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Noosa lake research earns funding
Water testing has started in the Noosa River catchment as part of an $85,000, 12-month project which will include two University of the Sunshine Coast students working with nuclear scientists at Lucas Heights near Sydney.
USC Science Honours students Nikita Tully, of Palmwoods, and Krystina Lamb, of Mountain Creek, will access the world-class research facilities at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation.
A grant and scholarship from AINSE, linked to the Australian Government-run facility, will allow the 21-year-old students to collaborate on top-level testing on sediment cores they collect from Lake Cootharaba.
USC Senior Lecturer in Environmental Chemistry Dr Neil Tindale said the Honours research was part of the larger project involving numerous community organisations, local and federal government.
Dr Tindale, who with USC Senior Lecturer in Chemistry Dr Peter Brooks will supervise the students, said the health of the traditionally pristine Noosa River catchment was a high priority on the Sunshine Coast.
“It slipped to a B grade on the latest Ecosystem Health Monitoring Program report card and nutrient levels were of concern,” he said.
Nikita and Krystina will try to measure and source the input of nutrients. They will analyse samples taken regularly at six locations including the upper Noosa River, Kin Kin Creek, Lake Cootharaba and Cooloothin Creek.
The students hope to date the lake’s sediment layers back more than 200 years, to before white settlement, in an effort to see if build-ups are natural or man-made.
Nikita said they would use a technique called radioactive dating to determine the chronology of the sediment.
“Nutrients such as nitrogen are concerning because the lake is popular for fishing, recreation and tourism and the entire freshwater catchment, which borders farmland and national park, is vital for the Noosa ecosystem,” she said.
Krystina moved from New South Wales to study at USC because it offered both Sustainability and Chemistry courses as part of a Science degree.
“Getting funding for our Honours project is fantastic because sample analysis is expensive,” she said.
USC recently joined AINSE and USC’s new Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research Professor Roland De Marco said the awarding of Nikita’s scholarship was prestigious.
“The AINSE program is a nationally competitive research program and high quality applications were received from across Australia and New Zealand. Twelve scholarships were granted,” he said.
Partners in the project are: Sunshine Coast Regional Council, Australian Government Caring for our Country program, AINSE, SEQ Catchments, SEQ Healthy Waterways Partnership, University of Queensland, Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management, Noosa Integrated Catchment Association, Noosa Waterwatch and community volunteers.
– Julie Gatehouse