Informations et ressources scientifiques
sur le développement des zones arides et semi-arides

Titre : Changing land use in an uncertain climate : impacts on surface water and groundwater in the Goulburn River NSW

Auteur : Imrie, Julia

Université de soutenance : Australian National University

Grade : Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) 2019

Description
As a key contribution to the United Nations (UN) sustainable development goals, the UN high-level panel on water (HLPW) in 2018 identified as a priority the prevention of degradation and pollution of rivers, lakes and aquifers, and the restoration and maintenance of acceptable environmental conditions and water quality at the local, national and regional scale. The HLPW report recognised water crises are exacerbated by climate change. Three of the ten objectives of the Australian National Water Initiative were : transparent, statutory-based water planning ; statutory provision for environmental and other public benefit outcomes and improved environmental management practices ; and recognition of the connectivity between surface and groundwater resources with connected systems managed as a single resource. This work has applied the HLPW’s Foundation for Action to a river water quality issue, salinity, at the local scale, where natural processes are added to or altered by land-use change and climate variability. The focus is to better inform the planning process in a surface-groundwater connected river subject to variable climate. While the 7,800 km2 catchment is of local concern, it has national economic and environmental significance. The Goulburn is the largest tributary of the Hunter River, a highly connected surface-groundwater system with diverse hydrogeology, land use and vegetation, multiple regulations and a spatially and temporally varying climate. Land-use across the Goulburn catchment, once dominated by agriculture and national parks, has been changing with expansion of coal mining. Salinity is a major issue in the Hunter and the Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme (HRSTS) was introduced to control mine discharge. The Goulburn is not part of HRSTS. The aim of this work is to assess the impacts of changing land use on trends in stream flow, catchment yield, surface and groundwater interaction, and stream salinity in the Goulburn River system, and to separate them from the impacts of climate change, natural climate variability and regulatory changes.

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