Evolving water management - eWater - Catchment Hydrology ......1.4 Modelling and estimating sediment and nutrient loads in South East Queensland catchments Program 2 Land-use Impacts

Established and supported under theAustralian Government’s Cooperative

Research Centres Program

Cooperative Research Centre for

Catchment Hydrology Annual Report 2001-2002The Cooperative Research Centre for

Catchment Hydrology is a cooperative

venture formed under the Commonwealth

CRC Program between:

• Brisbane City Council

• Bureau of Meteorology

• CSIRO Land and Water

• Department of Land and Water

Conservation, NSW

• Department of Natural Resources

and Environment, Vic

• Goulburn-Murray Water

• Griffith University

• Melbourne Water

• Monash University

• Murray-Darling Basin Commission

• Natural Resources and Mines, Qld

• Southern Rural Water

• The University of Melbourne

• Wimmera Mallee Water

Associate:

• Water Corporation of Western Australia

Centre Office

Department of Civil Engineering

PO Box 60

Clayton Campus

Monash University

VIC 3800 Australia

Telephone +61 3 9905 2704

Facsimile +61 3 9905 5033

http://www.catchment.crc.org.au

Established and supported under theAustralian Government’s Cooperative

Research Centres Program

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HOBART

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Goulburn/Broken RiversYarra River

Brisbane River

Fitzroy River

Murrumbidgee RiverADELAIDE

MELBOURNE

CANBERRA

SYDNEY

BRISBANE

AUSTRALIA

Hydrology is the study of the properties and laws ofwater, its distribution, movement across and impacton the earth’s surface.

The CRC’s main goal is to produce a region-appropriate Decision Support System (DSS) topredict the movement of water, particulates andsolutes from land to rivers. This system needs tolink the impacts of climate variability, vegetation,soil and water management in an integratedpackage.

The industry-identified issues to beaddressed by our research are:

• sustainable and efficient water allocation

• land-use impacts on rivers, especially after land-clearing

• climate variability (the potential to reducehydrologic risk)

• urban runoff quality

• river restoration

ObjectivesTo achieve its mission, the CRC will:

• mount a quality research program, targeted to meetnational objectives in catchment hydrology, byfocusing on achieving predictive capability atwhole-of-catchment scale

• maximise the synergies of collaboration among itsParties and with related organisations

• involve end-users in the identification, formulation,conduct and use of its research activities

• provide training to increase awareness of, and thenational skill base available in, catchment hydrology

• train and equip postgraduate students as futureleaders in land and water management

• seek to sustain continuity of research in catchmenthydrology consistent with the widespread andpersistent nature of land and water problems

Mission Focus Catchments at June 2002

Research Program/project Structure Core Projects and Major Contract Research Activity

Program 1Predicting Catchment Behaviour 1.1 Development of a catchment modelling toolkit1.2 Scaling procedures to support process-based

modelling at large scales1.3 Development of an environmental management

support system (EMSS) for catchments inSouth East Queensland

1.4 Modelling and estimating sediment and nutrientloads in South East Queensland catchments

Program 2 Land-use Impacts on Rivers 2.1 Sediment movement, water quality and physical

habitat in large river systems2.2 Managing pollutant delivery in dryland upland

catchments2.3 Predicting the effects of land-use changes on

catchment water yield and stream salinity2.5 Nitrogen and carbon dynamics in riparian buffer

zones2.6 Predicting the combined environmental impact

of catchment management regimes on drylandsalinity

Program 3Sustainable Water Allocation 3.1 Integration of water balance, climatic and

economic models3.2 Enhancement of the water market reform process:

A socio-economic analysis of guidelines andprocedures for trading in mature water markets

Program 4Urban Stormwater Quality 4.1 Stormwater pollutant sources, pathways

and impacts4.2 Stormwater best management practices

Program 5Climate Variability 5.1 Modelling and forecasting hydroclimate

variables in space and time5.2 National data bank of stochastic climate

and streamflow models

Program 6River RestorationProject Group A: Stream Restoration –Procedures and Evaluation 6.1 Developing criteria and concepts for planning

the evaluation of stream rehabilitation projects6.2 Optimising urban stream rehabilitation planning

and execution6.3 Restoration ecology in the Granite Creeks, Victoria6.4 Evaluation of riparian revegetation in a South

East Queensland catchment

Project Group B: Tools for Stream Restoration 6.5 Hydraulics and performance of fishways in

Australian streams6.6 Developing tools to predict scour of

rehabilitation works6.7 Developing an environmental flow methodology:

a trial on the Campaspe River6.8 Research to improve the effectiveness of

Australian fishway design

Program 8Education and Training8.1 Capacity building, education and training8.2 Public participation and community change

The Cooperative Research Centre for Catchment Hydrologywill deliver to resource managers the capability to assessthe hydrologic impact of land-use and water managementdecisions at whole-of-catchment scale.

1

A cooperative venture between:

• Brisbane City Council

• Bureau of Meteorology

• CSIRO Land and Water

• Department of Land and Water

Conservation, NSW

• Department of Natural Resources

and Environment, Vic

• Goulburn-Murray Water

• Griffith University

• Melbourne Water

• Monash University

• Murray-Darling Basin Commission

• Natural Resources and Mines, Qld

• Southern Rural Water

• The University of Melbourne

• Wimmera Mallee Water

Associate:

• Water Corporation of Western Australia

Established and supported under the

Australian Government’s Cooperative

Research Centres Pr o g r a m

C ATCHMENT HYDROLO GY 2 0 0 1 – 2002 ANNUAL REPORT

Front Cover Storm over Melbourne, courtesy of ‘The Age’

Back Cover Bureau of Meteorology Radar Station

Published by the Cooperative Research

Centre for Catchment Hydrology,

Centre Office: Department of Civil Engineering,

PO Box 60, Clayton Campus,

Monash University, VIC 3800, Australia

Telephone (03) 9905 2704

Facsimile (03) 9905 5033

International +61 3 9905 2704

http://www.catchment.crc.org.au

© Cooperative Research Centre

for Catchment Hydrology, 2002

ISSN 1320 - 6559

Photography and Graphics

were kindly provided by:

B. Butler, The University of Melbourne

J. Castro, The Age Photo Sales

M. Clarke, Griffith University

T. Dengate, Griffith University

J. Elliott, Bureau of Meteorology

D. Figucio, CSIRO

R. Grayson, The University of Melbourne

NKD Pty Ltd

P. Hairsine, CSIRO

T. Jacobson, CSIRO

K. Kindt, Griffith University

S. Lloyd, Monash University

D. McCarthy, Monash University

N. Marsh, Griffith University

D. Perry, Monash University

N. Plant, AUSPIC

D. Rassam, Natural Resources and Mines, Qld

I. Rutherfurd, The University of Melbourne

M. Stewardson, The University of Melbourne

J. Wise, The University of Melbourne

T. Wong, Monash University

2 3

4 Chairman’s Foreword

6 Director’s Report

8 Program Highlights

10 Structure and Management

14 Cooperative Linkages

20 Research

20 Program 1 Predicting Catchment Behaviour

24 Program 2 Land-use Impacts on Rivers

28 Program 3 Sustainable Water Allocation

32 Program 4 Urban Stormwater Quality

36 Program 5 Climate Variability

40 Program 6 River Restoration

4 6 P rogram 7 Utilisation and Application of Research – Communication and Adoption

56 Program 8 Education and Training

64 Staffing and Administration

66 Public Presentations, Public Relations and Communication

74 Grants and Awards

76 Publications

90 Glossary

91 Performance Indicators

99 Budget

105 Audit

115 Appendix – Staff Resources

Contents

CATCHMENT HYDROLOGY 2001 – 2002 ANNUAL REPORT

Competition for water resources and theconsequences of land clearing on dryland salinity are presenting Australia’s land and watermanagers with significant challenges. Integrationof research outcomes to achieve predictivecapability for large catchments remains the keydriver of the CRC for Catchment Hydrology as itheads into the second half of its seven-year life.

Its main challenge is to integrate more knowledgeinto the simulation packages to ensure allprocess interactions are considered. It is alsoimportant to establish links with industry bodiesthat assist rather than duplicate existingpartnerships.

In project terms, the initial three-year round ofCRC core projects defined by industry needs isnear completion and a process is underway toestablish the second round of new projects tobegin in 2003.

This strategic planning process began with aFuture Issues workshop in May 2001 whereindustry and research leaders outside the CRCranked land and water management issues inorder of research priority. CRC parties were thenasked for their assessment of issues. From thisfeedback, a Board meeting in November 2001brought together priority areas to be addressed by the CRC in the second project round.

The effort spent on defining this second projectround will ensure the needs of our fourteenparticipants as well as land and water managersare met.

Board ReviewTo ensure the Board is well focused for the task ofdelivering predictive capability, a review of Boardperformance was conducted in February 2002,seeking feedback from Board members andresearch Program Leaders.

It confirmed the Board was functioning well, but could further tap the wide range of skills and experience of members in its long-termperformance role of identifying emerging issuesand developing strategies to address key issues.As a result of the review, the Board hascommitted to participating more in CRCworkshops, seminars and industry forumsproviding Board members greater opportunity to contribute their knowledge and interact withresearch staff. The Board will also play a greaterrole in reviewing implementation plans taking theresearch outputs through to adoption.

It was acknowledged that the Board is particularlystrong in managing the CRC’s short-termconformance, that is, its accountability andsupervision of management. Role statements toassist strategic planning are being prepared forBoard members as a review outcome.

Second Year ReviewThe Year Two Stage 1 and Stage 2 reviews ofCRC activities were held in July and November2001, respectively. Stage 1 was an independentreview of the CRC’s science. Stage 2 was anassessment of the CRC’s strategic direction,cooperation and application of research, training,management, budget and performance.

Both reviews praised the CRC’s efforts – thesecond labelling us a model CRC – and deliveredpositive and constructive comments to improvefuture operational aspects. Particular note wasmade of the degree of stakeholder involvementand the close relationship of knowledgegenerated by the CRC and its application bystakeholders.

The Board has accepted and responded to therecommendations made by both review panels.

Review of the Business Plan and research programsThe Board reviewed the CRC’s Business Plan andresearch programs at a workshop in November2001. CRC industry/user Parties provided theirviews on critical issues as part of the review.

Chairman’s Foreword

The key goal for land and water managers and the CRC for Catchment Hydrology is to use research knowledge to link land management actions in whole catchmentswith their impacts on water quantity and quality in streams.

4 5

Board session at Annual WorkshopBoard members Ross Williams, Chris Forster,Peter Jackson and I were pleased to be able topresent our perspectives on strategic issues anddirection of the CRC to researchers and industryParties at the CRC’s Annual Workshop in April atBallarat. Ross Young was able to attend earliersessions and provide valuable input.

The presentations allowed us to discuss andconfirm the Board’s role and responsibilities, talkabout key land and water use issues and theirrelevance to second-round projects, and definethe strategies put in place by the Board to keepbringing industry’s reality to the research agenda.

Thanks I would like to take this opportunity to thank all staffwho continue to contribute so much to this CRC.

Sadly, some people are leaving and I would liketo pay special thanks to our Director, RussellMein, who has dedicated an enormous amount oftime and energy to the CRC. Russell’s leadership,foresight and quiet ability to accommodateindustry and research needs in guiding the firstCRC for Catchment Hydrology, has been a majorfactor in its success and ability to become asuccessful second-round CRC. Congratulations toRob Vertessy, who succeeded Russell on July 1.The Board has every confidence in Rob’s abilityto lead the CRC, coming as he has from a verysuccessful research leadership role in the CRC.

My thanks go to Program Leaders, Tom McMahonand Tony Wong who are stepping down asProgram Leaders in the CRC. They havecontributed such a lot to its research outcomes.

Jim Miller, our Centre Visitor, is completing histhree-year Visitor’s term in June 2002, but willcontinue with further activity in the CRC Programin Chairing the Life Sciences Selection Panel.Jim has been a staunch supporter and wiseadviser to the CRC and we wish him well. Thanks also to Graham Kelleher who has justcompleted his term as Chair of the Life SciencesPanel. Graham chaired the fifth-year review of thefirst Catchment Hydrology CRC and the selectionpanel that recommended granting a second termfor the CRC.

Once again, my thanks go to Board members,who continue to support the strategic goals ofthis CRC and work enthusiastically to help usmeet the challenges of developing predictivecapability in catchments.

John Langford Chairman

Above Dr John Langford, Chairman


Some benefits have been realised already andmore will follow as the outputs of researchprojects take shape. For instance, the softwarepackage MUSIC (Model for Urban StormwaterImprovement Conceptualisation) has just beenreleased, after a roadshow that attracted 700people in five cities. The package will allow usersto plan the appropriate combination and locationof treatment measures on an urban catchment tomeet target water quality objectives.

Training workshops have been strongly supportedand interest in the software is high. Of particularnote is the degree of interest from localgovernment and consultants - quite a differentgroup to the CRC Parties.

Second-Year ReviewA major event for the CRC this year was ourSecond-Year Review. As with previous reviews,we saw it as a team-building opportunity andinvolved as many CRC groups as we could.

The First Stage considered the quality andrelevance of the research program, its progress,and achievability over the CRC’s life. In formingour Panel we placed particular emphasis oncatchment scale prediction; panellists ProfessorsDavid Maidment and Larry Band are world leadersin this field. Professor John Lovering, formerChair of the Murray-Darling Basin Commission,provided specialist skills related to the practicalapplication and usefulness of the researchoutputs. Last but not least, our Centre Visitor, Jim Miller, brought highly relevant experience to the Panel as a former Director General of theDepartment of Primary Industries, Qld.

The CRC Board was very pleased with the Panel’sassessment, in what was a very thorough review.In their report, the Panel made mention of theCRC’s ‘strong emphasis on the relevance of its research program, and on its adoption bystakeholders’. Examples where this is happeningalready were mentioned.

Overall, the Stage 1 Panel found ‘the researchplan is being executed as planned, and goodprogress is being made in all programs’. Acomment from the two overseas panel membersthat they had seen nothing like the synergyachieved by our CRC between research and theuser communities was particularly noteworthy.

Next Round of Projects The August 2001, Board approved a stagedprocess leading to the development of the nextround of projects for the CRC. Following on theearlier Future Issues Workshop, a Board Workshopwas convened to set the CRC’s priorities.

In January 2002, Focus Catchment Coordinators(FCCs) and Program Leaders set out our expectedcapabilities relevant to land and watermanagement - tools and methodologies comingfrom the first round of projects. The group alsoassessed the gaps to be addressed in theremaining four years of the seven-year fundingterm for the CRC to achieve its mission. This wasused as input to a series of Technical AdvisoryGroup (TAG) meetings, one for each Program,with extensive Party input.

Building on the January workshop, we havedeveloped a set of linked project proposals andare working through a selection process, whichmeets our priorities and resources.

Annual WorkshopThis year’s Annual Workshop at Ballarat was the biggest to date, with more than 90 peopleattending. As has been our practice, the programwas structured to bring participants up to date onresearch across the CRC, followed by planninggroups on the application of our CatchmentModelling Toolkit, and other activities. It waspleasing that several Board members were able to attend some sessions and participate in adiscussion of Board Perspectives.

Our Visitor (Jim Miller) gave a positive summaryat the end of the Workshop, noting that theSecond-Year Review’s assessment (that we are a ‘model CRC’) gave him little room to sayanything else.

I’d like to note here how important the AnnualWorkshop is to the spirit of belonging andcooperation in the CRC. Long may it continue!

Postgraduate TrainingProject InvolvementNearly all our CRC postgraduate students arelinked to core projects and, as part of projectteams, are included in project meetings andinteract with industry research and field staff. As a result, they tend to see more relevance tothe big picture in their work. The extra resourcesallocated in project budgets enrich their researchactivities and provide support for them forconferences and other travel.

Director’s Report

Now three years into its current term of funding, the CRC’s first round ofcore research projects are almost completed; we are thus in the periodwhere research outputs start to flow.

6 7

It is CRC policy to include students in strategicdiscussions at the Annual Workshop andschedule special sessions for them to sharetheir research. One student is profiled each monthin Catchword; postgraduate work is also oftenreported under activities in Catchword’s ResearchProgram sections. As part of the corporateapproach, students are issued with CRC businesscards, a gesture they particularly appreciate.

This CRC has given active support for formalskills-based courses for its postgraduates. Inconjunction with the Annual Workshop this year,we expanded this offering to include projectmanagement.

Leadership TrainingWe supported two postgraduate students, one ofwhom was later awarded a scholarship, to attendthe special Leadership Training Course for CRCPostgraduates run through the Business School at The University of Melbourne in August, 2001.Their response to the one-week live-in course hasbeen particularly positive, so we’ll continue tooffer these opportunities as resources allow.

Postgraduates’ CareersWe monitor the early careers of postgraduatesafter they finish their studies, and can report noneseeking work. Most have gone to consultants,government agencies and some to post-doctoralpositions in CSIRO and universities. The segment“Where are they now” in Catchword features pastpostgraduates and is satisfying reading. Clearly,our postgraduates are in high demand.

Thanks to retiring Program LeadersTwo Program Leaders stepped down in 2002.

Tom McMahon led the Urban Program in theoriginal CRC, and has been Leader of the ClimateVariability Program for the current one. He leavesto take up an appointment as Head of theDepartment of Civil and EnvironmentalEngineering at The University of Melbourne.However, I am pleased Tom is able to continuewith the CRC as a Deputy Director.

Tony Wong has been Leader of the UrbanStormwater Quality Program for nearly threeyears, and acknowledged by our Second-yearReview Panel as having built particularly stronglinks to industry. He is moving to the privatesector in August 2002, but is staying connectedto the CRC through a part-time Monashappointment, and will continue to direct theMUSIC software group.

Both Tom and Tony have been outstandingProgram Leaders in the CRC. We thank themsincerely for their contributions.

Farewell ThoughtsThis is my last Annual Report contribution beforeI step down as Director on June 30, 2002.

From my perspective, it has been a wonderfuland challenging seven years: Wonderful, in beingpart of a successful venture and a team effortfrom such a talented group; Challenging, inhaving to deal with so many changes in theoperating environment for the CRC and its Partiesover the past decade. A highlight during my termin office was the successful re-bid with extraParties; the support shown by the existing Partiesin signing-up for another seven years wasimmensely satisfying.

I leave at a good time for myself and the CRC. I am approaching 60 and feel it is time to moveon. The CRC is going well, with four years of itsseven-year term to run. The new Director willhave time to settle in and get established in therole before addressing the future role for the CRCafter 2006.

My thanks to members of the CRC Board andExecutive and to Program Leaders for theircontinuing support over my term as Director.I make particular mention of John Langford for his advice and friendship throughout, and JohnMolloy, CRC Business Manager. My best wishesto Rob Vertessy, incoming Director, for successin his new role. Given Rob’s outstandingcontributions already to the standing of this CRC, I’m really delighted with his appointment.

Russell Mein Director

Above Prof Russell Mein, Director


Predicting Catchment BehaviourCatchment Modelling Toolkit Well-advancedThe Interactive Component Modelling System(ICMS) was launched on the CRC website,allowing model builders and users to access thetechnology in the public domain.

Researchers expanded the new TARSIERcatchment modelling framework from 30% to60% of its expected capability for use in buildingintegrated modelling systems.

ICMS, TARSIER and The Invisible ModellingEnvironment (TIME) frameworks were expandedto build and link catchment hydrology models.

Land-use Impacts on RiversLand-use Impact Changes Viewed First-handCatchment managers and researchers in theFitzroy River Focus Catchment were able toexamine the impacts of land-use change in theFitzroy estuary for the first time at workshops inSeptember 2001, and May 2002, held by theCooperative Research Centre for CatchmentHydrology and the Cooperative Research Centrefor the Coastal Zone, Estuary and WaterwayManagement. Researchers constructed a systemsview of the catchment and estuary using anAdaptive Environmental Assessment andManagement (AEAM) model.

Sustainable Water AllocationWater Management Reviewed, Water Market EvaluatedHaving reviewed water management in Australia,researchers have produced four CRC technicalreports on irrigator and community attitudes towater reform in three Focus Catchments and havedeveloped a water market experimentalmethodology, MWater, to evaluate alternativewater trading rules and procedures in maturewater markets.

Urban Stormwater QualityMUSIC Decision Support System LaunchedThe Decision Support System MUSIC waslaunched to 700 urban stormwater managers inMay 2002. About 150 packages have beenordered. The MUSIC software and methodologybrings together the CRC’s Water Sensitive UrbanDesign research on the operation, design andmaintenance of vegetated swales, bioretentionsystems, constructed wetlands and ponds.MUSIC will support managers in a risk-basedapproach to water quality target setting andevaluating stormwater treatment options.

Climate VariabilityWater Authorities Embrace CRC Weather Research The CRC’s climate variability research package,plays a significant role in predicting andmeasuring storms in Australia, and the CRC’sremote-sensing rainfall research, used by theBureau of Meteorology, has resulted in world-firstclimate prediction technology and has beenapplied internationally.

Rainfall measurement research has improved theBureau of Meteorology’s capability for remotesensing through its national radar network. TheBureau of Meteorology can now more accuratelymeasure the amount of rain falling in storms,providing valuable data for flood warning servicesand water management authorities.

Program Highlights

The second-year review panel noted the high degree of stakeholderinvolvement and the close relationship of knowledge generated by the CRC and its application by stakeholders.

8 9

River RestorationStream Flow Recommendations AdoptedThe CRC’s Flow Events Method is being included as part of the standard methodologyadopted by the Victorian government forenvironmental flow design.

Research on the impact of riparian vegetation on stream temperature in south-east Queenslandstreams showed up to 100C water temperaturedifferences between vegetated and unvegetatedstreams, with implications for stream ecology.

Researchers helped organise the biggest river-related conference in Australia, the ThirdAustralian Stream Management Conference in Brisbane (with more than 400 delegates), in August 2001, and published a 130-paperProceedings.

After holding a workshop on Environmental Flows(November 2001), (understood to be the larg e s tsuch event in Australia to date) the team publisheda special issue of the “Australian Journal of Wa t e rRe s o u rces, on Environmental Flows”.

Communication and AdoptionEMSS Applied in the Brisbane River FocusCatchmentThe Environmental Management Support System(EMSS), a regional water quality model, has beenapplied across south-east Queensland to predictsediment and nutrient fluxes through the rivernetwork and into Moreton Bay. EMSS is alsobeing used by the Brisbane-based consultancygroup WBM Oceanics, as part of the South EastQueensland Regional Water Quality ManagementStrategy.

Education and TrainingActive Postgraduate ProgramTeri Etchells won the Australian PostgraduateAward for Best Presentation at the 27th Hydrologyand Water Resources Symposium in Melbourne,in May 2002 for her work on A Methodology forCalculating Water Trading Exchange Rates in theMurray-Darling Basin.

Lucy McKergow gained second prize in theDepartment of Conservation and New ZealandLimnological Society PhD Student PresentationAwards at Just Add Water, the Joint Conference ofthe New Zealand Hydrological Society and NewZealand Limnological Society, Massey University,Palmerston North, New Zealand, in November2001. Lucy‘s PhD is entitled Monitoring riparianlands for water quality improvement.

45 postgraduates studied across CRC Programs,including nine new 2001-2002 students

Ten postgraduates were employed in watermanagement industry agencies and researchorganisations, or pursued further studies.

Above LeftWater Sensitive Urban Designdemonstrated to Second YearReview Stage 1 Panel

Above RightTeri Etchells – award for best“student” presentation at 27thHydrology and Water ResourcesSymposium 2002


Centre StructureThe Centre brings together, in an unincorporatedjoint venture, the following Parties:

Land and Water Management AuthoritiesD e p a rtment of Land and Water Conservation, NSWDepartment of Natural Resources andEnvironment, VicGoulburn-Murray WaterMurray-Darling Basin Commission Natural Resources and Mines, QldSouthern Rural WaterWimmera Mallee Water

Urban Water AuthoritiesBrisbane City Council Melbourne Water

CSIRO CSIRO Land and Water

UniversitiesGriffith University Monash University The University of Melbourne

National Meteorological BodyBureau of Meteorology

Governing BoardThe Board is responsible for short - t e r mconformance, that is accountability and supervisionof management, and long-term performance orpolicy formulation and strategic thinking.

Board membership as at 30 June 2002 was:

Dr John Langford (Independent Chairman),Executive Director, Water Services Association of Australia Mr Barry Ball, Manager Water Resources, UrbanManagement Division, Brisbane City CouncilProfessor Mike Brisk, Dean, Faculty ofEngineering, Monash UniversityMr Geoff Earl, Manager, Production andCatchments, Goulburn-Murray WaterMs Christine Forster (Independent BoardMember) replaced Mrs Bobbie Brazil fromNovember, 2001Mr Graham Hawke, Director, Technical Services,Southern Rural Water (non-voting participant)Professor Jane Hughes, Faculty of Enviro n m e n t a lSciences, Griffith University replaced Professor BillH o g a rth from February, 2002Mr Denis Hussey (Independent Board Member),Senior Associate, ACIL ConsultingMr Peter Jackson, Manager of TechnicalServices, Wimmera Mallee Water (non-votingparticipant)Mr Scott Keyworth , Director Landscapes andIndustries, Murray-Darling Basin Commissionreplaced Mr Kevin Goss from February, 2002Professor Rao Kotagiri, Associate Dean –Research, Faculty of Engineering, The Universityof Melbourne (Professor Clive Fraser, hassucceeded Professor Kotagiri as Associate Deanand as CRC Board member from July 2002)

Professor Russell Mein, CRC Director, MonashUniversity (Professor Rob Vertessy , CSIROLand and Water, has succeeded Professor Meinas Director from July 2002)Dr Chris Moran , Manager – Program Initiation,Healthy Country Flagship Program, CSIRO Landand WaterMs Rae Moran, Senior Hydrologist, Catchmentand Water Division, Department of NaturalResources and Environment, VicMr Chris Robson, Executive Director, NaturalResources and Sciences, Natural Resources andMines, Qld, replaced Mr Don Begbie, who tookover from Mr Frank van Schagen, from August2001 to February 2002Mr Bruce Stewar t, Assistant Director Climate,Consultative and Hydrological Services, Bureau of Meteorology replaced Dr Geoff Love from May,2002 (Alternates – Dr Mike Manton, Dr Alan Seed)Mr Ross Williams, General Manager, Centre forNatural Resources, Department of Land and WaterConservation, NSWMr Ross Young, General Manager Planning,Melbourne Water

The Governing Board met on these dates:

31 August, 200123 November, 200122 February, 200231 May, 2002

Structure and Management

1 0 1 1

Centre ManagementThe Centre’s Director and office are based atMonash University, Melbourne. As of 1 July2002, the Director will be based at CSIRO Landand Water, Canberra.

The main research facilities are at MonashUniversity, Clayton, Vic; CSIRO Land and Water,Canberra; Griffith University, Brisbane; and The University of Melbourne, with significantactivity in several other Party locations.

The three Deputy Directors oversee operations at the Brisbane, Canberra and Melbourne sites.

Strategic DirectionsThe Centre’s strategic direction and operationsare guided by its Business Plan, developedduring the bid for the new CRC. The CRC Boardreviewed the Business Plan in November 2001and identified strategic directions consistent withthe Business Plan.

Second Year ReviewA Second Year Review was held for the Centre,with the Review being conducted in two stages.

Stage 1 of the Second Year Review of the CRC for Catchment Hydrology was a scientific andtechnical review of the Centre conducted on 24,25 and 26 July 2001 at Melbourne. The Panel comprised:

Prof David Maidment (panel Chair), University of TexasProf Lawrence Band, University of North Caro l i n aProf John Lovering , The University of MelbourneMr Jim Miller, CRC Visitor

Stage 2 which addressed strategic directions andthe management of the Centre, was undertakenon 1 and 2 November by the following panel:

Mr Graeme Kelleher (panel Chair), Graeme Kelleher & AssociatesDr Graham Allison (independent panel member)Mr Jim Miller, CRC VisitorMs Caryl Treloar, CRC ProgramMr Adrian Linehan, CRC Program

(Outline details on this positive review arecontained in the Chairman’s Foreword, and theDirector’s Report).

Research ProgramsThe Centre supports 14 core projects within thefollowing six research programs:

Program 1 Predicting Catchment BehaviourProgram 2 Land-use Impacts on RiversProgram 3 Sustainable Water AllocationProgram 4 Urban Stormwater QualityProgram 5 Climate VariabilityProgram 6 River Restoration

Program and Project Leaders meet regularly,generally monthly, in conjunction with the CentreExecutive. Five Focus Catchment Coordinatorsprovide ongoing feedback to the Executive andBoard about progress and issues within eachcatchment.

Review panels, made up of independent researchand industry specialists allied to each project,help monitor progress against milestones andgenerally meet twice-yearly with project teams to ensure each is on track to producing statedoutcomes. Technical Advisory Groups for eachproject were re-formed in 2002 to help identif yand develop the second three-year round ofprojects starting in 2003.

Facing PageFar Left Governing Boardparticipants, at May 2002 meeting in Canberra

Centre Presentation by Dr JohnLangford to retiring Director ProfRussell Mein at Annual Workshop

Right New Director, Prof RobVertessy

This PageAbove Left Stage Two Panel of Second Year Review in session with postgraduates

Above Right Executive, ProgramLeaders and Focus CatchmentCoordinators at Woodend workshop, January 2002

Annual WorkshopMore than 90 people attended this year’s staffworkshop at Sebastopol, Ballarat, Vic, from 16-18 April, 2002.

The program was structured to updateparticipants on the spectrum of CRC research as a prelude to forming planning groups toimplement the Catchment Modelling Toolkit andfuture activities. Several Board members attendedsessions and participated in a presentation anddiscussion session outlining their perspectives of the CRC.

The workshop again proved a useful way to shareinformation between re s e a rchers, Pa rties andmanagement. It also provided a forum forpostgraduates and re s e a rchers to outline their workand an opportunity for all to become more familiarwith the big-picture perspective of CRC activities.

The Centre Visitor, Jim Miller, summarised keyissues from the workshop, noting the difficulty of integrating solutions for land and watermanagement problems across catchments, butpraising the CRC for working to tie processestogether. He commented that catchment issueswill still exist at the end of the CRC’s life and a re-bid may need to be considered. He noted the Second-Year Review panel (includinginternational experts) were impressed with several world-class research activities in theCRC. He also noted the high level of industryinvolvement as evidenced by Board and Partyparticipation at the workshop.

Participation ArrangementsOrganisations are offered participation in the CRC via the following arrangements:

C RC Pa rt y – with direct involvement in re s e a rch andtechnology adoption and a full range of benefits.C RC Associate – direct involvement with aselected project and outcomes, plus other benefits.CRC Research Affiliate – provides anopportunity for major research collaboration with organisations outside the CRC. CRC Industry Affiliate – provides an opportunityfor collaboration with industry, essentiallycommercial organisations, outside the CRC.

Centre VisitorIn the past three years, the CRC has benefitedgreatly from liaising with Mr Jim Miller, theCentre Visitor. Jim has helped the CRC withnational CRC Program requirements, as well as with more specific strategic directions andoutcomes.

On 30 June 2002, Jim completed his term asVisitor for the CRC for Catchment Hydrology.He has now assumed the role of Chair of the LifeSciences Selection Panel in the CRC Program.


Structure and Management

Far Left (L to R) Second YearReview Stage 1 Panel – Prof JohnLovering, Prof Larry Band, ProfDavid Maidment and Mr Jim Miller

Left Chair of Stage Two Panel ofSecond Year Review, Mr GraemeKelleher

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Centre Structure

and Links Between Programs


Collaboration Across ProgramsThe integrated approach adopted by the CRCrelies on the concept of climate, land-use andwater management driven catchment response.All of which give rise to impacts, which, ifunderstood, can be managed.

To provide predictive capability which takesaccount of and measure all of these impacts,research programs must interact closely, eachproviding crucial information to outputs thatachieve this goal.

A key part the development of the CRC’sresearch, and its subsequent communication and adoption, is the links with CRC Parties,collaborating organisations and land and waterindustry users, as well as the links between theCRC’s Programs.

Links Between PartiesThe cooperative involvement of Centre Partiescontinues and is reflected in the following:

• research and industry representatives jointlyformulate research projects

• all projects involve at least two Parties

• focus research sites bring research, industry and regional representatives together

• the Parties participate in project review panelsabout every six months

• staff are seconded from industry to research sites and vice versa

• postgraduate supervisory panels include non-university members

• an annual CRC-wide workshop is organised for staff and Parties

• regular information exchange is encouragedthrough email, the newsletter Catchword and the internal newsletter CatchUp

Parties interact within programs in variousprojects and activities:

The Environmental Management SupportSystem (EMSS) to manage water quality across south-east Qld, funded by the South East Queensland Regional Water QualityManagement Strategy, involves the CRC and CSIRO Land and Water.

• Project 2.5 looks at the movement of potentialpollutants through the landscape in the BrisbaneRiver Focus Catchment. This involves NaturalResources and Mines Qld and is co-funded bythe CRC for Coastal Zone, Estuary and WaterwayManagement.

• Program 3’s (Sustainable Water Allocation)industry Parties reviewed the Integrated Quantityand Quality Model (IQQM) and the REALM modelfor their ability to take account of climatevariability and hydrological constraints oncatchment yield and water supply.

• Brisbane City Council and Melbourne Water areactively testing and developing Program 4’sMUSIC model in their organisations. MUSIChelps users evaluate stormwater managementsystems to meet water quality objectives.

• Program 4’s (Urban Stormwater Quality) workwith the Freshwater Ecology CRC continues tomonitor water flows and biological quality.Collaboration with researchers in Project 6.2 also continues.

• Several studies undertaken in Program 5 (ClimateVariability) involve one Catchment HydrologyCRC - funded researcher working at the Bureau of Meteorology, Melbourne and two Bureau staffworking full-time in the Program. The studiesrelate to forecasting short-term rainfall, space-time characteristics of rainfall andimproving land-surface models within theBureau’s climate forecast models.

Cooperative Linkages

Links with CRC Parties, between CRC Programs, with collaboratingorganisations and with land and water industry users are a key part of the development of the research and its communication and adoption.

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• In Program 6 (River Restoration), evaluation ofriparian vegetation in a south-east Queenslandcatchment is being undertaken by SEQRWQMS,Natural Resources and Mines, Qld, and BrisbaneCity Council.

• Another Program 6 project looks at the natureand effectiveness of environmental flows in theCampaspe River, Vic, and involves Goulburn-Murray Water in its role as the river operator and a CRC industry Party.

• Postgraduate student, Lindsay White (Program 6)spent two months conducting field work atYarrawonga and Torrumbarry Weirs, owned by theMurray-Darling Basin Commission and operatedby Goulburn-Murray Water.

• Melbourne Water is working in Program 6 to optimise urban stream rehabilitation.

• Program 7, Communication and Adoption, andProgram 8, Education and Training, enjoy activeinput from all Parties. The Program Leader forEducation and Training also performs this role forthe CRC for Coastal Zone, Estuary and WaterwayManagement. Postgraduate student RebeccaBartley is based at CSIRO’s Tropical ForestResearch Centre in Atherton, Qld, to docollaborative work.

Collaboration with otherResearch GroupsThe Centre adds value to its research outcomesby working with other CRCs and land and watermanagement authorities with complementaryresearch aims, strategies and skills. They are:

• the Freshwater Ecology CRC (River RestorationProgram), sharing skills in aquatic ecosystemsand environmental flows

• the Coastal Zone, Estuary and WaterwayManagement CRC sharing modelling capability of flows, sediment and nutrients

• Land and Water Australia, facilitating projectsinvolving riparian zone and dryland salinitymanagement, and sustainable forestry

• three CSIRO Divisions participating in a majorMurray-Darling Basin land-use initiative

• the Water Forum CRCs, to assist training acrossthe water industry

The Freshwater Ecology and Coastal Zone CRCsare involved in Project 2.5: Riparian zonetransport and transformation of nitrogen. Further,the Freshwater Ecology CRC is collaborating insix of the seven projects in Program 6: RiverRestoration.

International CollaborationThe Centre continued its internationalcollaboration with enhanced links across several areas :

• The UK Meteorological Office, in developing and applying weather production ‘nowcasting’methods. Dr Alan Seed, Program 5 (ClimateVariability) spent time at the MeteorologicalOffice in March 2002.

• Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium with continued interaction in Program 2, ‘Land Use Impacts on Rivers’. Kristof van Oostfrom U C Leuven’s laboratory for ExperimentalGeomorphology collaborated with Dr PeterHairsine, Program 2 Leader in Canberra in June 2002.

• University of North Carolina, Prof Larry Band who took part in the Centre’s Second YearReview, Stage 1 and spent time at the CRCCanberra node, CSIRO Land and Water,particularly in furthering the CatchmentModelling Toolkit being developed with Program 1 ‘Predicting Catchment Behaviour’.These discussions followed a visit by the ToolkitGroup to the United States in June/July 2001with joint activity with Prof Band and other UnitedStates collaborators.



Previous Page Participants fromCRC Parties at Annual Workshop,Ballarat, April 2002

Far Left (L to R) Board members atAnnual Workshop – Mr Ross Wi l l i a m s( D LWC); Ms Christine Forster and DrJohn Langford (independent Boardmembers); and Mr Peter Jackson,(Southern Rural Water)

Left Joint briefing with CRC forFreshwater Ecology to Board ofSouthern Rural Water, October 2001

Integration and

Collaboration Across Programs

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Other Toolkit collaboration occurred with thevisits of Prof Ralf Denzer (HTW Saarlandes,Germany) and Michel Blind (RIZA, theNetherlands) to Dr Robert Argent, Project Leader:Project 1.1 ‘Development of a CatchmentModelling Toolkit’ in August and December 2001 respectively.

• Prof Geoff Pegram, University of Natal, SouthAfrica, continued the collaboration with the CRCthrough his work during January 2002 in Program5 ‘Climate Variability’ and as CRC-sponsoredkeynote speaker at the 27th InternationalSymposium on Hydrology and Water Resourcesheld in Melbourne in May 2002.

• Dr Mike Stewardson (Program 6) establishedcooperative linkages with the French nationalscience agency CEMAGREF while working at theHydro-ecology Group, CEMAGREF , in Lyon,France during April - June 2002. Links are beingdeveloped in the area of ecological responses tochanges in the hydraulic and hydrologicconditions of streams.

International Visitors• Till Seyfarth, a software engineer from Germany,

visited The University of Melbourne node fromJanuary to June, 2002, as a visiting scientist toProject 1.1. Till worked on design anddevelopment of a module management systemfor the Catchment Modelling Toolkit.

• Fred Watson, based at California State UniversityMonterey Bay, visited the Project 1.1 team at the CRC’s Canberra node in December to work on the Toolkit.

• Albert VanDijk, based at the Free University,The Netherlands, worked with Dr Rob Vertessy(Program 1) and Dr Peter Hairsine (Program 2)on erosion modelling until December 2001.

• In December 2001, Gorana Capkun from EPFL(Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne),Switzerland, visited The University of Melbourneto discuss her stochastic climate generationmodels.

• From July-September 2001, the CSIRO site inCanberra hosted PhD student, Mark Kramer, fromthe University of Cincinnati. Mark worked on theadaptation and application of the TOPOG modelfor stormflow simulation in forested catchments.

• In July 2001, Professor Larry Band, of theUniversity of North Carolina, spent two days in the CSIRO Canberra laboratory. He gave aseminar on his nutrient budget modelling in the Baltimore part of the National ScienceFoundation’s “Long-Term Ecological ResearchNetwork” (LTRN) in Maryland and then joineddiscussions on the Toolkit with Dr Rob Vertessy,Dr Peter Hairsine, Dr John Gallant, Trevor Dowlingand Joel Rahman. Larry inspired the Program 1team and claims to have been inspired by our CRC.

• Kristof van Oost, from UC Leuven, Belgium,Laboratory for Experimental Geomorphologyvisited Dr Peter Hairsine (Program 2) at CSIROLand and Water, Canberra in June-July 2002.

• In December 2001, Dr Zhou Zaizhi from theResearch Institute for Tropical Forestry,Guangzhou visited Jim Morris (Program 2) inCanberra and Melbourne for three weeks oftraining in the use of the 3PG forest growthmodel and economic modelling techniques.

• In February-April 2002, Zhang Ningnan from the Research Institute for Tropical Forestry,Guangzhou visited Jim Morris (Program 2) for 12 weeks for training in forest water usemeasurement.

• Michel Blind, RIZA, The Netherlands, visited Dr Robert Argent (Program 1) in December 2001.Discussions were held on further integrating theToolkit project with similar activities in Europe.

• Professor Ralf Denzer, HTW Saarlandes, Germany, visited The University of Melbourne in August 2001 and discussed design of modelcomponent management and informationsystems with Dr Robert Argent.


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International Visits• Dr Alan Seed (Program 5) was Visiting Professor

to the Technical University of Catalonia,Barcelona, Spain, in March-April 2002, wherehe conducted research on radar data qualitycontrol with Professor Sempere-Torres. In March, he visited the Met Office Joint Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Research, Wallingford, UK,to develop stochastic nowcasting methods withDr Pierce. In April, he visited the South AfricanWeather Services, Pretoria, South Africa, to testthe Spectral Prognosis (S-PROG) nowcastingsystem using South African data with Dr Te r b l a n c h e .

• In late June and early July 2001, Dr RobertArgent, Dr Rob Vertessy, Sue Cuddy, JoelRahman, Shane Seaton and Roger Braddock(Program 1) described the CRC’s CatchmentModelling Toolkit at seminars around the UnitedStates. The group’s schedule took in Redlands,California, presenting to ESRI; Austin, Texas, withProf David Maidment and his water engineeringcolleagues at the University of Texas; andSolomons, Maryland, presenting to University of Maryland and North Carolina Universityscientists.

• In April 2002, Andrew Western (Programs 1, 5)visited the Department of Civil Engineering,University of Salerno, Italy, and the Institut fürHydraulik, Gewässerkunde und Wasserwirtschaft,Technische Universität Wien, Austria.

• Associate Professor Brian Finlayson (Program 6)was the Australian national delegate to theCouncil of the International Association ofGeomorphologists held in Tokyo in August 2001.

• Bernard Powell (Program 2) visited theDepartment of Natural Resources, Ohio StateUniversity, Columbus Ohio, in October 2001 and presented an invited seminar entitled, Acid Sulfate Soils of Queensland, Australia.

• In September 2001, Jim Morris and RichardSilberstein (Program 2) visited the ResearchInstitute for Tropical Forestry, South ChinaInstitute of Botany, China Eucalypt ResearchCentre, and Leizhou Forest Bureau, Guangdongprovince, China, for research collaboration andtraining in connection with Project 2.7, Eucalyptsand Water.

• From April-June 2002, Mike Stewardson(Program 6) worked at the Hydro-ecology Group,CEMAGREF, in Lyon, France.

• In May 2002, Rob Vertessy (Program 1) visitedthe Environmental Engineering Department atPusan University in South Korea. He presentedtwo seminars on the CRC’s Catchment ModellingToolkit and the Environmental ManagementSupport System (EMSS).

Facing PageFar Left Dr Mike Stewardson andCEMAGREF colleagues on fieldwork, Semine River, France

Right Dr Geoff Pegram, Univ Natal – collaborated in ClimateVariability research

This PageBelow Till Seyfarth, CRC visitor fromGermany, at Univ Melbourne

Left Mark Kramer, PhD scholar fromUniv Cincinnatti at CSIRO Canberra

Documents

Evolving water management - eWater - Catchment Hydrology ......1.4 Modelling and estimating sediment and nutrient loads in South East Queensland catchments Program 2 Land-use Impacts