A waterways management framework for Western Australia

MacGregor, Colin (2009) A waterways management framework for Western Australia. In: Brebbia, Carlos, (ed.) River Basin Management V. WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment (124). WIT Press, Southampton, UK, pp. 3-14.

[img] PDF (Published Version) - Published Version
Restricted to Repository staff only

View at Publisher Website: http://www.witpress.com/books/978-1-8456...
 
2


Abstract

The State of Western Australia (WA) occupies one third of the Australian continent. The hydro-climate varies enormously from the tropical monsoon region in the north; through an erratic, semi-arid climate of the northwest and interior; to temperate regions of the south. Most waterways in the State are intermittent, with summer flow in the north, winter flow in the south and ephemeral flows in the northwest. Perennial streams are comparatively rare geographically. For much of WA there is insufficient water quality and riparian vegetation condition data to make comprehensive, objective assessments of the health of waterways. In many parts of the State, a comprehensive assessment of the values and condition of, and threats to, waterway ecosystems has not been undertaken. Most information and management is centred on the southwest land division and there is comparatively little known of waterways elsewhere. However, regional Natural Resource Management (NRM) groups and other organisations are mapping, classifying, evaluating and prioritising their waterway activities. This paper presents and describes the development of a State-wide waterways management framework. The framework is based on values-threats models and allows assessment of waterways’ attributes even when comprehensive or inadequate data is unavailable. It is also capable of incorporating objective and subjective information so it could prove valuable to waterways managers operating in relatively remote regions where rapid appraisal-type assessments are required.

Item ID: 39514
Item Type: Book Chapter (Research - B1)
ISBN: 978-1-84564-198-6
ISSN: 1746-448X
Keywords: waterways management framework, assets and threats assessment, Western Australia.
Additional Information:

Papers from the Fifth International Conference on River Basin Management held in Malta, 2009.

Date Deposited: 07 Aug 2015 01:28
FoR Codes: 05 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES > 0502 Environmental Science and Management > 050205 Environmental Management @ 100%
SEO Codes: 96 ENVIRONMENT > 9605 Ecosystem Assessment and Management > 960506 Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Fresh, Ground and Surface Water Environments @ 100%
Downloads: Total: 2
More Statistics

Actions (Repository Staff Only)

Item Control Page Item Control Page