Systems thinking to enhance performance of wetlands
Project Title:
Systems thinking to enhance performance of wetlands
Supervisor(s):
Dr Harpreet Kandra
Dr Jessica Reeves
Associate Professor Andrew Barton
Contact person and email address:
Dr Harpreet Kandra
A brief description of the project:
Decentralised water sensitive urban design (WSUD) systems such as wetlands are complex micro-ecosystems that operate with none to limited maintenance and monitoring. In most cases, there is a limited understanding of their performance/efficacy in relation to the objectives with which they were initially established. The proposed doctoral study aims to investigate a mix of wetland systems in the regional areas of Victoria using a systems thinking approach. Comprehensive assessments ranging from hydrology to water quality, index of wetland condition, ecological surveys, community surveys etc. shall help establish a not-so-well understood cause-effect relationship between these multidisciplinary variables. This shall eventually help in developing a performance assessment framework for evaluation of WSUD systems; better informed guidelines for design, operation, smart monitoring and maintenance of such systems; indicator based system to compare and benchmark comparable systems; asset management guidelines. The research project will run in association with the regional councils and would eventually help enhance engagement with local stakeholders.