Division of Environmental and Life Sciences

News From the Deane
The weekly update from the Dean of Division, Prof Liz Deane

Contamination of Environmental Systems
Mark Taylor's research on exposure and risks faced by the urban population in Mt Isa, Queensland

Opportunities
- Great news of new purchases from the library

Events
- Physical Geography Special Seminar 1 May
- Beautiful Minds…100 years of Nobel creativity comes to Sydney 18 April
- CBMS Seminar "Fluorescence identification of bacteria"
- ELS Seminar Series

News from the Dean

Dear Colleagues

A relatively quiet week except for graduations and prize giving's - ours yet to come. However, some opportunities and interesting information has come our way.

1. The Australian Museum has just released its research strategy document - a lot of which is relevant to areas of the Division. Details are available at:- www.australianmuseum.net.au/research/strategy.pdf

1. A symposium on Science and Engineering: Skills for Australia's Future will be held on 28 and 29 June at the Sydney Marriot Hotel. This symposium will investigate strategies for revitalising science, engineering and technology. Details available from alana.piper@informa.com.au

1. The Banksia Environmental Awards are open until the 8 May. They are awarded in recognition of research with potential to make a significant difference to environmental sustainability. Details at:- www.banksiafdn.com

1. Threatened Species Network Community Grants provide up to $50,000 for work on the natural environment with a particular emphasis on threatened species and ecological communities. Applications are due by 1 June and details are available at:- www.wwf.org.au

Finally, thank you to everyone who got their RQF information in and to the Division staff for getting it all organised.

Till next week

Liz

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Contamination of environmental systems with soil, sediment and water-associated heavy metal - exposure and risk to the urban population of Mount Isa, Queensland, Australia

Mark Taylor has been working with his research team (Dr Karen Hudson-Edwards, UCL Birkbeck, University of London; Tabitha Kuypers, Alan Mackay) on research at Mount Isa since 2001. His work examines the storage, transfer and cycling of heavy metals within water, soil and sediment systems in and around Mount Isa.

The geography of Mount Isa particularly interesting: Mt Isa Mine is a major Pb-Zn-Cu mine and lies immediately adjacent to City's population of ~23,000. The ephemeral flowing Leichhardt River bisects the City and the Mine and drains downstream to Lake Moondarra where the City's water is captured and stored. Some 200 soil and sediment analyses of the river system and the urban area reveal that in many cases metal values grossly exceed safe guideline values as set by the Australian Government for ecological health and resident housing guidelines. My samples have been analysed primarily for Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn and have covered the standard < 2mm grain size fraction but also the < 180 micron fraction. This smaller fraction has been analysed because of the known relationship between increased heavy metal concentration values with decreasing grain size and the impact that dust fraction have on human health.

My research teams analysis of contemporary sediments from the Leichhardt River and floodplain and the draining the mine reveal that coarse- (< 2mm) and fine-grained (<180 m m) sediment stored associated near channel floodplain and cut riverbank environments and is continuing to contaminate the downstream water and sediment system. We have also found similar problems within the urban area of Mount Isa, particularly close to the mine. In addtiion, we have also examined the relationship between bedrock geology and metals and found that while there is some intersection between mineralized bedrock, about 50 % of the samples exceed National Environmental Protection Council (NEPC) (1999) Health Investigation Levels (HILs) guidelines for Standard Residential Housing Local. We have purposefully compared our results to the <180 m m fraction given the greater risk of uptake from these sediments sizes. We note that NEPC guidelines use the < 2mm fraction for their comparative study but residents but these fraction are (1) less likely to be contaminated due their quartz content and (2) are less likely to be absorbed by the body. However, they do not adequately describe the environmental health problems associated with metals with finer sediment fractions found within gardens, houses, carpets, furniture and the like. Thus, our research has shown that as result of elevated heavy metals in the environment, there is a potential risk that residents of Mount Isa may be exposed to potentially harmful doses of heavy metals either via to range of pathways: indigenous communities recreating in the contaminated river bed; swimming in contaminated ephemeral pools; consumption of contaminated fish caught in Lake Moondarra and inadvertent ingestation of metals within the urban residential areas.

Presently, there is a paucity of knowledge or Government advice relating to these potential hazards. Queensland Health is undertaking a Pb-blood study to determine the impact of environmental Pb on children (1-4) and results thus far from ~180 children trest indicates that around 10 % have Pb-lead levels elevated above WHO guidelines (10 ug/dL). Our recent results submitted for publication in Environmental Pollution and the 5th Australian Stream Management Conference discusses the spatial and temporal distribution of sediment and water-associated heavy metals and evaluates the risks they may pose to the environmental and population of Mount Isa.

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Brian Gulson trying to identify the lead source of mass bird kills in WA

Just "catching his breath" from a 2-year stint as the only non-US expert in helping to revise the US Environmental Protection Agency Lead document, Brian Gulson of GSE was asked by the local MLA and WA Department of Conservation and Environment to assist in identifying the source of lead in the 4,000 plus bird kills in Esperance in WA. The source is though to be the lead carbonate that is shipped from the port. He attended a public meeting of about 500-600 community members and fielded numerous media interviews. He renewed old acquaintances with one of the local doctors with whom he worked on studies of lead-poisoned families in Broken Hill in the 1990's. Brian feels the same way as this doctor that "lead keeps chasing me around" in spite of ARC-funded research into manganese and now nanoparticles.

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Opportunities

Great News From the Library...

The Library has purchased access to the following online resources for 2007 which will be of interest to ELS staff and students.

Journals

Open Access Journals

Open Access journals, such as those listed in the Directory of Open Journals (www.doaj.org), PubMed Central (http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/), and SciELO (www.scielo.br) have been added to the Library catalogue.

Oxford University Press

The Science Journals Digital Archive has been purchased, which allows access to journals such as Annals of Botany , Glycobiology and Journal of Petrology back to the first issue.

Royal Society of Chemistry

The Library's subscription now provides access to all RSC publications, including Natural Products Update and Natural Products Reports .

ScienceDirect

The Library has purchased the Agricultural and Biological Science backfile and the Immunology and Microbiology backfile. This means you can now access journals such as Experimental Mycology , Forest Ecology and Management , and Landscape and Urban Planning back to their first issue.

Wiley

The following backfiles of Wiley journals have been added to the Library's collection, providing access back to the first issue:

• Analytical Sciences (includes Electrophoresis , Luminescence , Journal of Separation Science )

• Cell and Developmental Biology (includes BioEssays , Developmental Genetics , Journal of Morphology )

• Genetics and Evolution (includes American Journal of Primatology , Genetic Epidemiology , Journal of Experimental Zoology )

• Neuroscience (includes Annals of Neurology , Journal of Neurobiology , Journal of Neuroscience Research )

Reference material

Blackwell Reference Online

Provides access to reference works in disciplines such as Geography, Life and Physical Sciences, Medicine, and Museum Studies.

Encyclopaedias

Online versions of the following encyclopaedias have been purchased:

These new encyclopaedias can be accessed by searching the Library's catalogue.

Watch this space for other new purchases which will be announced shortly.

If you have any questions about these new purchases or would like to recommend new titles that the Library should consider purchasing, please contact either Karen Marks at karen.marks@library.mq.edu.au, x9009 or Andrew Spencer andrew.spencer@library.mq.edu.au, x7535.

Scopus trial

The Library has established another trial of the Scopus database. The trial will run until 24 th May 2007. Access to the database is available through the Library's databases page or at www.scopus.com. We are particularly interested in how you use this database for your research, and if it could be useful as part of the RQF. Please forward any comments or feedback about Scopus to either Andrew Spencer at andrew.spencer@library.mq.edu.au, x7535 or Karen Marks at karen.marks@library.mq.edu.au, x9009.

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Events

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Physical Geography Seminar - One for the diary

Presenter: Dr Kevin Cheung
Affiliation: National Center for Disaster Reduction, Taipei, Taiwan
Date: TUESDAY 1st May
Time and location: 1pm, E5A143
Title: Mesoscale Features associated with Tropical Cyclone Formations in the Western North Pacific

Abstract:
The mesoscale features of 124 tropical cyclone formations in the western North Pacific during 1999-2004 are investigated in this study through large-scale analyses, satellite infrared brightness temperature and QuikSCAT oceanic winds data. Based on low-level wind flow and surge direction, the formation cases are classified into six synoptic patterns, and then the general convection characteristics and mesoscale convective system (MCS) activities associated with these formation cases are studied under this classification scheme. In general five characteristic temporal convection profiles are identified. It is found that convection processes in the cases associated with easterly waves (EW) are highly distinguishable from the other monsoon-related formations in that the deepness of convection is less and closer to the center of development. In terms of MCS activity, on average only one MCS is identified for EW formation whereas the mean value is around two for the other monsoon-related patterns. Both the mean lifetime and time period before formation of first appearance of MCS in EW is much shorter than those developed in other synoptic patterns, indicating that the overall evolution towards formation in EW is faster in pace. Unlike the EW pattern, MCSs in the monsoon patterns mostly scatter around the center except in the cases where both strong southwesterly and northeasterly surges coexist in which clustering of MCSs is found about 100-200 km east of the center in the 12 h before formation. The implications of these results to internal mechanisms of tropical cyclone formation will be discussed in light of other recent mesoscale studies.

Biography:
Dr. Kevin Cheung obtained his Ph.D. in 1999 from the City University of Hong Kong with a dissertation that developed ensemble forecasting methodologies for tropical cyclone motion. With support from a fellowship provided by the Croucher Foundation, he performed postdoctoral research on tropical cyclone motion and formation in the department of meteorology, U.S. Naval Postgraduate School for two years, and then became a research faculty there. In 2004, he joined Taiwan's National Center for Disaster Reduction as an associate research fellow and has been developing statistical precipitation forecast and investigations into other rainfall-related hazards. Kevin's primary research interests include tropical meteorology, natural hazards and extreme events analysis, and dynamical system approach to environmental diagnosis and modeling.

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Beautiful Minds…100 years of Nobel creativity comes to Sydney 18 April

An extraordinary exhibition celebrating 100 years of the Nobel Prize arrives in Sydney this month for a unique Australian showing.

The exhibition, which was launched from the Nobel Museum in Stockholm, Sweden on the centenary of the Nobel Prize in 2001, has been travelling the world on a 15-city tour. The University of Technology, Sydney, is its only Australian destination. The exhibition will be held from April 18 to June 30.

Beautiful Minds …100 years of Nobel creativity focuses on the history of the Nobel Prize, its categories, and the concept of creativity through original artefacts. On exhibit are unique displays and films about the geniuses who have been awarded the Nobel Prize, the Nobel system and the man who made the prize possible, Alfred Nobel (the inventor of dynamite).

An extensive lecture and special events program, including an educational schools program, will accompany the exhibition, featuring many distinguished Nobel Laureates.

Confirmed Nobel Laureate speakers include: J.M Coetzee (Literature, 2003), Robert Engle (Economics, 2003), Sir James Mirrlees (Economics, 1996) and Peter Doherty (Medicine, 1996), plus a lecture from the director of the Nobel Museum, Svante Lindquist.

Information on the exhibition can be obtained by visiting the web site at www.nobel.uts.edu.au

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Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences Seminar

"Fluorescence identification of bacteria"

Professor Ewa Goldys, Department of Physics, Macquarie University.

Where and When?
Location: Building F7B, Room 322
Audience: Everyone
Time and Date: 12:00 PM on Thursday the 26th of April, 2007

For further information, contact:
Professor Shoba Ranganathan phone: (02) 9850 6262
email address: shoba.ranganathan@mq.edu.au

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ELS Seminar Series

Departments in ELS host seminars covering a wide range of topics associated with ongoing research projects and other areas of interest. The seminars are delivered by academics, research staff, and students from within the Division, as well as guest speakers from other institutions and industry. Details of times, dates, locations and topics of seminars to be held over the next few weeks are listed here.

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Snippets

Aussies stop smoking, keep drinking
The decline in smoking rates over the past three decades means Australia now has one of the lowest smoking rates according to a report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).

NZ glacier will melt
The 'tongue' of the iconic Franz Josef Glacier will melt away in the next 100 years, according to new results from a team of glaciologists from Canterbury and Victoria universities.

Solar car smashes world record
UNSW's solar car Jaycar Sunswift III has today broken Dick Smith's world record for the fastest solar powered road trip from Perth to Sydney.

Cannabis gives stroke patients hope
New research by University of Otago scientists suggests some mechanisms in the brain targeted by cannabis could become drugs targets to counter brain cell damage after a stroke.

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