Kirsten McKenzie 20876622

ENSC3013 Assignment 5
Background
Water is one of the most essential elements on earth and is regarded as the greatest driver and limiter for natural resource management in Australia. To effectively manage biodiversity, primary production, urban and rural water supplies and hazards such as droughts, floods and salinity, an indepth understanding of the dynamics of water is needed. A water balance can effectively do this by accounting for the flow of water between storage systems. The information provided in a water balance is also fundamental in assessing the impact of changes in the population, land use and climate of an area as well as developing government policies to target challenges within communities industries and regions. A water balance can be on a global, regional or acute scale. The objective is to determine a water balance for the catchment area provided. The process is the important part in this assignment.

Method
1) 2) 3) 4) Calculate the area of the catchment at the marked point. Draw a sketch of a conceptual water balance for catchment. Write an equation that describes the water mass balance for the catchment. Estimate each term of the water balance, using the rainfall data (closest to your home) you downloaded for Assignment 1.

Clearly state and justify any assumptions you need to make.

The first step in determining a water balance is to identify all the components in the catchments water balance through the use of a sketching the conceptual water balance (all water inflows and outflows).

From the conceptual sketch develop an equation that describes the water mass balance for the catchment. Water balance mass for a catchment (from Lecture Notes):

Where

Kirsten McKenzie 20876622

Estimate each term of the water balance Rainfall - Calculate the area of the catchment area

Introduction
Evapotranspiration is not the same as evaporation. Evapotranspiration is the term used to describe the part of the water cycle which removes liquid water from an area with vegetation and into the atmosphere by the processes of both transpiration and evaporation. Evaporation occurs when liquid water is converted to water vapour and hence removed from a surface, such as a lake, soil or wet vegetation, into the air. Transpiration occurs when water in plant tissues is lost to the atmosphere, predominantly through the small opening in the leaves of plants and grasses called stomata. By knowing the rate of water loss from a region farmers will be better placed to efficiently manage the available water for their crop.

http://www.bom.gov.au/watl/eto/about.shtml Where data cannot be obtained reasonable assumptions should be made

We know rate of precipitation using rainfall data from assignment 1 rate of evaporation we need to make assumptions for the following - groundwater inflow/outflow rate - subsurface inflow/outflow rate - surface inflow/outflow rate

Results Discussion References