An understanding of water is becoming increasingly important in relation to: water supply and demand; water quality in multi-use catchments; human health; and, ecosystem maintenance. The terrestrial water cycle is both controlled by the landscape and creates landforms; the study of geomorphology assists in understanding the movement of water in the landscape. The goal of this course is to develop an understanding of the water cycle, the hydrologic processes and landforms that are significant for using and managing the environment. The course not only examines water quantity and quality in terms of both surface and groundwater systems and processes, but also how water shapes the landscape through physical and biogeochemical processes.  In addition, the course examines the impacts of anthropogenic and natural factors on the pathways that water takes and the value of the resource.  Practicals, workshops and field work provide opportunities to develop skills in sampling, analysing and presenting data that relate to catchment characteristics and processes.

Note: Graduate students attend joint classes with undergraduates but are assessed separately.

On satisfying the requirements of this course, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. describe hydrological and associated geomorphic processes, and their importance in environmental management
2. interpret the relationships between water and the regolith which control landform evolution and water quality
3. explain principles of, and demonstrate field skills in, hydrological and geomorphic measurement
4. describe and compare practical examples of hydrology and landscape in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region
5. appreciate the relationship between raw data and the interpretation(s) that stem from them, and how limited or poor quality data influence management decisions.
6. assess how the balance between water availability, supply and quality informs natural resource management.
7. predict the interactions between water and landform under a range of different scenarios

• Practical exercises to demonstrate use of basic mathematics and statistics in hydrology and landform evolution (30%; LO 1, 2, 3, 4,5,6)
• Group based field study and individual report to demonstrate field skills and data analysis (30%; LO 2, 3, 4, 5)
• Research essay (40%; LO 1, 2, 3,5, 6)

65 contact hours comprising lectures, practicals and fieldwork.

Completion of 3 year bachelor degree

Incompatible with SRES6006, SRES6007, ENVS6206 and ENVS6208.

Bachelor degree.

Davie, T.  (2008) Fundamentals of Hydrology, Routledge, London.

Strahler, A. (2010) Introducing Physical Geography (5th edition), Wiley. 

Gordon et al. (2004) Stream Hydrology: an introduction for ecologists, Wiley, Chichester, UK.

Strahler (as above) Chapters 2, 4, 13 & 15

Standard IT and library access.