Client: Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water NSW (DECCW)
Location: Gwydir Wetlands, NSW
Key Services Provided:
- Detailed hydraulic modelling
- Eco-hydraulics
Overview
The Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water (DECCW) is currently in the process of developing hydrodynamic models for the Gwydir wetlands, the Macquarie Marshes and Yanga National Park as part of the science component of the Rivers Environmental Restoration Programme (RERP). A key objective of the RERP is to maximise the benefit of environmental water through improved scientific understanding of major wetland systems in NSW.
The convergence of a number of critical technologies has occurred in recent years that have enabled the development of tools to accurately represent the hydraulics of large floodplain systems. Chief among these has been the development of coupled one-dimensional and two-dimensional hydraulic modelling software packages. When combined with large-scale aerial terrain data collection, this software can provide a practical tool for modelling complex floodplain areas.
Outputs from hydrodynamic modelling of these wetland systems, in conjunction with ecological models, will form the basis for examining the ecological effect of individual flow events delivered to these wetlands. Over longer timescales (up to 100 year periods), the IQQM synthesis of the 2D models coupled with the valley scale IQQM model will be employed to examine the effect of different water sharing scenarios and climate change on the volumes of water delivered to wetlands and the optimal fate of water within the wetlands. Decision Support Systems (DSSs) are also being developed to integrate the various datasets and models to aid management of these systems.
The hydrodynamic model will be used for furthering knowledge about the hydrodynamic characteristics, scenario testing of possible management options, and integration into a Decision Support System. A key process in the development of any hydrodynamic model is a robust calibration procedure to test the model’s accuracy to known data.
Contact:
Steve Clark (steve.clark@watech.com.au)
Director
Phone 07 3103 4120
PO Box 5700, West End QLD 4101