Wayne Meyer | University of Adelaide (original) (raw)
Papers by Wayne Meyer
Sustainable irrigation agriculture is required to provide much-needed food and fibre but is threa... more Sustainable irrigation agriculture is required to provide much-needed food and fibre but is threatened by reduced water supply and increasing competition for environmental needs and urban and industrial water demand. Policy on water allocation often pits the needs of irrigation against competitive demands. This chapter explores innovative options for avoiding or mitigating this conflict. Examples include: the strategic location of forestry to minimise interception of water in the landscape; investment in infrastructure to provide environmental benefits with minimal use of more water; reducing water loss by optimising river operations; use of water sharing agreements to provide greater certainty to irrigators and investors; market-based trading arrangements to provide flexibility to irrigators to deal with water scarcity and climate variability; improved water use efficiency both on farm and in water supply and delivery systems; and more efficient water use and re-use in cities and industry. The water cycle and water auditing provide the biophysical context for developing options by governments, policy makers and communities as they adapt to change. Processes of public participation remain a challenge but good progress is being made.
Remote Sensing
Surface albedo is a fundamental radiative parameter as it controls the Earth’s energy budget and ... more Surface albedo is a fundamental radiative parameter as it controls the Earth’s energy budget and directly affects the Earth’s climate. Satellite observations have long been used to capture the temporal and spatial variations of surface albedo because of their continuous global coverage. However, space-based albedo products are often affected by errors in the atmospheric correction, multi-angular bi-directional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) modelling, as well as spectral conversions. To validate space-based albedo products, an in situ tower albedometer is often used to provide continuous “ground truth” measurements of surface albedo over an extended area. Since space-based albedo and tower-measured albedo are produced at different spatial scales, they can be directly compared only for specific homogeneous land surfaces. However, most land surfaces are inherently heterogeneous with surface properties that vary over a wide range of spatial scales. In this work, tower-measure...
Science of The Total Environment
The New phytologist, Jan 22, 2018
The ratio of leaf intercellular to ambient CO (χ) is modulated by stomatal conductance (g ). Thes... more The ratio of leaf intercellular to ambient CO (χ) is modulated by stomatal conductance (g ). These quantities link carbon (C) assimilation with transpiration, and along with photosynthetic capacities (V and J ) are required to model terrestrial C uptake. We use optimization criteria based on the growth environment to generate predicted values of photosynthetic and water-use efficiency traits and test these against a unique dataset. Leaf gas-exchange parameters and carbon isotope discrimination were analysed in relation to local climate across a continental network of study sites. Sun-exposed leaves of 50 species at seven sites were measured in contrasting seasons. Values of χ predicted from growth temperature and vapour pressure deficit were closely correlated to ratios derived from C isotope (δ C) measurements. Correlations were stronger in the growing season. Predicted values of photosynthetic traits, including carboxylation capacity (V ), derived from δ C, growth temperature and ...
The Science of the total environment, Jan 15, 2017
Mediterranean catchments experience already high seasonal variability alternating between dry and... more Mediterranean catchments experience already high seasonal variability alternating between dry and wet periods, and are more vulnerable to future climate and land use changes. Quantification of catchment response under future changes is particularly crucial for better water resources management. This study assessed the combined effects of future climate and land use changes on water yield, total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) loads of the Mediterranean Onkaparinga catchment in South Australia by means of the eco-hydrological model SWAT. Six different global climate models (GCMs) under two representative concentration pathways (RCPs) and a hypothetical land use change were used for future simulations. The climate models suggested a high degree of uncertainty, varying seasonally, in both flow and nutrient loads; however, a decreasing trend was observed. Average monthly TN and TP load decreased up to -55% and -56% respectively and were found to be dependent on flow magnitude. T...
Journal of Environmental Management, 2017
The economics of establishing perennial species as renewable energy feedstocks has been widely in... more The economics of establishing perennial species as renewable energy feedstocks has been widely investigated as a climate change adapted diversification option for landholders, primarily using net present value (NPV) analysis. NPV does not account for key uncertainties likely to influence relevant landholder decision making. While real options analysis (ROA) is an alternative method that accounts for the uncertainty over future conditions and the large upfront irreversible investment involved in establishing perennials, there have been limited applications of ROA to evaluating land use change decision economics and even fewer applications considering climate change risks. Further, while the influence of spatially varying climate risk on biomass conversion economic has been widely evaluated using NPV methods, effects of spatial variability and climate on land use change have been scarcely assessed with ROA. In this study we applied a simulation-based ROA model to evaluate a landholder's decision to convert land from agriculture to biomass. This spatially explicit model considers price and yield risks under baseline climate and two climate change scenarios over a geographically diverse farming region. We found that underlying variability in primary productivity across the study area had a substantial effect on conversion thresholds required to trigger land use change when compared to results from NPV analysis. Areas traditionally thought of as being quite similar in average productive capacity can display large differences in response to the inclusion of production and price risks. The effects of climate change, broadly reduced returns required for land use change to biomass in low and medium rainfall zones and increased them in higher rainfall areas. Additionally, the risks posed by climate change can further exacerbate the tendency for NPV methods to underestimate true conversion thresholds. Our results show that even under severe drying and warming where crop yield variability is more affected than perennial biomass plantings, comparatively little of the study area is economically viable for conversion to biomass under 200/DMt,anditisnotuntilpricesexceed200/DM t, and it is not until prices exceed 200/DMt,anditisnotuntilpricesexceed200/DM t that significant areas become profitable for biomass plantings. We conclude that for biomass to become a valuable diversification option the synchronisation of products and services derived from biomass and the development of markets is vital.
Scientific reports, Jan 25, 2016
Each year, terrestrial ecosystems absorb more than a quarter of the anthropogenic carbon emission... more Each year, terrestrial ecosystems absorb more than a quarter of the anthropogenic carbon emissions, termed as land carbon sink. An exceptionally large land carbon sink anomaly was recorded in 2011, of which more than half was attributed to Australia. However, the persistence and spatially attribution of this carbon sink remain largely unknown. Here we conducted an observation-based study to characterize the Australian land carbon sink through the novel coupling of satellite retrievals of atmospheric CO2 and photosynthesis and in-situ flux tower measures. We show the 2010-11 carbon sink was primarily ascribed to savannas and grasslands. When all biomes were normalized by rainfall, shrublands however, were most efficient in absorbing carbon. We found the 2010-11 net CO2 uptake was highly transient with rapid dissipation through drought. The size of the 2010-11 carbon sink over Australia (0.97 Pg) was reduced to 0.48 Pg in 2011-12, and was nearly eliminated in 2012-13 (0.08 Pg). We fur...
Journal of environmental management, Jan 30, 2016
Environmental management and regional land use planning has become more complex in recent years a... more Environmental management and regional land use planning has become more complex in recent years as growing world population, climate change, carbon markets and government policies for sustainability have emerged. Reforestation and agroforestry options for environmental benefits, carbon sequestration, economic development and biodiversity conservation are now important considerations of land use planners. New information has been collected and regionally-calibrated models have been developed to facilitate better regional land use planning decisions and counter the limitations of currently available models of reforestation productivity and carbon sequestration. Surveys of above-ground biomass of 264 reforestation sites (132 woodlots, 132 environmental plantings) within the agricultural regions of South Australia were conducted, and combined with spatial information on climate and soils, to develop new spatial and temporal models of plant density and above-ground biomass productivity f...
Water, 2016
There are salutary lessons from contrasting community consultation efforts in 2011 and 2015 to de... more There are salutary lessons from contrasting community consultation efforts in 2011 and 2015 to develop and gain support for an urban stormwater management plan for the Brownhill Creek catchment in Adelaide, South Australia. The 2011 process was a failure in the human dimension, precipitating loss of community confidence, unnecessarily entrained thousands of hours of time of residents who initiated a community action group for environmental conservation and caused a three-year delay to decision making. By contrast, the 2015 process was vastly improved, resulted in a landslide level of support for an obvious option not previously offered, achieved the required level of flood protection, saved Aus$5 million (14%) on the previously proposed option and protected a highly valued natural environment from an unnecessary dam. This paper presents a rarely heard perspective on these community consultation processes from a participating community environmental and heritage conservation action group (the Brownhill Creek Association) that was deeply engaged in reforming the Draft Brown Hill Keswick Creek Stormwater Management Plan. This reveals that the community needs to see that all options are considered and to have access to accurate information with which to assess them. It is also necessary that the proposed plan is consistent with existing agreed plans and policies developed through public consultation. Community concerns need to be heard, acknowledged and acted upon or responded to, and the consultation process needs to be transparently fair and democratic to win community support. A major contributor to success in the second consultation was that all community action groups were invited to meetings to discuss the purpose of the consultation and the methods to be used. Feedback was subsequently received before the process commenced to show what had changed and why any suggestions concerning the consultation process were not being adopted. This openness helped to mend the distrust of the first consultation process and is recommended as an essential early step in any public consultation process.
Biogeosciences Discussions, 2016
OzFlux is the regional Australian and New Zealand flux tower network that aims to provide a conti... more OzFlux is the regional Australian and New Zealand flux tower network that aims to provide a continental-scale national research facility to monitor and assess trends, and improve predictions, of Australia’s terrestrial biosphere and climate. This paper describes the evolution, design and current status of OzFlux as well as an overview of data processing. We analyse measurements from the Australian portion of the OzFlux network and found that the response of Australian biomes to climate was largely consistent with global studies but that Australian systems had a lower ecosystem water-use efficiency. Australian semi-arid/arid ecosystems are important because of their huge extent (70 %) and they have evolved with common moisture limitations. We also found that Australian ecosystems had similar radiation use efficiency per unit leaf area compared to global values that indicates a convergence toward a similar biochemical efficiency. The paper discusses the utility of the flux data and th...
Science of The Total Environment, 2016
Ecosystem monitoring networks aim to collect data on physical, chemical and biological systems an... more Ecosystem monitoring networks aim to collect data on physical, chemical and biological systems and their interactions that shape the biosphere. Here we introduce the Australian SuperSite Network that, along with complementary facilities of Australia's Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN), delivers field infrastructure and diverse, ecosystem-related datasets for use by researchers, educators and policy makers. The SuperSite Network uses infrastructure replicated across research sites in different biomes, to allow comparisons across ecosystems and improve scalability of findings to regional, continental and global scales. This conforms with the approaches of other ecosystem monitoring networks such as Critical Zone Observatories, the U.S. National Ecological Observatory Network; Analysis and Experimentation on Ecosystems, Europe; Chinese Ecosystem Research Network; International Long Term Ecological Research network and the United States Long Term Ecological Research Network. The Australian SuperSite Network currently involves 10 SuperSites across a diverse range of biomes, including tropical rainforest, grassland and savanna; wet and dry sclerophyll forest and woodland; and semi-arid grassland, woodland and savanna. The focus of the SuperSite Network is on using vegetation, faunal and biophysical monitoring to develop a process-based understanding of ecosystem function and change in Australian biomes; and to link this with data streams provided by the series of flux towers across the network. The Australian SuperSite Network is also intended to support a range of auxiliary researchers who contribute to the growing body of knowledge within and across the SuperSite Network, public outreach and education to promote environmental awareness and the role of ecosystem monitoring in the management of Australian environments.
Http Www Publish Csiro Au Act View_File File_Id Ea9850636 Pdf, 1985
Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 1985
The last decade has seen the nexus between increasing world population and the area of irrigated ... more The last decade has seen the nexus between increasing world population and the area of irrigated land broken, indicating that further population will need to be fed by improved water productivity rather than through increased irrigated area. But how much improvement is possible? This paper systematically considers irrigated agriculture from the plant through to a catchment, and from production and natural resource use perspectives. While there is some evidence of improvement in transpiration productivity (yield per unit of transpired water) of our common irrigated crops, it seems we have reached the limit of potential improvement. Opportunity still exists to increase economic yield while containing seasonal water use through manipulation of vegetative and reproductive growth phases. For crops, the opportunity for improving water productivity largely involves decreasing soil surface evaporation relative to crop transpiration. There are still gains to be made in this area from both improved irrigation system design and agronomic practice. Farm layout, distribution and application systems can be significantly improved to increase water use efficiency. However, given the relative costs of water, earthworks, labour and equipment, there is often little financial incentive to reduce total water use for marginal gains in yield. Audits of many distribution systems show considerable opportunity for improvement and also highlight the inadequacy of current measurement systems. There is generally good opportunity to decrease water losses in these distribution systems but a significant limitation is securing the immediate and ongoing financial resources needed to upgrade. Given the demand for water and the constraints on availability, we need improvement in financial and ecological productivity. Our purpose is therefore to seek increased multi-purpose water use productivity. There is good evidence that this can be achieved through irrigated regional engagement and a much greater emphasis on irrigation within a business context.
Agricultural Systems - AGR SYST, 2006
This is a very significant publication on a fundamental issue facing the world: water of sufficie... more This is a very significant publication on a fundamental issue facing the world: water of sufficient quantity and quality to sustain food production. This is a technically dense work that will serve as an excellent reference for students and scholars working in the agricultural production and water resources fields. It is unlikely that this book will be read from cover to cover, but there is something of interest to everyone, from genetic control, plant physiology, hydrology, agronomy, systems modeling and even economics. The book is indicated as the first in a series on the Comprehensive Assessment of Water Management in Agriculture and consists of 19 chapters, an Editor's overview and two appendices. As one would expect in a book as comprehensive as this and with as many authors (43), there is a mixture of really stimulating insights and some irritating inconsistencies. The latter consist of poorly defined, almost jargon terms such as ''head-tail problems'' to a few figures and maps that are not clear or adequately explained and inconsistencies in units that make it more difficult to compare between chapters. There are insights that a wide range of readers will find well worthwhile. For example Chapter 2, while heavy going for a non-economist, sets out the definitions and limitations associated with various methods of representing water efficiency and productivity in engineering, economic and social terms. This is a comprehensive analysis that is very helpful in clarifying when and where the terms should be used. The authors conclude that net estimates of private and public returns are needed, although they acknowledge how difficult these are to quantify. In general, I found the case for and the examples used to focus attention on accounting for ''water productivity'' rather than an exclusive focus on ''water use efficiency'' to be convincing and helpful. In this respect the opening chapter by David Molden and his colleagues is pivotal and should become required reading for those many people involved in water allocation policy and assessment of irrigation ''efficiency''. My only reservation in this and in several other chapters is the limited consideration of the interaction between water use and water quality. This aspect came to mind particularly in David Seckler's chapter where the case for inclusion of re-use water in calculating the effective water use efficiency is well made. However, I had the sense that the negative effects of poorer water quality, time lags when surface water may be re-used through groundwater and a limited view of the importance of ''envi-www.elsevier.com/locate/agsy
Irrigation Science, 1990
In a previous experiment, evaporation from soybeans (Glycine max L.) in two weighing lysimeters w... more In a previous experiment, evaporation from soybeans (Glycine max L.) in two weighing lysimeters with different soil types was found to differ by up to 30%. This occurred despite good canopy development and maintenance of well watered conditions. The present experiment sought to repeat the previous observation and to define its cause. Soybeans were sown in and around the two weighing lysimeters on 9 December 1987 and were well watered through the entire season. The lysimeters, L1 and L2 contained undisturbed blocks of Hanwood loam and Mundiwa clay loam soils, respectively, both Rhodoxeralfs. Crop growth, radiant energy interception, soil heat flux, canopy temperature and root growth were monitored through the season. Plant growth in L2 was slower than in L1 such that by 46 days from sowing (DFS), L1 plants had one leaf more on average than those in L2 and by 76 DFS plants in L2 were about 0.1 m shorter than those in either L1 or in the area immediately surrounding it. The ratio of L2 to L1 daily evaporation was 0.76 during the period 75 to 84 DFS; this being very similar to the effect observed previoulsy. The crop canopy in a 100 m2 area centred around L2 was reduced in height by removing the top 0.15 m at 85 DFS. This treatment caused the L2:L1 evaporation ratio to increase to 1.07. The effect of reducing the height of plants surrounding L2 was to increase net radiant energy intercepted in the canopy of the L2 plants and to change the turbulent transfer processes over the L2 canopy. Shading from the taller surrounding plants was estimated to have reduced evaporation by 4% while increased aerodynamic resistance above the L2 canopy as the result of the height discontinuity accounted for a further 20% reduction. This study highlights limitations in the application of one dimensional energy balance theory to non-ideal canopy configurations and to the care needed to ensure plant growth within lysimeters is the same as the surrounds.
Water SA, 1980
Page 1. Leaf Growth, Phenological Development and Yield of Wheat Grown Under Different Irrigation... more Page 1. Leaf Growth, Phenological Development and Yield of Wheat Grown Under Different Irrigation Treatments WAYNE S MEYER* and GEORGE С GREEN [SOIL AND IRRIGATION RESEARCH INSTITUTE, DEPARTMENT ...
Sustainable irrigation agriculture is required to provide much-needed food and fibre but is threa... more Sustainable irrigation agriculture is required to provide much-needed food and fibre but is threatened by reduced water supply and increasing competition for environmental needs and urban and industrial water demand. Policy on water allocation often pits the needs of irrigation against competitive demands. This chapter explores innovative options for avoiding or mitigating this conflict. Examples include: the strategic location of forestry to minimise interception of water in the landscape; investment in infrastructure to provide environmental benefits with minimal use of more water; reducing water loss by optimising river operations; use of water sharing agreements to provide greater certainty to irrigators and investors; market-based trading arrangements to provide flexibility to irrigators to deal with water scarcity and climate variability; improved water use efficiency both on farm and in water supply and delivery systems; and more efficient water use and re-use in cities and industry. The water cycle and water auditing provide the biophysical context for developing options by governments, policy makers and communities as they adapt to change. Processes of public participation remain a challenge but good progress is being made.
Remote Sensing
Surface albedo is a fundamental radiative parameter as it controls the Earth’s energy budget and ... more Surface albedo is a fundamental radiative parameter as it controls the Earth’s energy budget and directly affects the Earth’s climate. Satellite observations have long been used to capture the temporal and spatial variations of surface albedo because of their continuous global coverage. However, space-based albedo products are often affected by errors in the atmospheric correction, multi-angular bi-directional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) modelling, as well as spectral conversions. To validate space-based albedo products, an in situ tower albedometer is often used to provide continuous “ground truth” measurements of surface albedo over an extended area. Since space-based albedo and tower-measured albedo are produced at different spatial scales, they can be directly compared only for specific homogeneous land surfaces. However, most land surfaces are inherently heterogeneous with surface properties that vary over a wide range of spatial scales. In this work, tower-measure...
Science of The Total Environment
The New phytologist, Jan 22, 2018
The ratio of leaf intercellular to ambient CO (χ) is modulated by stomatal conductance (g ). Thes... more The ratio of leaf intercellular to ambient CO (χ) is modulated by stomatal conductance (g ). These quantities link carbon (C) assimilation with transpiration, and along with photosynthetic capacities (V and J ) are required to model terrestrial C uptake. We use optimization criteria based on the growth environment to generate predicted values of photosynthetic and water-use efficiency traits and test these against a unique dataset. Leaf gas-exchange parameters and carbon isotope discrimination were analysed in relation to local climate across a continental network of study sites. Sun-exposed leaves of 50 species at seven sites were measured in contrasting seasons. Values of χ predicted from growth temperature and vapour pressure deficit were closely correlated to ratios derived from C isotope (δ C) measurements. Correlations were stronger in the growing season. Predicted values of photosynthetic traits, including carboxylation capacity (V ), derived from δ C, growth temperature and ...
The Science of the total environment, Jan 15, 2017
Mediterranean catchments experience already high seasonal variability alternating between dry and... more Mediterranean catchments experience already high seasonal variability alternating between dry and wet periods, and are more vulnerable to future climate and land use changes. Quantification of catchment response under future changes is particularly crucial for better water resources management. This study assessed the combined effects of future climate and land use changes on water yield, total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) loads of the Mediterranean Onkaparinga catchment in South Australia by means of the eco-hydrological model SWAT. Six different global climate models (GCMs) under two representative concentration pathways (RCPs) and a hypothetical land use change were used for future simulations. The climate models suggested a high degree of uncertainty, varying seasonally, in both flow and nutrient loads; however, a decreasing trend was observed. Average monthly TN and TP load decreased up to -55% and -56% respectively and were found to be dependent on flow magnitude. T...
Journal of Environmental Management, 2017
The economics of establishing perennial species as renewable energy feedstocks has been widely in... more The economics of establishing perennial species as renewable energy feedstocks has been widely investigated as a climate change adapted diversification option for landholders, primarily using net present value (NPV) analysis. NPV does not account for key uncertainties likely to influence relevant landholder decision making. While real options analysis (ROA) is an alternative method that accounts for the uncertainty over future conditions and the large upfront irreversible investment involved in establishing perennials, there have been limited applications of ROA to evaluating land use change decision economics and even fewer applications considering climate change risks. Further, while the influence of spatially varying climate risk on biomass conversion economic has been widely evaluated using NPV methods, effects of spatial variability and climate on land use change have been scarcely assessed with ROA. In this study we applied a simulation-based ROA model to evaluate a landholder's decision to convert land from agriculture to biomass. This spatially explicit model considers price and yield risks under baseline climate and two climate change scenarios over a geographically diverse farming region. We found that underlying variability in primary productivity across the study area had a substantial effect on conversion thresholds required to trigger land use change when compared to results from NPV analysis. Areas traditionally thought of as being quite similar in average productive capacity can display large differences in response to the inclusion of production and price risks. The effects of climate change, broadly reduced returns required for land use change to biomass in low and medium rainfall zones and increased them in higher rainfall areas. Additionally, the risks posed by climate change can further exacerbate the tendency for NPV methods to underestimate true conversion thresholds. Our results show that even under severe drying and warming where crop yield variability is more affected than perennial biomass plantings, comparatively little of the study area is economically viable for conversion to biomass under 200/DMt,anditisnotuntilpricesexceed200/DM t, and it is not until prices exceed 200/DMt,anditisnotuntilpricesexceed200/DM t that significant areas become profitable for biomass plantings. We conclude that for biomass to become a valuable diversification option the synchronisation of products and services derived from biomass and the development of markets is vital.
Scientific reports, Jan 25, 2016
Each year, terrestrial ecosystems absorb more than a quarter of the anthropogenic carbon emission... more Each year, terrestrial ecosystems absorb more than a quarter of the anthropogenic carbon emissions, termed as land carbon sink. An exceptionally large land carbon sink anomaly was recorded in 2011, of which more than half was attributed to Australia. However, the persistence and spatially attribution of this carbon sink remain largely unknown. Here we conducted an observation-based study to characterize the Australian land carbon sink through the novel coupling of satellite retrievals of atmospheric CO2 and photosynthesis and in-situ flux tower measures. We show the 2010-11 carbon sink was primarily ascribed to savannas and grasslands. When all biomes were normalized by rainfall, shrublands however, were most efficient in absorbing carbon. We found the 2010-11 net CO2 uptake was highly transient with rapid dissipation through drought. The size of the 2010-11 carbon sink over Australia (0.97 Pg) was reduced to 0.48 Pg in 2011-12, and was nearly eliminated in 2012-13 (0.08 Pg). We fur...
Journal of environmental management, Jan 30, 2016
Environmental management and regional land use planning has become more complex in recent years a... more Environmental management and regional land use planning has become more complex in recent years as growing world population, climate change, carbon markets and government policies for sustainability have emerged. Reforestation and agroforestry options for environmental benefits, carbon sequestration, economic development and biodiversity conservation are now important considerations of land use planners. New information has been collected and regionally-calibrated models have been developed to facilitate better regional land use planning decisions and counter the limitations of currently available models of reforestation productivity and carbon sequestration. Surveys of above-ground biomass of 264 reforestation sites (132 woodlots, 132 environmental plantings) within the agricultural regions of South Australia were conducted, and combined with spatial information on climate and soils, to develop new spatial and temporal models of plant density and above-ground biomass productivity f...
Water, 2016
There are salutary lessons from contrasting community consultation efforts in 2011 and 2015 to de... more There are salutary lessons from contrasting community consultation efforts in 2011 and 2015 to develop and gain support for an urban stormwater management plan for the Brownhill Creek catchment in Adelaide, South Australia. The 2011 process was a failure in the human dimension, precipitating loss of community confidence, unnecessarily entrained thousands of hours of time of residents who initiated a community action group for environmental conservation and caused a three-year delay to decision making. By contrast, the 2015 process was vastly improved, resulted in a landslide level of support for an obvious option not previously offered, achieved the required level of flood protection, saved Aus$5 million (14%) on the previously proposed option and protected a highly valued natural environment from an unnecessary dam. This paper presents a rarely heard perspective on these community consultation processes from a participating community environmental and heritage conservation action group (the Brownhill Creek Association) that was deeply engaged in reforming the Draft Brown Hill Keswick Creek Stormwater Management Plan. This reveals that the community needs to see that all options are considered and to have access to accurate information with which to assess them. It is also necessary that the proposed plan is consistent with existing agreed plans and policies developed through public consultation. Community concerns need to be heard, acknowledged and acted upon or responded to, and the consultation process needs to be transparently fair and democratic to win community support. A major contributor to success in the second consultation was that all community action groups were invited to meetings to discuss the purpose of the consultation and the methods to be used. Feedback was subsequently received before the process commenced to show what had changed and why any suggestions concerning the consultation process were not being adopted. This openness helped to mend the distrust of the first consultation process and is recommended as an essential early step in any public consultation process.
Biogeosciences Discussions, 2016
OzFlux is the regional Australian and New Zealand flux tower network that aims to provide a conti... more OzFlux is the regional Australian and New Zealand flux tower network that aims to provide a continental-scale national research facility to monitor and assess trends, and improve predictions, of Australia’s terrestrial biosphere and climate. This paper describes the evolution, design and current status of OzFlux as well as an overview of data processing. We analyse measurements from the Australian portion of the OzFlux network and found that the response of Australian biomes to climate was largely consistent with global studies but that Australian systems had a lower ecosystem water-use efficiency. Australian semi-arid/arid ecosystems are important because of their huge extent (70 %) and they have evolved with common moisture limitations. We also found that Australian ecosystems had similar radiation use efficiency per unit leaf area compared to global values that indicates a convergence toward a similar biochemical efficiency. The paper discusses the utility of the flux data and th...
Science of The Total Environment, 2016
Ecosystem monitoring networks aim to collect data on physical, chemical and biological systems an... more Ecosystem monitoring networks aim to collect data on physical, chemical and biological systems and their interactions that shape the biosphere. Here we introduce the Australian SuperSite Network that, along with complementary facilities of Australia's Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN), delivers field infrastructure and diverse, ecosystem-related datasets for use by researchers, educators and policy makers. The SuperSite Network uses infrastructure replicated across research sites in different biomes, to allow comparisons across ecosystems and improve scalability of findings to regional, continental and global scales. This conforms with the approaches of other ecosystem monitoring networks such as Critical Zone Observatories, the U.S. National Ecological Observatory Network; Analysis and Experimentation on Ecosystems, Europe; Chinese Ecosystem Research Network; International Long Term Ecological Research network and the United States Long Term Ecological Research Network. The Australian SuperSite Network currently involves 10 SuperSites across a diverse range of biomes, including tropical rainforest, grassland and savanna; wet and dry sclerophyll forest and woodland; and semi-arid grassland, woodland and savanna. The focus of the SuperSite Network is on using vegetation, faunal and biophysical monitoring to develop a process-based understanding of ecosystem function and change in Australian biomes; and to link this with data streams provided by the series of flux towers across the network. The Australian SuperSite Network is also intended to support a range of auxiliary researchers who contribute to the growing body of knowledge within and across the SuperSite Network, public outreach and education to promote environmental awareness and the role of ecosystem monitoring in the management of Australian environments.
Http Www Publish Csiro Au Act View_File File_Id Ea9850636 Pdf, 1985
Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 1985
The last decade has seen the nexus between increasing world population and the area of irrigated ... more The last decade has seen the nexus between increasing world population and the area of irrigated land broken, indicating that further population will need to be fed by improved water productivity rather than through increased irrigated area. But how much improvement is possible? This paper systematically considers irrigated agriculture from the plant through to a catchment, and from production and natural resource use perspectives. While there is some evidence of improvement in transpiration productivity (yield per unit of transpired water) of our common irrigated crops, it seems we have reached the limit of potential improvement. Opportunity still exists to increase economic yield while containing seasonal water use through manipulation of vegetative and reproductive growth phases. For crops, the opportunity for improving water productivity largely involves decreasing soil surface evaporation relative to crop transpiration. There are still gains to be made in this area from both improved irrigation system design and agronomic practice. Farm layout, distribution and application systems can be significantly improved to increase water use efficiency. However, given the relative costs of water, earthworks, labour and equipment, there is often little financial incentive to reduce total water use for marginal gains in yield. Audits of many distribution systems show considerable opportunity for improvement and also highlight the inadequacy of current measurement systems. There is generally good opportunity to decrease water losses in these distribution systems but a significant limitation is securing the immediate and ongoing financial resources needed to upgrade. Given the demand for water and the constraints on availability, we need improvement in financial and ecological productivity. Our purpose is therefore to seek increased multi-purpose water use productivity. There is good evidence that this can be achieved through irrigated regional engagement and a much greater emphasis on irrigation within a business context.
Agricultural Systems - AGR SYST, 2006
This is a very significant publication on a fundamental issue facing the world: water of sufficie... more This is a very significant publication on a fundamental issue facing the world: water of sufficient quantity and quality to sustain food production. This is a technically dense work that will serve as an excellent reference for students and scholars working in the agricultural production and water resources fields. It is unlikely that this book will be read from cover to cover, but there is something of interest to everyone, from genetic control, plant physiology, hydrology, agronomy, systems modeling and even economics. The book is indicated as the first in a series on the Comprehensive Assessment of Water Management in Agriculture and consists of 19 chapters, an Editor's overview and two appendices. As one would expect in a book as comprehensive as this and with as many authors (43), there is a mixture of really stimulating insights and some irritating inconsistencies. The latter consist of poorly defined, almost jargon terms such as ''head-tail problems'' to a few figures and maps that are not clear or adequately explained and inconsistencies in units that make it more difficult to compare between chapters. There are insights that a wide range of readers will find well worthwhile. For example Chapter 2, while heavy going for a non-economist, sets out the definitions and limitations associated with various methods of representing water efficiency and productivity in engineering, economic and social terms. This is a comprehensive analysis that is very helpful in clarifying when and where the terms should be used. The authors conclude that net estimates of private and public returns are needed, although they acknowledge how difficult these are to quantify. In general, I found the case for and the examples used to focus attention on accounting for ''water productivity'' rather than an exclusive focus on ''water use efficiency'' to be convincing and helpful. In this respect the opening chapter by David Molden and his colleagues is pivotal and should become required reading for those many people involved in water allocation policy and assessment of irrigation ''efficiency''. My only reservation in this and in several other chapters is the limited consideration of the interaction between water use and water quality. This aspect came to mind particularly in David Seckler's chapter where the case for inclusion of re-use water in calculating the effective water use efficiency is well made. However, I had the sense that the negative effects of poorer water quality, time lags when surface water may be re-used through groundwater and a limited view of the importance of ''envi-www.elsevier.com/locate/agsy
Irrigation Science, 1990
In a previous experiment, evaporation from soybeans (Glycine max L.) in two weighing lysimeters w... more In a previous experiment, evaporation from soybeans (Glycine max L.) in two weighing lysimeters with different soil types was found to differ by up to 30%. This occurred despite good canopy development and maintenance of well watered conditions. The present experiment sought to repeat the previous observation and to define its cause. Soybeans were sown in and around the two weighing lysimeters on 9 December 1987 and were well watered through the entire season. The lysimeters, L1 and L2 contained undisturbed blocks of Hanwood loam and Mundiwa clay loam soils, respectively, both Rhodoxeralfs. Crop growth, radiant energy interception, soil heat flux, canopy temperature and root growth were monitored through the season. Plant growth in L2 was slower than in L1 such that by 46 days from sowing (DFS), L1 plants had one leaf more on average than those in L2 and by 76 DFS plants in L2 were about 0.1 m shorter than those in either L1 or in the area immediately surrounding it. The ratio of L2 to L1 daily evaporation was 0.76 during the period 75 to 84 DFS; this being very similar to the effect observed previoulsy. The crop canopy in a 100 m2 area centred around L2 was reduced in height by removing the top 0.15 m at 85 DFS. This treatment caused the L2:L1 evaporation ratio to increase to 1.07. The effect of reducing the height of plants surrounding L2 was to increase net radiant energy intercepted in the canopy of the L2 plants and to change the turbulent transfer processes over the L2 canopy. Shading from the taller surrounding plants was estimated to have reduced evaporation by 4% while increased aerodynamic resistance above the L2 canopy as the result of the height discontinuity accounted for a further 20% reduction. This study highlights limitations in the application of one dimensional energy balance theory to non-ideal canopy configurations and to the care needed to ensure plant growth within lysimeters is the same as the surrounds.
Water SA, 1980
Page 1. Leaf Growth, Phenological Development and Yield of Wheat Grown Under Different Irrigation... more Page 1. Leaf Growth, Phenological Development and Yield of Wheat Grown Under Different Irrigation Treatments WAYNE S MEYER* and GEORGE С GREEN [SOIL AND IRRIGATION RESEARCH INSTITUTE, DEPARTMENT ...