Posted 3 September 2020
Results published from a research project between the Land Development Department (LDD) Thailand and UNSW has demonstrated how 2-dimensional mapping can be used to understand soil salinity adjacent to a earthen canal in north east Thailand (Khongnawang et al. 2020).
The results demonstrate how a state of the art electromagnetic (EM) induction instrument (DUALEM-421) can be used with cutting-edge inversion modelling software (EM4Soil) to create 2-d images which can be calibrated to predict soil salinity.
Future research is required to develop methods to map soil salinity along large part of the Khom-rean Canal, which is leaking and causing the water which escapes to mobilise underlying salts in geological units beneath.
The approach has implications for soil and water management and will potentially allow the LDD to identify areas of leakage across the whole Canal network which is over 400 km long.
The research tool can therefore assist LDD to recommend practices to mitigate the soil salinity and until such time as the leaks in the Canal identified to be sealed using engineering solutions such as retrofitting of impermeable geo-membranes.
Further information about this research can be requested from Associate Professor John Triantafilis.
Professor Andy Baker features in American Water Resources Association ‘Water Resources Impact’, September 2020 edition.
The Connected Waters Initiative (CWI) is pleased to welcome Taylor Coyne to its network as a postgraduate researcher. If you’re engaged in research at a postgraduate level, and you’re interested in joining the CWI network, get in touch! The CWI network includes multidisciplinary researchers across the Schools of Engineering, Sciences, Humanities and Languages and Law.
The Grand Challenge on Rapid Urbanisation will establish Think Deep Australia, led by Dr Marilu Melo Zurita, to explore how we can use our urban underground spaces for community benefit.
On the 21 August 2020, CWI researchers made a submission to the National Water Reform Inquiry, identifying priority areas and making a number of recommendations as to how to achieve a sustainable groundwater future for Australia.
Results published from a research project between the Land Development Department (LDD) Thailand and UNSW has demonstrated how 2-dimensional mapping can be used to understand soil salinity adjacent to a earthen canal in north east Thailand (Khongnawang et al. 2020).
