The Groundwater Resources specialization can be taken as a Master of Engineering Science (M Eng Sci) in The Faculty of Engineering or as a Master of Science and Technology (M Sci Tech) in the Science Faculty. Entry into each program is slightly different.

Details for the Science program can be seen at:
http://www.handbook.unsw.edu.au/postgraduate/plans/current/CVENDS8538.html

Details of the Engineering plan are found at:
http://www.civeng.unsw.edu.au/futurestudents/pg/cvends8538/index.html

Teaching in this program is shared between staff in the Faculty of Engineering and the Faculty of Science and is coordinated by the Director of the UNSW Connected Waters Initiative. Note that students will graduate with a Master of Applied Science and Technology with a specialization in Groundwater Resources if enrolled through the Science Faculty, or a Master of Engineering Science with a specialization in Groundwater Resources if enrolled through the Engineering Faculty.

The 48 Units of Credit (UoC) Coursework Master's Program will comprise three 6 UoC courses in Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) and three 6 UoC courses in Biology, Earth and Environmental Sciences (BEES) with a 12 UoC research project or two additional 6 UoC courses from either BEES or CEE. Course names and descriptions are given below. Each subject is 6 UoC and will comprise two 3-day short courses. Where possible, the short courses have been time tabled to provide a gap of several weeks to allow students to digest information from the first short course and to carry out assignment work, before the second short course is attended. Dates for the short courses in 2008 are given below. An option exists to carry out a 12 UoC project (CVEN9930 or GEOS9124). Work is underway to develop a specialist training site at the UNSW Wellington Farm that is bounded by the Macquarie River. Project students would undertake practical training in a wide variety of techniques in groups for the first part of this project followed by individual work on one or more components. This work would be undertaken in the Summer Session with the field training in week 1 of the session.

Hydrologic cycle; climate and weather; meterological and hydrological measurement; evaporation and evapotranspiration processes and measurement; rainfall/runoff processes including loss models and hydrograph analysis; design rainfall; data and flood frequency analysis; flood estimation including regional methods and estimation of extremes.

The properties of soil and water; hydraulic head, hydraulic conductivity and Darcy's Law; physics of groundwater movement; introduction to groundwater modeling; groundwater storage and geotechnical impacts of groundwater withdrawal; groundwater hydrograph analysis, barometric and tidal efficiencies; water in the unsaturated zone; groundwater in the hydrological cycle and recharge calculation; Surface water groundwater connectivity; groundwater resource evaluation - drilling methods; geophysical logging; step testing, pumping test design and interpretation, radial flow modeling; borehole efficiency and maintenance.

Inorganic hydrogeochemistry of natural and contaminated groundwater resources. Practical aspects of sampling methodologies and field analysis; data checking and data presentation. Theoretical aspects of hydrochemical speciation; equilibrium and kinetic reactions as applied to the carbonate system; mineral dissolution/precipitation; ion exchange; sorption; oxidation and reduction reactions. PHREEQC examples and exercises on ion exchange and redox reactions related to seawater intrusion; sorption of heavy metals; redox reactions related to nitrate contamination and 1D reactive transport modeling. Exercises will be based upon real field data analysed using the geochemical modeling code PHREEQC.

This course will provide a study of the detailed occurrence and the environmental problems associated with groundwater and groundwater development in aquifer systems of importance to Australia. Environments include karst hydrogeology; Coastal sand beds; Deep sedimentary basins; Basalt plateau systems; Fractured basement rocks; Tertiary alluvial channels, and The Great Artesian Basin. Groundwater management aspects will present a review of the major challenges to effective management and use of groundwater; groundwater rights: national and international perspectives; impact of climate change on groundwater; irrigation and dryland salinity perspectives; managed aquifer recharge; groundwater dependent ecosystems, ecohydrology; and conflict potential arising from internationally shared groundwater resources.

Introduction to remote sensing of the subsurface using geophysical methods. Seismic wave theory: seismic cross-hole and refraction techniques, field survey and interpretation methods. Electrical properties of materials, rocks and soils. Electrical sounding methods and interpretation. Electromagnetic profiling and electrical image methods in groundwater investigation, engineering, agriculture and contamination studies. Introduction to magnetic and gravity methods: field and interpretation techniques. Case studies of the application of geophysical techniques.

Earth scientists will always be confronted with making decisions based on limited data sets. Therefore it is important to understand how to maximise geological interpretations from sparse data sets, while understanding the limitations of what can be inferred. This course explores how to combine various 3D spatial data sets to solve problems in 3D geological settings and examines the development of geological conceptual site models for quantification and communication. Topics covered include: basic statistics, introduction to scripting with python, gridding algorithms, 3D geological computer models of aquifers and reservoirs, gridding of faulted and folded geological data, geostatistical simulation, facies modelling, optimisation of data collection and the quantification of uncertainty between sampled locations. Case studies from regional hydrogeology, reservoir geology and contaminated sites will be presented.

Other electives can be taken with permission of the Program Coordinator.

Processes, generation and modelling of catchment surface runoff quantity and quality; a broad range of surface runoff and water quality models ranging from simple to process based will be considered; selection, calibration, validation and reliability of the various models is presented; water resources data, analysis and modelling including considerations of data sources, errors, time series analysis, stochastic models and extension of hydrological records; stochastic reservoir analysis; optimisation in water resources.

Models for routing of flows along channels and rivers will be presented including model theory, selection, calibration, validation and reliability; models will include Muskingham, kinematic wave, non-inertial and diffusion and dynamic wave; sediment and pollutant transport water quality methods and models will also be presented including plug-flow and advection-dispersion in both coupled and uncoupled applications; estuarine classification and density structure; tides, water water level response, mixing processes and flushing of estuaries; estuarine difference models including hydrodynamic stratification and algal dynamics; random walk and box models; biochemical processes in estuaries.

Human impacts on the hydrological cycle; impacts of urban development on stormwater quantity and quality; management of urban stormwater including re-use and groundwater interaction; design of stormwater quantity and quality management structures including detention basins, retention basins, infiltration basins, gross pollutant traps, pollution booms, sedimentation basins and artificial wetlands.

Waves in coastal waters including theory, measurement, analysis, forecasting, growth, refraction, diffraction, shoaling and breaking processes; coastal and beach processes including tides, storms, currents, elevated water levels, morphology, sediment transport mechanisms, beach erosion and nourishment, longshore transport, prediction and modelling of shoreline change; wave forces on coastal and ocean structures with application to engineering design of harbours, breakwaters, seawalls, piles, decks, marinas, pipelines and outfalls.

This subject is to be presented in Semester 2 as 3 hours per week in Weeks 1 to 12. The course presenters are A. Pro Ron Cox and Dr Ian Turner.