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Associate Professor in Environmental Science, Western Sydney University

I am a science communicator and am employed as an associate professor in Western Sydney University's School of Science. I teach classes in water science and management, environmental planning and environmental regulation across several degree programs.

Prior to WSU, I worked as a scientist in the urban water industry, mainly at Sydney Water. My science interests include freshwater ecology, water chemistry and water pollution (science and management).

My research interests include urban water issues, contamination from concrete materials and impacts of mining on streams and rivers. I have provided independent expert testimonies for environmental science matters for the NSW Land & Environment Court, and also for mining development proposals being considered through the planning system.

I'm an enthusiastic participant in art & science and community engagement activities associated with water and I often provide expert commentary on water issues in the media. I'm fortunate to visit primary and secondary schools, on behalf of the University, to talk to classes about water.

Experience

  • 2022–present
    Associate professor, Western Sydney University
  • 2016–2022
    Senior lecturer, Western Sydney University
  • 2010–2015
    Lecturer, Western Sydney University

Education

  • 2006 
    University of Western Sydney, PhD in freshwater ecology
  • 1995 
    Macquarie University, Master of Science (by research)

Publications

  • 2022
    Legacy contamination of river sediments from four decades of coal mine effluent inhibits the ecological recovery of a polluted World Heritage Area river, Water, Air and Soil Pollution
  • 2022
    Signatures of urbanization in Temperate Highland Peat Swamps on Sandstone (THPSS) of the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area, Water
  • 2021
    14-Month Water Quality Investigation of Coal Mine Discharge on Two Rivers in NSW, Australia: Implications for Environmental Regulation. , Water, Air and Soil Pollution
  • 2020
    Geochemical signature of urbanisation in Blue Mountains Upland Swamps. , Science of the Total Environment
  • 2020
    The regulation and impact of eight Australian coal mine waste-water discharges on downstream river water quality: a regional comparison of active versus closed mines, Water and Environment Journal
  • 2020
    Potential water pollution from recycled concrete aggregate material, Marine and Freshwater Research
  • 2019
    Subsidence fracturing of stream channel from longwall coal mining causing upwelling saline groundwater and metal-enriched contamination of surface waterway , Water, Air, and Soil Pollution
  • 2018
    Increased water pollution after closure of Australia's longest operating underground coal mine: A 13-month study of mine drainage, water chemistry and river ecology. , Water, Air, and Soil Pollution
  • 2018
    Impact of concrete of different fragment sizes on urban water chemistry: a case study using water from a high conservation-value waterway. , Urban Water Journal
  • 2018
    Invasive weeds in urban riparian zones: the influence of catchment imperviousness and soil chemistry across an urbanization gradient., Urban Ecosystems
  • 2018
    Are Odonata nymphs adversely affected by impaired water quality in urban streams? , Austral Ecology
  • 2017
    Coal mine water pollution and ecological impairment of one of Australia's most 'protected' high conservation-value rivers, Water, Air and Soil Pollution
  • 2016
    Impact of mining and industrial pollution on stream macroinvertebrates: importance of taxonomic resolution, water geochemistry and EPT indices for impact detection, Hydrobiologia
  • 2016
    Water quality impact from the discharge of coal mine wastes to receiving streams: comparison of impacts from an active mine with a closed mine, Water, Air and Soil Pollution
  • 2015
    Subsidence from an underground coal mine and mine wastewater discharge causing water pollution and degradation of aquatic ecosystems, Water, Air and Soil Pollution
  • 2014
    A review of policy, legal, land use and social change in the management of urban water resources in Sydney, Australia : a brief reflection of challenges and lessons from the last 200 years, Land Use Policy
  • 2011
    A new type of water pollution: concrete drainage infrastructure and contamination of urban waters., Marine and Freshwater Research
  • 2011
    Environmental protection and management: a water pollution case study in the Blue Mountains, Land Use Policy
  • 2010
    Impact of concrete and PVC pipes on urban water chemistry, Urban Water Journal
  • 2010
    Impact of urban development on aquatic macroinvertebrates in south eastern Australia, Aquatic Ecology
  • 2010
    Wombats and domestic livestock as potential vectors of Cryptosporidium and Giardia , Australian Journal of Zoology
  • 2009
    Comparison of sewage and coal-mine wastes on macroinvertebrates within a clean catchment, Water, Air and Soil Pollution

Professional Memberships

  • Editorial Board of MDPI Journal ‘Water’
  • Editorial Board Journal ‘Water, Air and Soil Pollution’

Research Areas

  • Freshwater Ecology (060204)
  • Environmental Sciences (05)
  • Environmental Management (050205)