John Williams | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Alma mater | University of Sydney |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Hydrology |
| Institutions | CSIRO; Australian National University; Natural Resources Commission; Charles Sturt University |
John Williams is an Australian scientist whose life work has been in the study of hydrology and the use of water in the landscape and farming, including land salinity.
Williams grew up near Tumbarumba on a farm in the Snowy Mountains region of New South Wales. [1] He attended school in Queanbeyan near Canberra, before graduating from the University of Sydney with a degree in agricultural science and a doctorate in soil science and hydrology. [2]
Williams is a founding member of the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists and advocated for a rational debate on Australia's water resources. [3] He was Chief of the Division of Land and Water, CSIRO (Australia's premier government research organisation), in Canberra, when he retired in 2004. He served earlier at the CSIRO laboratories at Townsville in Queensland where, among other things, he studied the Great Artesian Basin and the transport of water from the Great Dividing Range into the outback of Queensland and New South Wales.
He also served as Adjunct Professor in Agriculture and Natural Resource Management at Charles Sturt University, and Chief Scientist and Chair of the NSW Department of Natural Resources’ Science and Information Board. Williams was also Commissioner of the New South Wales Natural Resources Commission between 2005 and 2011. [4] [5] [6]
Williams is an emeritus professor and research associate at the Australian National University; [7] and a commentator on environmental matters. [8]
In a feature article in a July 2009 edition of The Canberra Times Williams reportedly stated that there should be a sixty percent cut in water use across the Murray-Darling Basin, and the Snowy Mountains Scheme that diverts water to the Riverina should not be exempt from water savings. [4] In 2012, Williams was interviewed for commentary on the Murray-Darling Commission report. [8]
During his career, Williams has been honoured with the 2005 Farrer Memorial Medal for achievement and excellence in agricultural science and appointed in November 2011 as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (FTSE). [9]
In February 2018, Williams was a co-author of an article in The Conversation and co-signatory of the Murray Darling Declaration along with other concerned scientists. [10]
Hydrology is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and drainage basin sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is called a hydrologist. Hydrologists are scientists studying earth or environmental science, civil or environmental engineering, and physical geography. Using various analytical methods and scientific techniques, they collect and analyze data to help solve water related problems such as environmental preservation, natural disasters, and water management.
The Snowy Mountains Scheme, also known as the Snowy Hydro or the Snowy scheme, is a hydroelectricity and irrigation complex in south-east Australia. Near the border of New South Wales and Victoria, the scheme consists of sixteen major dams; nine power stations; two pumping stations; and 225 kilometres (140 mi) of tunnels, pipelines and aqueducts that were constructed between 1949 and 1974. The Scheme was completed under the supervision of Chief Engineer, Sir William Hudson. It is the largest engineering project undertaken in Australia.
The Murrumbidgee River is a major tributary of the Murray River within the Murray–Darling basin and the second longest river in Australia. It flows through the Australian state of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, descending 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) over 1,485 kilometres (923 mi), generally in a west-northwesterly direction from the foot of Peppercorn Hill in the Fiery Range of the Snowy Mountains towards its confluence with the Murray River near Boundary Bend.
The Darling River is the third-longest river in Australia, measuring 1,472 kilometres (915 mi) from its source in northern New South Wales to its confluence with the Murray River at Wentworth, New South Wales. Including its longest contiguous tributaries it is 2,844 km (1,767 mi) long, making it the longest river system in Australia. The Darling River is the outback's most famous waterway.
The Murray–Darling basin is a large geographical area in the interior of southeastern Australia, encompassing the drainage basin of the tributaries of the Murray River, Australia's longest river, and the Darling River, a right tributary of the Murray and Australia's third-longest river. The basin, which includes six of Australia's seven longest rivers and covers around one-seventh of the Australian landmass, is one of the country's most significant agricultural areas providing one-third of Australia's food supply. Located west of the Great Dividing Range, it drains southwest into the Great Australian Bight and spans most of the states of New South Wales and Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory, and parts of the states of Queensland and South Australia.
This page discusses the rivers and hydrography of the state of New South Wales, Australia.
The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) is a federal research branch of the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, located in Canberra, Australia. ABARES was established on 21 August 1945 as the Bureau of Agricultural Economics (BAE), and is also involved in commercial consultancy. It was merged with the Bureau of Rural Sciences (BRS) in 2010. The main role of ABARES is to provide "professionally independent data, research, analysis and advice that informs public and private decisions affecting Australian agriculture, fisheries and forestry”. ABARES maintains the AgSurf database which includes farm survey data on farm performance, production benchmarks, farm management, socioeconomic indicators relating to the grains, beef, sheep and dairy industries in Australia. ABARES has received funding from business and industry groups. ABARES' website notes that "Over half of ABARES' external revenue is derived from commercial consulting work."
The Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists is an independent group comprising Australian scientists, economists and business people with conservation interests.
The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry is an Australian Government cabinet position which is currently held by Murray Watt in the Albanese ministry since 1 June 2022, following the Australian federal election in 2022.
The Murray–Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) is the principal government agency in charge of managing the Murray–Darling basin in an integrated and sustainable manner. The MDBA is an independent statutory agency that manages, in conjunction with the Basin states, the Murray–Darling basin's water resources in the national interest. The MDBA reports to the Australian Government Minister for the Environment and Water, held since June 2022 by the Hon Tanya Plibersek.
The Tumut River, a perennial stream that is part of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the Snowy Mountains and South West Slopes districts of New South Wales, Australia.
Tooma River, a perennial stream that has had some of its flow diverted as a result of the Snowy Mountains Scheme, is part of the Murray catchment within the Murray–Darling basin and is located in the Australian Alpine region of New South Wales, Australia.
Peter Cullen AO FTSE, MAgrSc, DipEd (Melb), Hon DUniv (Canb), was a leading Australian water scientist.
Water security in Australia became a major concern in Australia in the late 20th and early 21st century as a result of population growth, recurring severe droughts, effects of climate change on Australia, environmental degradation from reduced environmental flows, competition between competing interests such as grazing, irrigation and urban water supplies, and competition between upstream and downstream users. For example, there is competition for the resources of the Darling River system between Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia. Water reform was first placed on the national agenda at the 1994 Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting when a strategic framework was devised. As the knowledge of surface and groundwater systems grew and the awareness of the significance of sustainable water markets increased, further water reform was agreed to at the 2004 COAG meeting, under a national blueprint known as the National Water Initiative (NWI).
The Brigalow Belt is a wide band of acacia-wooded grassland that runs between tropical rainforest of the coast and the semi-arid interior of Queensland, Australia. The Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia (IBRA) divides the Brigalow Belt into two IBRA regions, or bioregions, Brigalow Belt North (BBN) and Brigalow Belt South (BBS). The North and South Brigalow Belt are two of the 85 bioregions across Australia and the 15 bioregions in Queensland. Together they form most of the Brigalow tropical savanna ecoregion.
Sullivans Creek, a partly perennial stream of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to hydrology:
The Great Darling Anabranch, commonly called the Darling Anabranch, is an anabranch and ancestral path of the Darling River in the lower Murray-Darling basin in the Far West and Riverina regions of New South Wales, Australia.
Michael "Mike" Denis Young is an Australian economist and water policy expert. He is best known for his work informing the management of the water resources of the Murray-Darling Basin. In 2006 he was listed by The Canberra Times as one of the ten most influential people in water policy reform. In 2009 Young became the inaugural director of the Environment Institute at the University of Adelaide. He holds a Research Chair in Water Economics and Management there and has been a member of the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists since 2002. In 2013-14, Young held the Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser Chair of Australian Studies at Harvard University.
Wendy Craik is an Australian scientist, public policy adviser and company director.
