JCU TropWATER scientists featured their research to the critical minerals sector at last week’s Regional Trailblazer Showcase and Stakeholder Forum in Townsville – emphasising the need to tailor water quality objectives for freshwater ecosystems near mines.
Most creeks and rivers in northern Australian mining environments are highly ephemeral – meaning they only flow for very brief periods of the year – and current tools for managing water quality are not suited to these changeable environments.
Our research is working towards developing adaptive water quality targets that will help end users assess how mining activities are influencing water quality, and what measures they can take to protect the overall health of these environments.
JCU TropWATER’s Dr Sarah McDonald said this work will provide locally relevant targets for water quality, creating tangible benefits for industry.
“Our work will build on National Water Quality Guidelines to develop a tool that can define objectives for water quality tailored to different mine sites,” Dr McDonald said.
“Ultimately, the tool will provide ‘fit-for-purpose’ water quality targets for these valuable temporary aquatic environments, improving environmental protection strategies at mine sites.”
The showcase and forum brought together researchers, government, and industry leaders from the resources technology and critical minerals sector. The TropWATER team, led by Dr Shelley Templeman, have spent the past decade working with partner organisations to address water quality and regulatory compliance needs for the mining industry.
The team aims to expand this work in the future to strengthen existing partnerships with industry, develop improved water quality frameworks for the Dry Tropics, and upskill industry professionals through environmental monitoring short courses.
The showcase and forum are part of the Resources Technology and Critical Minerals Trailblazer program, a collaboration between JCU, the University of Queensland, Curtin University and 33 industry partners.
