Project: Murray–Darling Basin Sustainable Yields 2 (MDBSY2)
Authors: Matthew Hardy, Phillip Jordan, Simon Lang, Georgina Race, Moira Smith, Rory Nathan
Hydrology and Risk Consulting (HARC), in partnership with Spatial Vision (SV), Digital Content Analysis Technology (D-CAT), and Professor Rory Nathan, were engaged by the Murray–Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) to identify and assess the feasibility of ground truthing options to improve the accuracy of surface water interception models of runoff dams across the Murray–Darling Basin (MDB or “the Basin”).
Funded under the Murray–Darling Basin Sustainable Yields 2 (MDBSY2) Project, this investigation is part of a broader package of work (MDBSY2 Module 3b) 1 that is seeking to improve the MDBA’s understanding and representation of surface water interception processes in its modelling and accounting activities.
This investigation, the identification of ground truthing options and an assessment of the feasibility of their application to improve the accuracy of surface water interception models for runoff dams across the Basin is Stage 1 of three stages in Phase 1 of the MDBA’s long-term investment in improving the understanding of runoff dams across the Basin.
Stage 2 will focus on selecting and prioritising ground truthing options that will be piloted through case studies and trials across the Basin.
Stage 3 will evaluate the data, insights and outcomes from Stage 2 and use this to re-evaluate the risk posed by runoff dams. The outcomes of these evaluations will then be used to develop a business case for Commonwealth investment in a long-term program of ground truthing activities.
The outcomes of these three stages, along with future phases, will, through a continuous improvement framework, support improvements in the accuracy of surface water interception models for runoff dams. They will also advance the collective scientific understanding of runoff dams in the Basin and the materiality of their historical and future impact.