Special Events
Airborne Electromagnetics (AEM) for Groundwater and Salinity Mapping and
Broader Natural Resource Management Applications Workshop
Workshop Agenda
A review facilitated by the Academy of Sciences and the Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering for the Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council in 2005 found that airborne geophysical techniques, combined with ground and borehole control, are important tools in understanding salinity and hydrology at depth at a variety of scales. The Review also concluded that the only broad acre, remote sensing technique that can detect and resolve salinity in the subsurface deeper than the root zone is electromagnetics (Spies & Woodgate, 2005).
Internationally, airborne electromagnetic (AEM) surveys have been successful in aiding a broad range of natural resource management projects in Africa, South America, China and Europe. In Australia, appropriately designed and interpreted AEM-based products have proven important to salinity management through contributions to design of salt interception schemes, the location of water storage facilities, the development of saline groundwater disposal options, informing irrigation re-zoning, mapping and predicting salinity risk in floodplain environments, mapping salt water intrusion, and for underpinning strategies to target environmental water flows for sustaining floodplain biodiversity. Airborne surveys have also been used to map fresh groundwater resources.
AEM instruments are flown by specialist contractors highly experienced in the acquisition of AEM data in a range of environments. A high level of expertise is required to translate the conductivity data to a suite of products relevant to groundwater and salinity mapping and other natural resource management issues. This commonly requires a multidisciplinary approach with a team of geoscience specialists (eg geophysicists, geomorphologists and hydrogeologists).
In Australia, successful outcomes from the AEM surveys have been attributed to a high level of consultation between scientists, decision makers and local community groups at all stages in project design, implementation, product development and product delivery, communication and up-take.
This workshop is designed for a broad spectrum of NRM decision makers and scientists, farmers and local community members who are likely to use AEM-based products, who are interested in acquiring AEM surveys, or are likely to have some involvement in the use of AEM derived data products in the future.
The workshop will provide an overview of AEM technologies, survey strategies and design, calibration, validation and interpretation, and provide examples of the successful application of AEM for salinity and groundwater projects.
This workshop is free to full registrants of the 2nd International Salinity Forum, however those wishing to participate must register in advance. Those who are not registered for the conference but wish to participate, may do so by paying the one day conference registration fee.
Science briefing for policy advisers
Workshop Agenda
A half-day workshop on the latest salinity science and its implications for salinity management and policy will be held on Wednesday 2nd of April. This workshop is incorporated within the 2nd International Salinity Forum Conference being held at the Adelaide Convention Centre (31st March-3rd April). This workshop provides an opportunity to assess whether advances in salinity science have any implications for new salinity investment frameworks.
The workshop is designed to provide a high level briefing to policy advisors and NRM decision makers, and to engender discussion on the implications of this science for salinity management and policy decisions going forward. The workshop will be open session, however participants will need to register in advance with the 2nd ISF Conference to participate. Those not already registered are required to pay the one-day registration fee. Each short presentation (10 mins) will be followed by a facilitated panel discussion to begin to assess whether there are significant changes to the science that might have implications for policy investments (10 mins). There will also be a facilitated panel discussion on future directions to close the workshop.
Catchment Management Forum
Workshop Agenda
A special event session will be convened at the 2nd International Salinity Forum to address issues of critical importance to catchment management in Australia at a time of new and emerging policy settings in natural resource management. The session will enable catchment organisation personnel at all levels to learn from each other by sharing experiences over the life of the Natural Heritage Trust; provide an opportunity for these personnel to broaden their experience through dialogue with policy advisers and experts from ‘outside the square’; and continue to build the network among national (and international) catchment management organisations.
The catchment session follows immediately from a policy session that will be convened earlier in the day (see separate agenda). The South Australian NRM Board is pleased to host the session, which promises to reveal insights into the challenges confronting catchment management into the future.
Catchment Characterisation Workshop
Workshop Agenda
A Catchment Characterisation Workshop/Seminar will be held on Wednesday 2nd March from 08:45 to 12:30. This workshop aims to review recent advances in catchment characterisation mapping and modelling methods. A series of presentations will address whether new insights into Australia’s regolith landscapes add significant value or not to existing products and approaches. The workshop will conclude with an open forum discussion on whether there is a demand for new catchment characterisation products, and will aim to establish some possible future directions. The workshop will be facilitated by Ray Evans of Salient Solutions Australia, and involve staff from CRC LEME, DSE Victoria and NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change.