The current research portfolio includes the following projects:
Water Sciences Group
Analytical
Evaluation of Catchment Best Management Practices
This project will include a desk top evaluation of the effectiveness of Best Management Practices that can be applied at catchment scale. This will be followed up with field assessments of the most effective BMPs in selected ACTEW catchment locations to verify the effectiveness of water quality improvements.
Project Manager: Danielle Baker.
Participants: ACTEW, ActewAGL, ALS Water Resources Group.
Carbon Dynamics Post Fires
This project will determine the impacts of fire on the carbon dynamics and trophic structures of upland streams in the ACT, Australia.
Project Manager: Jean-Michel Benier.
Participants: ACTEW, ActewAGL, ALS Water Resources Group, University of New England.
Aquatic ecosystem tolerance to TDS
The project will assess aquatic ecosystem tolerance to Total Dissolved Solids in the Murrumbidgee catchment.
Project Manager: Patrick Maiden.
Participants: ACTEW, ActewAGL, University of Canberra, Australian National University, University of Technology Sydney, ALS Water Resources Group.
Googong nutrient loading investigation
The major objective of this work is to identify and quantify (estimate) the loadings of nutrients in the Googong Dam, arising from its water supply inputs. This would include utilisation of existing information and assets (analytical monitoring data, rainfall and flow
Project Manager: Nimal Chandrasena.
Participants: ACTEW, ActewAGL, Australian National University, ALS Water Resources Group.
Tracking sources of contamination in the Murrumbidgee catchment
The major objective of this project is to identify the impact to water quality of the Murrumbidgee River and Burra Creek from selected inputs and areas of interest. Analytical parameters would be included to estimate the concentration of faecal contamination, the likelihood of human and ruminant origin of contamination, and the volume of flows.
Project Manager: Malcolm Warnecke.
Participants: ACTEW, ActewAGL, ALS Water Resources Group.
Habitat biodiversity assessment
This project will use a novel approach to prioritising aquatic habitat conservation at a catchment level and an ongoing monitoring tool to evaluate conservation efforts using genetic markers.
Project Manager: Claire McClusky.
Participants: ACTEW, Monash University, Vic Dept. Sustainability & Environment, ALS Water Resources Group, University of Canberra, Flinders University, University of Montana.
Analysis of historic data to evaluate links with low recovery of Cryptosporidium
Analysis of historic data to determine factors influencing the low recovery of Cryptosporidium & Giardia from raw water samples.
Project Manager: Christobel Ferguson.
Participants: ALS Water Resources Group, Seqwater, Sydney Water, Australian Water Quality Centre and Water Quality Research Australia.
Cryptosporidium genotyping from slides
This project is a collaboration with the Water Research Foundation to identify the genotype of low number of Cryptosporidium oocysts retained on glass slides following routine water testing.
Project Manager: Greg Sturbaum.
Participants: The Water Research Foundation, ALS Water Resources Group, Texas A&M University, Scottish Parasite Diagnostic Laboratory, Wisconsin State Hygiene Laboratory Water Quality Centre and Water Quality Research Australia.