WaterNSW

The Moorabool River is one of Victoria’s most important regional rivers. As well as providing drinking water for the expanding cities of Geelong and Ballarat, the river serves as a critical biodiversity corridor for endangered plant and animal species. It is also a popular waterway for recreational purposes and holds significance to its Wadawurrung Traditional Owners. The river’s importance was highlighted by the Victorian Government’s designation of the river as one of 19 “Flagship Waterways” prioritised for funded catchment management programs. The high prioritisation accorded to the Moorabool River is further justified through its identification as one of Victoria’s most flow stressed rivers. Since settlement, the catchment and river have been significantly impacted by the construction of farm dams, weirs, diversions, land-use change, and water extraction for both urban and rural use. Corangamite Catchment Management Authority (CCMA) is a statutory authority that oversees catchment management of the region, including integration of collaborative groundwork and research. The CCMA’s Regional Waterway Strategy (2014-2022) summarises the key Moorabool River threats as flow deprivation, river sedimentation, land-use change, population growth, and (projected) climate change.In response to these challenges, in 2017 the Victorian Government initiated the “Living Moorabool Flagship” project managed by CCMA through a partnership approach with water authorities, Aboriginal Traditional Owners and the community. The overarching aims of the Living Moorabool Flagship are threefold: 1) to improve environmental flow releases for the river downstream of Lal-Lal Reservoir; 2) to improve riparian vegetation through incentives programs for landowners to fence off waterways, reduce weeds and re-establish native vegetation; 3) to empower the community through Citizen-Science monitoring programs.The Moorabool Catchment is a case study of applied research employing a partnership approach to the delivery of on-ground works. This paper presents preliminary PhD results based on a project applied to the Living Moorabool Flagship program focusing on quantifying the impact of environmental flow releases on water quality and a hydrological model of the impact of farm dams on streamflow. Results indicate that integrating long-term water quality data from multiple agencies improves the analysis of water quality responses to environmental flow releases, supporting their evaluation as an intervention strategy. Hydrological modelling showed that farm dams significantly reduce streamflow, increasing low-flow periods in the system. Together, these findings highlight the value of co-creating evidence-based knowledge that contributes to the decision framework for integrated catchment management.

Background:Social connection is fundamental to healthy ageing reducing the serious health impacts of loneliness and social isolation. General practice nurses (GPNs) have skills in assessing and responding to older people’s complex needs, applicable to nurse-led interventions strengthening older people’s social connections.Aim:To explore factors influencing the implementation of a GPN-led social prescribing intervention to improve social connectedness among older people.Methods:A qualitative descriptive study was conducted through semi-structured interviews (n = 13) and two focus groups with eight Australian GPNs exploring intervention implementation. The intervention comprised assessment, goal setting, co-production of personalised plans, referral, and follow-up. Data were inductively analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.Results:Themes revealed individual, organisational, and system-level factors that influenced implementation. Barriers included the attitudes and priorities of older people, the disruptive environmental context arising from natural disasters, and system factors including primary care funding and community infrastructure. Family support, positive general practice workplace cultures, and intervention adaptability were enabling factors.Conclusions:GPNs were able to integrate the intervention into their usual workflow and appropriately respond to lonely and socially isolated older people. However, GPN-led interventions are currently limited by funding models. Building nursing workforce capacity can support integrated health and social care for older people.

Weirs are regulatory structures commonly used for flow measurement and water level control in streams. However, these structures also present a barrier to fish passage and threaten the existence of many native migratory fish species.

This research is based on a systematic review of machine learning (ML) approaches for the cognitive load (CL) assessment of applications for unmanned aerial system (UAS) operator training. The review synthesises evidence on how ML techniques have been applied to assess CL using diverse data sources, including physiological signals (e.g., EEG, HRV), behavioural measures (e.g., eye-tracking), and performance indicators. It highlights the effectiveness of models such as Support Vector Machines (SVMs), Random Forests (RFs), and advanced deep learning (DL) architectures such as Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM), as well as how the use of different methods affects the performance of ML models, with studies reporting accuracies of up to 98%. The findings also indicate that, compared with traditional UAS training approaches, ML approaches can enhance training by providing adaptive assessment, with methodological factors such as model selection, data preprocessing, and validation being central to ML assessment performance. These findings highlight the value of accurate CL assessment as a foundation for adaptive training systems, supporting enhanced UAS operator performance and operational safety. By consolidating the methodological insights and identifying research gaps, this review provides valuable background information for advancing ML-based CL assessment and its integration into adaptive UAS operator training systems to enhance UAS operator training.

To explore post-anaesthesia care unit nurses' perceptions and experiences in managing paediatric emergence delirium, and to understand their experiences in implementing the Cornell Assessment of Paediatric Delirium-Traditional Chinese version tool in clinical practice following delirium-focused education. This interpretive qualitative study involved 20 nurses in the post-anaesthesia care unit from a medical centre hospital in Taiwan who participated in small group interviews after completing delirium-focused education. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews between October and December 2024 and analysed using a thematic analysis approach. Five main themes were identified: (1) First impressions and reflexive actions during emergence delirium, (2) Clinical interpretation through observation and elimination, (3) The dual role of parents in emergence delirium management, (4) Negotiating trust and learning with the delirium screening tool and (5) System-level needs and recommendations. Nurses described the chaotic and emotionally charged nature of emergence delirium episodes, the intuitive yet uncertain interpretive work they performed, the complex influence of parental presence, evolving trust in structured assessment tools and systemic barriers that hindered timely emergence delirium recognition. Nurses face complex clinical, emotional and relational challenges in managing paediatric emergence delirium. Embedding delirium awareness into practice requires sustained training, screening integration and proactive parental engagement. Findings highlight the need for integrating delirium screening into post-anaesthesia care routines, the need for ongoing education and preparing parents for emergence delirium scenarios to enhance care delivery and safety. The COREQ checklist was used for reporting. No patient or public involvement.

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury account for the majority of sport related knee ligament injuries and ACL reconstruction surgery is one of the most performed operations in the young adult population. Various graft types have been used to reconstruct the ACL, however there is no consensus on the best option. Concerns about quality and size of the graft and its effects on success of the reconstruction remain. Synthetic grafts have also been used for a long time as a substitute or to augment biological grafts however, concerns about early failure and particle related synovitis have limited their intra-articular use. The most common synthetic graft option still in use is the Ligament Augmentation and Reconstruction System (LARS). The study is a case controlled retrospective comparison of 102 consecutive cases reporting 8-11 year results in relation to clinical outcomes revision rates and synovitis of ACL reconstruction surgery using LARS synthetic grafts as an augment when compared with hamstring graft alone. The study found a mean follow up was 9 years and one month (8-11 years) and revision rate was 5.7% for the LARS augmented group and 12.5% for the Hamstring group, but not significantly different, odds ratio 0.4 (C.I: 0.1179-1.555, p=0.255). LARS augmented autograft ACL reconstruction had similar results at 8-11 years when compared to autograft only reconstructions. No synovitis was noted in either group. LARS ensures an appropriately sized graft, is safe and not associated with synovitis in our cohort at 8-11 year follow up.

Sound source localization (SSL) using microphones mounted on uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) holds significant potential for tasks ranging from search-and-rescue and gunshot detection to industrial inspection and wildlife monitoring, particularly in scenarios where camera-based sensing may be limited by poor visibility. Recent surveys take a broad view of SSL methods, with limited coverage of UAV-based approaches. This paper addresses this gap through a systematic review of UAV-based SSL, drawing on 49 studies published between 2014 and 2024. Four research questions are addressed: 1) What is the array configuration of the SSL platform? 2) What are the intended applications of SSL on UAV platforms? 3) What are the choices for the UAV platforms? 4) What are the solutions employed for performing the SSL task? The findings of this review indicate that 82% of the studies are intended for search-and-rescue contexts, 60% rely on arrays of eight microphones or fewer, and only three implement real-time onboard SSL. Notably, real-time processing of larger arrays and public availability of comprehensive datasets are identified among key obstacles to the field. This paper concludes by identifying research gaps and proposing future directions in multi-source localisation, real-time processing, and energy efficiency.