NCRIS Groundwater Infrastructure

North Stradbroke Island

Where is North Stradbroke Island?

North Stradbroke Island is a large sand-mass island around 10 km off the coast, east of Brisbane. It is around 400 km2 in area with sand masses up to 250 m high and is located close to the margin between temperate and subtropical climate zones. Mean rainfall is around 1500 mm. The large, aeolian dunes date from the Quaternary, with older dunes and buried soils in the west and younger dunes towards the eastern side of the island. Groundwater-fed water bodies (e.g., lakes, springs, wetlands) and their associated groundwater-dependent ecosystems are common features of these sand masses. Many of the lakes have significance to local indigenous communities.

Why is this location important?

Like other important sand mass systems in south-east Queensland, North Stradbroke Island contains significant groundwater resources which are accessed by local communities and mining companies. In addition, a significant volume of groundwater is exported to the mainland. While there is the potential for expanded groundwater use, so little is known about groundwater-dependent water bodies and ecosystems that expansion is suspended. Dependent ecosystems include freshwater and estuarine wetlands, mangrove and paperbark communities, and surface-water fauna. There is evidence that vegetation communities have been changing response to changing groundwater conditions. Several species are listed nationally as endangered and a number are endemic to the island.

More generally, a better understanding of coastal hydrological and ecohydrological rocesses is required to optimally manage coastal groundwater systems. A coastal Super Science site delivers the opportunity for developing long term understanding of hydrological processes and dependencies in these critical groundwater environments. Given the wide range of water management and scientific issues arising from rapid development and the threat of climate change impacts, North Stradbroke Island in south-east Queensland is a good location, having hydrological features representative of many coastal groundwater systems around Australia.

Publications

North Stradbroke Island

  1. White, A.M., Lockington, D.A., Gibbes, B. (2017) 'Does fire alter soil water repellency in subtropical coastal sandy environments?' Hydrological Processes, Vol 31(2), pp, 341-348, 10.1002/hyp.11000, DOI: 10.1002/hyp.11000.
  2. Guyot, A., Fan, J., Oestergaard, K.T., Whitley, R., Gibbes, B., Arsac, M., Lockington, D.A. (2017) 'Soil-water content characterisation in a modified Jarvis-Stewart model: A case study of a conifer forest on a shallow unconfined aquifer.' Journal of Hydrology, Vol 544, pp. 242-253, DOI: 10.1016/j.jhydrol.2016.11.041.
  3. Welti, N., Hayes, M., Lockington, D. (2016) 'Seasonal nitrous oxide and methane emissions across a subtropical estuarine salinity gradient.' Biogeochemistry, pp:1-15, DOI: 10.1007/s10533-016-0287-4.
  4. Fan, J., Ostergaard, K.T., Guyot, A., Fujiwara, S., Lockington, D.A. (2016) 'Estimating groundwater evapotranspiration by a subtropical pine plantation using diurnal water table fluctuations: Implications from night-time water use,' Journal of Hydrology, Vol 542, pp:679-685, DOI: 10.1016/j.jhydrol.2016.09.040.
  5. Guyot, A., Ostergaard, K.T., Fan, J., Santini, N.S., Lockington, D.A. (2015) 'Xylem hydraulic properties in subtropical coniferous trees influence radial patterns of sap flow: implications for whole tree transpiration estimates using sap flow sensors.' Trees - Structure and Function, Vol 29(4), pp 961-972, DOI: 10.1007/s00468-014-1144-5.
  6. Welti, N., Gale, D., Hayes, M., Kumar, A., Gasparon, M., Gibbes, B., Lockington, D. (2015) 'Intertidal diatom communities reflect patchiness in groundwater discharge.' Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, Vol. 163(PB), pp. 116-124, DOI: 10.1016/j.ecss.2015.06.006.
  7. Fan, J., Scheuermann, A., Guyot, A., Baumgartl, T., Lockington, D.A. (2015) 'Quantifying spatiotemporal dynamics of root-zone soil water in a mixed forest on subtropical coastal sand dune using surface ERT and spatial TDR,' Journal of Hydrology, Vol.523, pp:475-488, DOI: 10.1016/j.jhydrol.2015.01.064.
  8. Fan, J., Baumgartl, T., Scheuermann, A., Lockington, D.A. (2015) 'Modeling effects of canopy and roots on soil moisture and deep drainage.' Vadose Zone Journal, Vol.14(2), DOI: 10.2136/vzj2014.09.0131
  9. Fan, J., Oestergaard, K.T., Guyot, A., Jensen, D.G., Lockington, D.A. (2015) 'Spatial variability of throughfall and stemflow in an exotic pine plantation of subtropical coastal Australia.' Hydrological Processes, Vol 29(5), pp:793-804\, DOI: 10.1002/hyp.10193.
  10. Van de Wal, B.A.E., Guyot, A., Lovelock, C.E., Lockington, D.A., Steppe, K. (2015) 'Influence of temporospatial variation in sap flux density on estimates of whole-tree water use in Avicennia marina.' Trees - Structure and Function, Vol. 29(1), pp:215-222, DOI: 10.1007/s00468-014-1105-z.
  11. Fan, J., Oestergaard, K.T., Guyot, A., Lockington, D.A. (2014) 'Estimating groundwater recharge and evapotranspiration from water table fluctuations under three vegetation covers in a coastal sandy aquifer of subtropical Australia.' Journal of Hydrology, Vol.519, pp:1120-1129, DOI;10.1016/j.jhydrol.2014.08.039.
  12. Fan, J., Oestergaard, K.T., Guyot, A., Lockington, D.A. (2014) 'Measuring and modeling rainfall interception losses by a native Banksia woodland and an exotic pine plantation in subtropical coastal Australia.' Journal of Hydrology, Vol.515, pp:156-165, DOI:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2014.04.066.
  13. Vandegehuchte, M.W., Guyot, A., Hubau, M., De Groote, S.R.E., De Baerdemaeker, N.J.F., Hayes, M., Welti, N., Lovelock, C.E., Lockington, D.A., Steppe, K. (2014) 'Long-term versus daily stem diameter variation in co-occurring mangrove species: Environmental versus ecophysiological drivers.' Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, Vol. 192-193, pp:51-58, DOI: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2014.03.002.
  14. Vandegehuchte, M.W., Guyot, A., Hubeau, M., De Swaef, T., Lockington, D.A., Steppe, K. (2014) 'Modelling reveals endogenous osmotic adaptation of storage tissue water potential as an important driver determining different stem diameter variation patterns in the mangrove species Avicennia marina and Rhizophora stylosa.' Annals of Botany, Vol.114(4), pp:667-676, DOI: 10.1093/aob/mct311.
  15. Hubeau, M., Vandegehuchte, M.W., Guyot, A., Lovelock, C.E., Lockington, D.A., Steppe, K.(2014) 'Plant-water relations of the mangrove species Rhizophora stylosa: a unique story. 'Communications in agricultural and applied biological sciences.' Vol. 79(1), pp:57-63.
  16. Van De Wal, B.A.E., Guyot, A., Lovelock, C.E., Lockington, D.A., Steppe, K. (2013) 'Influence of spatial variation in sap flux density on estimates of whole-tree water use in Avicennia marina.' Acta Horticulturae, Vol. 991, pp:101-106.