Human-environment interactions in the Murray-Darling Basin - from forecasting to foresighting

The recent drought has yet again placed water resources in the Murray Darling Basin in the public spotlight. While decisions related water management policy in the basin will naturally remain contested and political, it is critical that policy is developed upon the solid foundations of open, transparent and peer reviewed science. The purpose of this workshop is to discuss the science needs that will help inform policy decisions related to water management, including identifying research and investment priorities to understand the historical, near-term and long-term movement of water throughout the basin.

The format will include invited presentations, facilitated discussion and opportunities for networking. Participation and catering are free of charge, thanks to generous support from our sponsors:

• Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research organisation (CSIRO)
• Geoscience Australia
• Bureau of Meteorology
• Murray-Darling Basin Authority
• National Computational Infrastructure
• The Australian National University

Programme:

8:30 Registration
9:00 Welcome, Prof Seth Westra (U Adelaide)
9:15 Shaping the future of water research in Australia, Prof Rob Vertessy (U Melbourne) & Prof Ian Prosser (U Can)
9:45 Vulnerability of environmental water management to a variable and changing climate, Prof Michael Stewardson (U Melbourne)
10:15 How are drought and water policy changing farmer behaviour in the Murray-Darling basin? Prof Sarah Wheeler (U Adelaide)
10:45 Morning tea
11:15 Use of remote sensing in water management, Dr David Weldrake (MDBA)
11:45 Paired experiment concepts, Dr Floris Van Ogtrop (U Sydney)
12:00 Learning from experience: MDB as an experimental testbed (facilitated discussion), Seth Westra (facilitator)
12:30 Lunch
13:30 Land surface feedbacks during drought in the MDB, Prof Jason Evans (UNSW)
14:00 Role of Future Science and Technologies in the Murray Darling, Dr Chantal Donnelly (Bureau of Meteorology)
14:30 What should an Australian water resources observing system look like? (facilitated discussion), Prof Albert van Dijk (ANU) (facilitator)
15:00 Afternoon tea
15:30 Foresighting, decision making, and water planning, Prof Quentin Grafton (ANU)
16:00 Sustainable urban water management for MDB towns and cities, Prof Stuart Khan (UNSW)
16:30 Rethinking water management - a perspective from the social sciences, Prof Lorrae van Kerkhoff (ANU)
17:00 Wrap-up, Seth Westra
17:15-18:15 Social drinks