Waterwatch Queensland - Communities caring for catchments

Communities caring for catchments

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Monitoring | Educational 

Monitoring

Waterway monitoring sites in Queensland

Details on water monitoring sites around Queensland are available from the Department of Natural Resources and Water website – www.derm.qld.gov.au/water/monitoring/index.html. Information for each site includes catchment maps, monitoring site location, and data on indicators such as flow, electrical conductivity, pH and temperature.

Waterwatch Australia fact sheets

Fact sheets are available for download from the Waterwatch Australia website www.waterwatch.org.au including:

  • Getting Involved in Waterwatch Australia
  • Waterwatch—Action Plan   
  • A Waterways Health Check—Rating Your Local Waterway 
  • Waterwatch—Code of Practice 
  • Waterwatch—Safety Guidelines 
  • Waterwatch—Sponsorship Guidelines

Waterwatch Australia national technical manual (2003)

This manual was designed for use by schools and community groups and provides advice on all aspects of waterway monitoring. 

Monitoring methods covered include those for water quality, water bugs and stream habitat assessments.  There are also special modules for estuarine and groundwater monitoring.

Copies available for download from the Waterwatch Australia website – www.waterwatch.org.au/publications.

Queensland water quality guidelines

These guidelines were developed by the former Queensland Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and outline water quality technical standards for the protection of aquatic ecosystems. They can be used by community groups to interpret their water monitoring results.

Available from: 

http://www.derm.qld.gov.au/water/health/monitoring_assessment.html

Australian and New Zealand guidelines for freshwater and marine water quality (2000)

The ANZECC guidelines are the 'official' guidelines for water quality in Australian waterways. They can assist community groups to interpret their monitoring results but also provide advice on how targets and objectives should be set for water quality. The guidelines should be used where more specialised state and local guidelines are not available.

Available:

Australian guidelines for water quality monitoring and reporting (2000)

The Australian monitoring and reporting guidelines provide advice on designing and implementing water quality monitoring projects. They will be especially useful to groups aiming to collect high quality data in a scientifically rigorous manner. 

Available:

Water Quality Online

Water Quality Online is the home of the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality's Queensland Water Quality Program (WQSIP) - www.wqonline.info.

The site contains a range of water quality monitoring publications produced through the WQSIP. These products aim to assist with regional natural resource management in Queensland.

Users guide to estuarine, coastal and marine indicators for regional NRM monitoring—fully searchable HTML version

This guide was produced by the Coastal CRC to assist with the selection of indicators for monitoring of estuarine, coastal and marine waters. It is tailored to regional and local-scale monitoring programs aiming to measure the effectiveness of management actions. The guide links indicators with each management issue. This version of the guide is a computer-based help file (HTML) system, making it fully searchable and easy to navigate through.

Available from www.wqonline.info.  

Natural Resource Management manual for Local Government operational staff

This manual is designed to introduce Council operational staff to ecological assessment processes of bushland and roadside areas in their Shire with the intent of management and protection of conservation values. Also included in the manual is a step-by-step process to undertake water quality monitoring of rivers and streams. The publication was developed by the Local Government Association of Queensland and is available electronically at www.lgaq.asn.au. Enter 'Natural Resources Managment Manual' into the search field and press 'Enter'

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Educational

Nutrients, catchments and reefs—a guide to nutrients in the tropical landscape

Designed for landholders, land managers and senior students, the booklet uses plain language and engaging graphics to introduce the role and behaviour of nutrients in the tropical environment.

Key nutrient cycles are explained in terms of the latest scientific understanding of the effects of increased nutrients in Great Barrier Reef (GBR) catchments, and what is being done about it in the natural resource management (NRM) Regions.

This 16-page A4 booklet has been produced by a team of scientists and science communicators in response to concern over the declining water quality in GBR catchments and near-shore habitats. A PDF copy can be downloaded from www.catchmenttoreef.com.au.

Aquatic invaders—exotic pest fish

This resource is an educational module about pest fish such as carp and tilapia and their impacts on our aquatic environment. It was developed by the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries to meet learning outcomes of the new Science and Studies of Society and Environment (SOSE) curriculum developed by the Queensland School's Curriculum Council. The activities focus on providing outcomes in levels 3-5 (upper primary and lower secondary students). Further information about this resource is available from www2.dpi.qld.gov.au and hard copies can be purchased by calling 13 25 23.

Last updated 18 February 2011