Perth Laboratory – Public Seminar Series 2007

Murray-Darling Basin Sustainable Yields Project

Dr Tom Hatton
Director, Water for a Healthy Country National Research Flagship
Project Director, MDB Sustainable Yields Project

Thursday 27 September 2007 at 3.30pm, CSIRO Auditorium
followed by drinks from 4.30pm – 5.30pm

PLEASE RSVP for catering purposes to Perth Seminars, (or Phone: 9333 6221) by Monday 24 September.
This event is free of charge

Abstract

At the Murray-Darling Basin Water Summit, convened by the Prime Minister on 7 November 2006, it was agreed to commission the CSIRO to report progressively by the end of 2007 on sustainable yields of surface and groundwater systems within the Murray-Darling Basin, including an examination of assumptions about sustainable yields in light of changes in climate and other issues. By the end of December 2007, CSIRO will:

• Develop a transparent, consistent and robust method for determining the extent of available water resources in each major catchment and aquifer and the Murray-Darling Basin as a whole
• Apply the method to estimate the quantity and temporal variability of water resources that are available under current water sharing arrangements
• Apply the method to estimate water availability and demand 20 years into the future in the light of predicted climate change and other risks.

This is the largest single project in CSIRO’s history, and arguably our most complex. This seminar will address how CSIRO has approached this challenge and discuss the first results. Read more about the project.

About the speaker

Dr Tom Hatton is Director, Water for a Healthy Country Flagship and is responsible for the management and delivery of science to address one of Australia's biggest challenges – the sustainable management of our water resources. Prior to this appointment Dr Hatton was Deputy Chief of CSIRO’s Land and Water Division. Dr Hatton has 25 years research experience, nationally and internationally, in a broad range of land and water related disciplines including forest productivity, ecology, bushfire science, ecohydrology, water allocation, salinity and catchment hydrology. He has made significant advances in the understanding of ecosystem dependence on groundwater, and the management and future of our salinising landscapes.

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