Director's Overview
The CRC for Catchment Hydrology aims to deliver the capability to manage catchments in a totally new way.
Our central
goal is to produce a decision support system
able to predict the movement of water, particulates,
and solutes from land to rivers, linking the impact
of climate variability, vegetation, soil, and
water management together in an integrated package.
For catchment and water managers, this system
will enable them to fully evaluate the short-
and long-term outcomes of policy decisions at
regional scales.
The management issues able to be tackled by this
predictive capability are national ones, involving
the direct expenditure of hundreds of millions
of dollars each year. They impact on a water industry
with revenues of $5000 million per year, and on
the environmental health of our natural resources.
The industry-identified issues to be addressed
by the CRC’s research program are:
The major performance indicator for the CRC for
Catchment Hydrology will be the level of adoption
of research outcomes. The use of focus
catchments, with the direct involvement of
catchment managers and community groups in the
research at these sites, will facilitate this
adoption. Social and economic constraints, which
currently limit the application of catchment technology,
are being specifically addressed. To increase
the skill and knowledge-base in catchment-scale
hydrology, an Education
and Training Program, linked to the research,
includes school and community education, training
of professional staff, and enriched post-graduate
studies.
The ability of this CRC to deliver on its program
of activities is enhanced by the bringing together
of the strengths and commitments of:
- seven key rural land and water managers in the eastern mainland states of Australia
- two of the largest urban water authorities in Australia
- the major CSIRO division covering land and water research
- three universities with strong water research and teaching programs
- Australias national meteorological and hydrological body.
The participants bring to the new Centre a wide range of multi-disciplinary skills. The addition of new participants, while retaining the old, will build on the success and experience of the existing CRC. With its demonstrated capability to collaborate, cooperate, and manage complex projects, and its ability to get results into practice, the previous CRC has given the current one a flying start.
The
national benefits of this public good CRC are
major, as indicated in
this figure (click on the image to the right
for a larger version). From the strategic research
required to make prediction at catchment scale
a reality, the prospects of:
- more efficient water use, with large economic and environmental gains
- sustainable catchment management
- reduced hydrological risk from extremes of climate
- cleaner urban streams, beaches, and bays
- healthier rivers
are well within reach.
Rodger Grayson
Director,
CRC for Catchment Hydrology
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