Mrs Sandra N. D. Hawthorne
PhD student
Topic: prediction of the
long-term impact of thinning on water yield
University of Melbourne
Email: s.hawthorne@pgrad.unimelb.edu.au
Predicting the impact of forest disturbance on
water yield is crucial in managing and securing future water
supply. While the general impacts of large-scale forest disturbance
are well-established; predicting the long-term impact of partial
disturbance, such as thinning, on individual catchment remains a
challenge. Thinning treatment produces a complex forest structure
to model, with potentially different structural and water use
dynamics between the thinned areas and the remaining
vegetation.
This project aims to extend the capability of a
process-based, distributed hydrological model in order to predict
the impact of forest thinning on water yield. This might be
achieved by modelling the dynamics between vegetation structure and
evapotranspiration (ET) of thinned catchments. As most of
Melbourne’s water catchments are dominated by mountain ash
(Eucalyptus regnans) forests, the following research
questions will be considered:
· What is the persistence of water yield increase after
thinning?
· What are the long-term structural responses of the
remaining vegetation and cleared areas to different thinning
regimes, i.e. the amount of regeneration or emergence of
understorey?
· What is the ET pattern of this new system? How is this
different from untreated catchments?
To answer the above questions, this project
investigates the interaction between vegetation structure and ET in
thinned catchments, represented by the spatial distribution of leaf
area index (LAI). The project will also explore the use of remote
sensing to retrieve LAI distribution and vegetation structural
profile across the catchment.
My interest in this project originated from my
background in the water industry. After graduating with Bachelor of
Science and Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) from Monash University,
I worked as a water resource engineer at a rural water authority.
Through my role, I have learnt that sustainable management of water
resource is crucial to ensure reliable water supply. This project
enables me to investigate the impact of forest disturbance in the
context of water resource management. The use of remote sensing in
forest environment is also an area of interest that will play an
increasingly important role in ecosystem studies and
management.
My supervisors are Dr Patrick Lane
and Associate Professor
Leon Bren from the School of Forests and
Ecosystem Science, University of Melbourne.
My PhD project contributes to Project 4.1 Water
Quantity and Quality of the Trees in the
Landscape Programme.
To browse other PhD projects available with the
Trees in the Landscape Programme, click
here.
