in it. The publication must not be used as a means of endorsement without the prior written consent of CSIRO. NOTE This report and accompanying maps are scanned and some detail may be illegible or lost. Before acting on this information, readers are strongly advised to ensure that numerals, percentages and details are correct. This digital document is provided as information by the Department of Natural Resources and Water under agreement with CSIRO Division of Land and Water and remains their property. All enquiries regarding the content of this document should be referred to CSIRO Division of Land and Water. The Department of Natural Resources and Water nor its officers or staff accepts any responsibility for any loss or damage that may result in any inaccuracy or omission in the information contained herein.
    [Show full text]
  • IR 519 Preliminary Analysis of Streamflow Characteristics of The
    internal report 519 Preliminary analysis of streamflow characteristics of the tropical rivers region DR Moliere February 2007 (Release status - unrestricted) Preliminary analysis of streamflow characteristics of the tropical rivers region DR Moliere Hydrological and Geomorphic Processes Program Environmental Research Institute of the Supervising Scientist Supervising Scientist Division GPO Box 461, Darwin NT 0801 February 2007 Registry File SG2006/0061 (Release status – unrestricted) How to cite this report: Moliere DR 2007. Preliminary analysis of streamflow characteristics of the tropical rivers region. Internal Report 519, February, Supervising Scientist, Darwin. Unpublished paper. Location of final PDF file in SSD Explorer \Publications Work\Publications and other productions\Internal Reports (IRs)\Nos 500 to 599\IR519_TRR Hydrology (Moliere)\IR519_TRR hydrology (Moliere).pdf Contents Executive summary v Acknowledgements v Glossary vi 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Climate 2 2 Hydrology 5 2.1 Annual flow 5 2.2 Monthly flow 7 2.3 Focus catchments 11 2.3.1 Data 11 2.3.2 Data quality 18 3 Streamflow classification 19 3.1 Derivation of variables 19 3.2 Multivariate analysis 24 3.2.1 Effect of flow data quality on hydrology variables 31 3.3 Validation 33 4 Conclusions and recommendations 35 5 References 35 Appendix A – Rainfall and flow gauging stations within the focus catchments 38 Appendix B – Long-term flow stations throughout the tropical rivers region 43 Appendix C – Extension of flow record at G8140040 48 Appendix D – Annual runoff volume and annual peak discharge 52 Appendix E – Derivation of Colwell parameter values 81 iii iv Executive summary The Tropical Rivers Inventory and Assessment Project is aiming to categorise the ecological character of rivers throughout Australia’s wet-dry tropical rivers region.
    [Show full text]
  • The Impacts of Climate Change on Fitzroy River Basin, Queensland, Australia
    Journal of Civil Engineering and Architecture 11 (2017) 38-47 doi: 10.17265/1934-7359/2017.01.005 D DAVID PUBLISHING The Impacts of Climate Change on Fitzroy River Basin, Queensland, Australia Nahlah Abbas1, Saleh A. Wasimi1, Surya Bhattarai2 and Nadhir Al-Ansari3 1. School of Engineering and Technology, Central Queensland University, Melbourne 3000, Australia 2. School of Medical and Applied Sciences, Central Queensland University, Melbourne 3000, Australia 3. Geotechnical Engineering, Lulea University of Technology, Lulea 971 87, Sweden Abstract: An analysis of historical data of Fitzroy River, which lies in the east coast of Australia, reveals that there is an increasing trend in extreme floods and droughts apparently attributable to increased variability of blue and green waters which could be due to climate change. In order to get a better understanding of the impacts of climate change on the water resources of the study area for near future as well as distant future, SWAT (soil and water assessment tool) model was applied. The model is first tested for its suitability in capturing the basin characteristics with available data, and then, forecasts from six GCMs (general circulation model) with about half-a-century lead time to 2046~2064 and about one-century lead time to 2080~2100 are incorporated to evaluate the impacts of climate change under three marker emission scenarios: A2, A1B and B1. The results showed worsening water resources regime into the future. Key words: Fitzroy basin, climate change, water resources, SWAT. 1. Introduction (soil and water assessment tool) was applied since it has found widespread application throughout the world Australia is one of the driest continents in the world [4], and after calibration and validation, GCM model and recognized as one of the most vulnerable to climate outputs were used to delineate future water regimes.
    [Show full text]
  • Effects of Mining on the Fitzroy River Basin
    A study of the cumulative impacts on water quality of mining activities in the Fitzroy River Basin April 2009 Acknowledgements: The Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) would like to thank staff from the former Departments of Natural Resources and Water, and Mines and Energy who supplied data for this report. DERM would also like to thank the operators of all coal mines within the Fitzroy Basin who kindly provided the information which formed the basis of this report. (c) The State of Queensland (Department of Environment and Resource Management) 2008 Disclaimer: While this document has been prepared with care it contains general information and does not profess to offer legal, professional or commercial advice. The Queensland Government accepts no liability for any external decisions or actions taken on the basis of this document. Persons external to the Department of Environment and Resource Management should satisfy themselves independently and by consulting their own professional advisors before embarking on any proposed course of action. Maps Source: Department of Environment and Resource Management data sets. Cadastral Information supplied by NR&W. SDRN road data ©MapInfo Australia Pty Ltd 2008 ©Public Sector Mapping Authority Australia Pty Ltd 2008. Projections Geographic Datum GDA94. 2 ACCURACY STATEMENT Due to varying sources of data, spatial locations may not coincide when overlaid DISCLAIMER Maps are compiled from information supplied to the Department of Environment and Resource Management. While all care is taken in the preparation of these maps, neither the Department nor its officers or staff accept any responsibility for any loss or damage which may result from inaccuracy or omission in the maps from the use of the information contained therein.
    [Show full text]