Atherton Queensland

Water Regulation as an Ecosystem Service

The quality, allocation and management of water resources are critical issues in the Wet Tropics of north Queensland. There are increasing pressures to dam, divert and harvest water for urban and agricultural uses and these need to be balanced against requirements to maintain environmental flows and rates of aquifer recharge.

Rainforests comprise a significant proportion of the vegetation cover in the Wet Tropics. However, there is little information on the hydrology of different forest types, or of their hydrological characteristics compared to similar areas under agricultural land uses. The effects of changes in vegetation type and cover on catchment response, water quality and water yield from these humid tropical landscapes are poorly understood. Such knowledge is vital in developing a more predictive understanding of the effects of possible land use and climate changes on water resources in the region.

The project will undertake research which:

1. Assesses seasonal water use by different vegetation types in relation to disturbance, soil fertility, and rainfall and other climatic variables.
2. Assesses the importance of cloud stripping as a mechanism of water capture by upland forests in the Wet Tropics.
3. Predicts changes in groundwater and stream base flow resulting from particular land-uses.
4. Evaluates the dependence of different forest types on groundwater in the coastal lowlands.
5. Predicts seasonal water yields from selected Wet Tropics catchments in response to changes in land-use (vegetation type and cover) and climate.
6. Documents and quantifies (in a form amenable to economic analysis) the range of key water regulation services provided by tropical forests.

Project stakeholders

1. Rainforest CRC
2. Government natural resource management agencies
   • Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mining (QDNR)
   • Queensland Environmental Protection Agency (QEPA)
   • Wet Tropics Management Authority (WTMA)
   • Environment Australia (EA)
   • local government authorities
3. Local catchment management groups
4. Other CRC's (CRC directory)
   • Reef
   • Catchment Hydrology
   • Coastal Zone Processes
5. International scientific community
6. General public

Project leader

Paul Reddell
CSIRO Land and Water
Tropical Forest Research Centre
PO Box 780
Atherton, QLD, 4883
Ph: (07) 4091 8800
Email: paul.reddell@csiro.au

>> More information >> CSIRO TFRC

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