Research Projects
Council improving the water quality of the Great Barrier Reef through the use of smart sensors and the IoT for urban water management (Old ID 23533)
Wei Xiang
01 Feb 2018 - 30 Jun 2019
The primary aim of this grant application is to bring smart city technology into urban water management to improve urban water quality discharging to the Great Barrier Reef by: 1). Developing IOT technology to manage large data sets obtained from existing smart meters and water quality monitoring probes to make effective management decisions; and 2) Supporting the development of new cost effective, real time water quality monitoring technology. This grant application is for purchase of commercially available water quality monitoring probes suitable for a tropical urban stormwater environment, for supporting the development of new real time monitoring technology for nutrients; for the development of data analysis tools using IOT technology for both smart meter water consumption data, sewer pump station overflow data and stormwater water quality data so that the data is available in real time and can be used for effective decision making.
Climate Smart Sugarcane Irrigation Partnerships (CSSIP) (Old ID 24754)
Bronson Philippa
22 Aug 2018 - 30 Jun 2023
CSSIP will minimise nutrient runoff, improve soil health and increase wetlands water quality by facilitating the adoption of world-class irrigation practices in sugarcane farming systems. Currently, best practice irrigation is assisted by an Irrigation Decision Support Tool (IDST) that provides evidence-based advice. However, IDSTs have not reached their full potential. Firstly, they do not integrate short to medium term weather forecasts (e.g. weekly to multi-weekly forecasts). Secondly, IDSTs do not operate at a spatial scale relevant to farmers. CSSIP will incorporate the Bureau or Meteorology’s new high-resolution climate model into the Irrigation Decision Support Tool. Thirdly, IDSTs require substantial time in manual data entry, which can be alleviated using real-time monitoring via Internet of Things technologies. This will increase irrigation efficiency, reducing excessive runoff into river systems and onto the Reef, and, will help farmers save water and energy costs.
Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs Shallow Reef Monitoring 2018 (Old ID 24815)
Morgan Pratchett
24 Feb 2018 - 10 Dec 2018
The purpose of this contract is to survey shallow reef environments within the Elizabeth and Middleton reef national Marine Park, to assess the status and trends of reef environments and reef-associated organisms. Surveys will be conducted using methods established during prior surveys, undertaken at Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs in March 2011 and arch 2014.
Swords to Ploughshares : the lives of Townsville's returned servicemen (Old ID 25054)
Claire Brennan
30 Jun 2018 - 29 Apr 2019
The project will examine the lives of Townsville's returned service men and women and the contribution they have made to building a just society. While focussed on WW1 veterans the project will also include examination of the lives of service personnel returning from other wars. The project will result in glass case displays in the Eddie Koiki Mabo Library, at City Libraries and in the Museum of Tropical Queensland. It will be accompanied by a blog, and have a lasting digital component administered through Research Online.
A one health approach to establish surveillance strategies for Japanese encephalitis and zoonotic arboviruses in Papua New Guinea (Old ID 26565)
Paul Horwood
06 May 2019 - 30 Jun 2021
The project aim is to establish surveillance for JEV and other zoonotic arboviruses that affect the rural population of PNG. The major objectives are to: 1. Evaluate current detection methods to detect zoonotic arboviruses in the field and laboratory, and build capacity where gaps are identified. 2. Establish surveillance at selected sites using sentinel animal (pigs, chickens) and mosquito trapping 3. Develop linkages and coordination between human and animal health agencies. The primary outputs are to develop surveillance activities that contribute to early warning for public health and provide a better understanding of the ecological drivers of arboviruses in PNG.
Water Quality & Environmental Research to Support Townsville City Council (Old ID 26868)
Shelley Templeman
01 Jun 2020 - 31 Dec 2020
Townsville City Council are seeking advice and support to improve the water quality in the local lakes and rivers under their jurisdiction. They are investigating innovative and sustainable options to improve water quality and reduce weed infestations and require scientific advice and support to complete this work.
Queensland threatened species listing. (Old ID 27253)
Conrad Hoskin
01 Jun 2021 - 30 Nov 2021
Humane Society International (HSi) is a charity that works towards “an ecologically sustainable and humane world for all animals”. This includes ensuring that threatened species are nominated to be listed under legislation. An opportunity has arisen for HSI to work with the Queensland Government to list a number of reptile species that are in dire need of conservation recognition. These are reptiles that I am an expert on, so they have contacted me to provide funding to me to help them write the nominations. I would use this funding to employ a recently graduated JCU PhD student to draft these nominations for me to then check and submit with HSI. Any left-over funding would be used for research on these threatened species. This is a ‘for the greater good’ project that I’d like to help out with.
Pre-outbreak monitoring of the density, distribution and size-structure of crown-of-thorns starfish (CoTS) in the Great Barrier Reef (Old ID 27501)
Morgan Pratchett
01 Jan 2021 - 01 Jun 2024
This project will conduct annual field surveys (diver-based and eDNA) across reefs in the primary outbreak initiation region to reveal how the density, distribution and size-structure of COTS populations changes, providing field data to inform early warning and response in the lead up to the 2025 outbreak.
Island Habitat Monitoring - Vegetation (Old ID 27658)
Darren Crayn
01 Jul 2022 - 30 Jun 2025
Islands, particularly the remote or less-accessible ones, have very poor inventories of species and ecosystems, their condition and potential threats. This base level data is required to identify which values should be prioritised for management and monitoring. A process to identify and prioritise information gaps and fill them is needed to address this issue. The Australian Tropical Herbarium proposes to address these knowledge gaps through provision of technical expertise that can include (a) field survey, (b) provision of plant identification services, (c) training and (d) data management.
Review of water quality monitoring and evaluation for DIN-focused projects. (Old ID 27773)
Stephen Lewis
20 Jun 2022 - 31 Aug 2025
Our team will coordinate and provide technical support across all the Reef Trust Partnership (RTP) dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) and pesticide projects that involve water quality (WQ) monitoring managed by the Great Barrier Reef Foundation. The purpose of the work is to ensure that the overall approach - including project design, equipment selection, sampling methods and analysis - is fit-for purpose and (to the extent appropriate) consistent across projects and programs. We will also ensure that project findings are communicated effectively and consistently.