Groundwater projects
Project funding themes
Projects are funded under the following themes:
- Harmonisation of groundwater definitions and standards, and improved governance and management practices
- Northern Australia Groundwater Stocktake
- National assessment of sites suitable for managed aquifer recharge and recovery
- Vulnerability of groundwater dependent ecosystems
- Investigation of groundwater-surface water inter-connectivity
- Strategic aquifer characterisation to quantify sustainable yields
- National review of groundwater potential for deep fresh, saline and brackish waters
- Managing risks to groundwater quality
- National Centre for Groundwater Research and Training
- Knowledge and capacity building.
The following projects have been announced:
Harmonisation of groundwater definitions and standards, and improved governance and management practices
Tasmanian groundwater management framework
Putting in place a best-practice framework for managing groundwater in Tasmania.
Mapping potential surface water/groundwater connectivity across Australia
Carrying out catchment scale analysis to determine the potential connectivity of groundwater resources across Australia.
National groundwater information system (phase 1)
Scoping implementation of compatible national groundwateer information systems by all jurisdictions and Bureau of Meteorology.
Groundwater SAFE (secure allocations, future entitlements)
Improving the management of groundwater in Victoria, to support development of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan and delivery of National Water Initiative objectives.
National standards on groundwater mapping, definitions and assessment
Developing a nationally consistent groundwater mapping, definitions and management guidelines to improve water management in and between jurisdictions.
Fossil water in Australia
Reporting on fossil water for water managers and planners.
Scoping a decision-support system for the assessment of groundwater trades
Scoping costs and benefits of a nationally transferable requirement for a decision-support system.
Assessment of groundwater licensing, metering and extraction estimation arrangements and techniques
Identifying and comparing groundwater licensing and metering arrangements across Australia.
Defining the significance of domestic and stock groundwater use
Reviewing regulation of domestic and stock groundwater use in Australia and defining the significance of domestic and stock groundwater use in a range of water systems.
Northern Australia groundwater stocktake
Northern Territory groundwater stocktake
Updating and improving data and groundwater resource understanding in the Territory.
Assessment of major spring systems in the Oolloo Dolostone, Daly River, NT
Assessing and helping protect the major spring systems in the Oolloo Dolostone aquifer.
Northern Territory coastal plain
Assessing the occurrence and potential risk of seawater intrusion into coastal aquifers in the Darwin peri-urban area.
National assessment of sites suitable for managed aquifer recharge and recovery
Feasibility of implementing managed aquifer recharge schemes for agricultural purposes
Investigating the advantages, disadvantages, economic feasibility, suitability of regulatory frameworks and the barriers to implementing managed aquifer recharge schemes for agricultural purposes.
Preliminary feasibility assessment planning studies for managed aquifer recharge in urban cities
To enable managed aquifer recharge (MAR) schemes to be demonstrated across Australia by funding feasibility assessment studies in areas where MAR is potentially viable.
ACT aquifer storage and recovery feasibility study
Investigating the possibility of using aquifer storage recharge to store water in aquifers that would normally have been stored in a large reservoir.
Facilitating recycling of stormwater and reclaimed water via aquifers in Australia
Developing a policy framework, that can be adopted by the states and territories, which will provide an assessment tool to determine if managed aquifer recharge (MAR) is viable in the area of interest and assessing areas for MAR suitability.
Vulnerability of groundwater dependent ecosystems
Rollout and adoption of framework for assessing environmental water requirements of groundwater dependent ecosystems
Reviewing a planning tool to expand the use and adoption of the tool nationally.
A new approach to accounting for groundwater-dependent ecosystems and surface water systems
Developing a new approach to account for groundwater-dependent ecosystems and surface water systems when developing water management plans.
NSW groundwater quality and coastal groundwater dependent ecosystems
Advancing understanding of the impacts of groundwater pumping in coastal and alluvial aquifers.
Groundwater-dependent ecosystem vulnerability in the Mid West of Western Australia
Providing a groundwater-dependent ecosystem study to underpin future water plans in Western Australia's Mid West region, where there is considerable development pressure from mining, horticultural and urban activities.
Atlas of groundwater-dependent ecosystems
Developing a comprehensive national 'atlas' of groundwater-dependent ecosystems.
Investigation of groundwater/surface water inter-connectivity
National assessment of surface water/ groundwater connectivity
Analytical assessment of the magnitude and timing of current and future groundwater extraction interaction with stream flow in a minimum of 70 priority catchments across Australia.
Quantifying surface water/groundwater exchange using thermal and chemical measurements
Quantifying the exchange of surface water and groundwater in river beds. This will improve the mapping of connections and interactions between surface and groundwater.
Interconnection of surface water and groundwater systems-river losses from disconnected streams - NSW
Reviewing previous measurement approaches and research data and investigating connectivity and impacts in six pilot areas to validate the approaches to determining connectivity in losing/disconnected streams that will then be applied to 10 to 15 regional catchments.
Strategic aquifer characterisation to quantify sustainable yields
Improved understanding of stressed aquifers
Providing funding to states and territories to fill knowledge and scientific gaps in specific stressed or priority aquifers.
Water for Australia's arid zone-identifying and assessing Australia's palaeovalley groundwater resources
Improving understanding and management of groundwater resources and their connectivity with surface water.
National scale vulnerability assessment of seawater intrusion impacts on groundwater
Assessing the vulnerability of coastal groundwater resources to seawater intrusion at a national scale.
Sustainable groundwater allocations in the intake beds of the Great Artesian Basin in NSW
Enabling more informed and enhanced groundwater management in the intake beds of the Great Artesian Basin (GAB) in New South Wales. It will assist in achieving GAB Sustainability Initiative.
Assessment of inter-aquifer leakage in the Great Artesian Basin
Studying the inter-aquifer leakage in the Great Artesian Basin.
Development of a method to correct for hydrostatic pressure changes on adjacent aquifer responses
Contributing to better understanding of the connections between deep and shallow aquifers, by investigating aquifer pressure reductions and subsequent level changes and developing a method to correct for hydrostatic pressure changes on adjacent aquifers.
Improved characterisation of the Upper Lachlan alluvial aquifer
Advancing understanding of the impact of groundwater development on river baseflow and terrestrial groundwater-dependent ecosystems in the aquifer.
A consistent approach to groundwater recharge determination in data-poor areas
A consistent approach is needed to determine groundwater recharge and discharge rates in areas where there is limited data. This project, to be conducted by CSIRO, will allow water managers throughout Australia to improve their water balance models - leading to better water planning and management outcomes.
Investigating impact of climate change on groundwater resources
Looking at how climate change affects the volume and timing of rainfall intensity and the associated changes in evaporation and evapotranspiration.
Potential local and cumulative impacts of mining on groundwater resources
Developing national tools and methodologies to understand and manage the local and cumulative impacts of mining on water resources.
Strategic assessment and management of priority groundwater systems
Providing assistance to jurisdictions to carry out strategic assessment and management of priority groundwater systems.
Improving knowledge and understanding of groundwater resources using GIS-based 3D visualisation
Developing 3D models of aquifers based on data collected from geological mineral surveys, and exploring the opportunities and limitations of the minerals and oil industry prospecting data sets and data assessment tools for use in building a better understanding of groundwater resources and management issues.
Sustainable management of coastal groundwater resources and opportunities for development - NSW
Developing a sustainable management framework for coastal aquifers to enable stakeholders to actively participate in the management of groundwater resources, and to set benchmarks for the sustainable management of groundwater quantity and quality for coastal dune aquifers.
Internet groundwater level monitoring
Improving the level of information available to water managers, water users and the community on the behaviour of groundwater systems in NSW.
Development of a 3D geological mapping and database interface to support interconnected groundwater
Developing and showcasing 3D geological and hydrogeological mapping and database tools that can support management decisions concerning water allocation in areas where significant surface and groundwater resources are located.
Australian hydrological modelling initiative - groundwater surface water interaction tool
Developing a common framework and numeric model for groundwater and surface water interactions in river systems.
Allocating water and maintaining springs in the Great Artesian Basin - SA and NT
Improving the understanding of complex surface and groundwater interactions and mound spring characteristics in the Great Artesian Basin in South Australia and the Northern Territory.
Strategic assessment and management of priority/stressed groundwater catchments
Improving understanding and management of groundwater resources and their connectivity with surface water.
National review of groundwater potential for deep fresh, saline and brackish waters
Deep Australian Water Resource Information System (DAWRIS)
Determining the availability and location of data to develop a deep Australian water resource information system.
Managing risks to groundwater quality
Assessment of groundwater bore deterioration
Determining the possible economic impact of the deterioration and the cost of rehabilitation of bores.
Impact of groundwater pumping on groundwater quality
Improving our capacity to manage the risks to highly developed aquifers in New South Wales resulting from groundwater pumping - both in terms of sustainable yields and water quality. The findings will guide the development of future water sharing plans.
Coal seam methane gas co-produced water - discussion starter
Producing a Waterlines paper that will consider both national and international experiences and also examine the use of waste water from the onshore oil and gas industry.
National Centre for Groundwater Research and Training
NCGRT
Accelerating the assessment of Australia's groundwater resources and harmonising definitional issues, governance and management practices.
Knowledge and capacity building
Knowledge and capacity building for the Groundwater Action Plan
Providing targeted information to all managers and users, to improve certainty about groundwater and how it should be managed.
Teacher Earth Science Education Program - sponsorship of 'wet rocks' package
Developing and initiating a 'wet rocks' (groundwater) element of the Teacher Earth Science Education Program.