How to deal with PFAS contamination will debated by Australia's leading groundwater experts at a conference from Monday.
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The three-day conference will involve 500 of the nation's leading groundwater experts to be held in Brisbane.
The risks to aquifers associated with fracking will also be raised.
PFAS chemicals contained in firefighting foam used in training at Tindal RAAF Base has contaminated Katherine's water supplies.
Water restrictions are in place, bans on eating fish from rivers and a water treatment plant is being built as an emergency measure to provide the NT's fourth biggest town with safe drinking water.
The 2019 Australian Groundwater Conference will host more than 500 of Australasia's groundwater experts, with international speakers, to reveal the latest research into groundwater science and management.
The three day conference canvasses topics as diverse as mapping water trends across Australia, drinking water security in Asia and the Pacific, risks associated with fracking, and the conservation and management of groundwater with Indigenous stakeholders.
Speakers will highlight:
- Role that groundwater storage ('Managed aquifer recharge') has in improving drought resilience and minimising water losses from surface water evaporation.
- How improvements in groundwater modelling science have increased our understanding of interactions between energy systems (onshore gas; geosequestation; geothermal) and groundwater systems.
- Latest in PFAS contamination research and solutions.
- Role that next-generation 'water fingerprinting' (groundwater isotope studies) has in determining the age and providence of our groundwater resources.
- The role Indigenous groundwater research can play in modern groundwater practices.
- New techniques for characterising and managing groundwater dependent ecosystems.
Conference chair Professor Jim Underschultz says with the theme of "Groundwater in a Changing World", AGC2019 is the preeminent gathering a water resource professionals in the Southern Hemisphere that happens once every two years
"Groundwater is increasingly recognised as a vital element in world water resource management and an important contributor to global health, economies, and social and environmental wellbeing."
"Academic, government, consulting and industry members of the International Association of Hydrogeologists from the Australasian region will explore recent advancements in hydrogeology and water resources management, the implications of climate change and the impacts on agricultural, resource and infrastructure industries."
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Chris McLennan
ACM national rural property writer based in Bacchus Marsh, Victoria. Career journalist. Multi award winner.
ACM national rural property writer based in Bacchus Marsh, Victoria. Career journalist. Multi award winner.
