Hydrology and soil physics
Focusing on how water interacts with land, research ranging from land rehabilitation and understanding hydrological pathways through the soil, to landscape–scale hydrological processes and the tools, techniques and frameworks needed to effectively model and manage water resources and associated quality.
This area of research focuses on the interaction between land management and the amount and quality of water reaching a stream environment. It aims to produce tools and frameworks that aid land managers to promote the lowest possible impact on the receiving freshwater environment. Examples of the expertise in the group include the following:
- Effects of tall vegetation on water yield - modelling and measuring the impact of forests on water quantity
- Modelling impacts of land use on water quality - using models to assess the impact of land use change on water quality from small-plot to large-catchment (c. 2000 km2) scale
- Providing sensors for measuring water as it moves through the landscape - using innovative technology to provide environmental sensors for water on and through soil
- Measuring hydrological processes as affected by land cover- assessing how much water reaches the soil and/or streams under different land covers (e.g. forests, urbanisation) including transpiration and rainfall interception properties
- Policy demands in water management - providing advice and innovative ideas on how best to manage scarce water resources
- Land rehabilitation - providing advice on how best to rehabilitate land after major disturbances like mining or land drainage
- Effects of tillage practices on soil structure and water flow through the soil - using knowledge of soil physics to predict how agricultural practices will impact on hydrological processes