Wet tropics reef rescue impact report 2009

The Wet Tropics region has a unique water asset and is also considered a priority region for the improvement of water quality entering the Great Barrier Reef due to a combination of high rainfall, intensive agricultural use, urban areas and the proximity of valuable reef assets to the coast. Agricultural activities are one of many identified threats to water quality and water flows in the Wet Tropics in terms of sediment and pollutant-related water quality decline. Information describing the current state of agricultural management practices across the region is patchy at best. Based on the best available information on agricultural management practices in the Wet Tropics in 2008, it is clear that opportunities exist to improve nutrient, sediment and pesticide management practice to reduce the impact on the water asset and the Great Barrier Reef. Based on current understandings of practices and the relationship between practices and reef water quality, the greatest opportunities for improved water quality are as follows: · nutrients – correct rate and the placement of fertilisers; · pesticides – improve weed control planning, herbicide rates and calibration practice; and · soil and sediment – implement new farming system practices. The 2008-09 Reef Rescue program sought to accelerate the rate of adoption of improved management practices and through Terrain invested $6.8M in the 2008-09 year for: · landholder water quality improvement incentive payments; · cross regional catchment repair of wetlands and riparian lands in areas of high sediment or nutrient loss; and · partnerships in the region to lever resources and support for on-ground practice change. The program delivered $3,021,999 in onground incentives to landholders in the Wet Tropics to improve farm practices from D or C level to B or A level. The landholder Water Quality Incentives Grants program received 300 individual applications for funding and funded 143 individual landholders to implement practice change across 36,098 ha of farm land. It is estimated that the Reef Rescue program facilitated practice change across 21% of the cane industry, and 20% of the banana industry. The program levered an additional $2,441,166 in landholder cash contributions and a further $907,653 in non-cash in-kind contributions bringing the total project value of the landholder grants program in the Wet Tropics to $6,370,819. Most funded projects targeted multiple water quality objectives with a focus on nutrient and sediment reduction. Of the 143 projects funded, 115 projects addressed nutrient management either as the primary focus or in combination with strategies that targeted other water quality objectives. Overall, 82 projects addressed two or more water quality targets. Forty-five percent of incentive funds were allocated to new farming system practices (direct drill legumes, zonal tillage equipment, permanent beds, min till planting equipment, GPS units, laser levelling), followed by 24% allocated to subsurface fertiliser applicators (subsurface application of fertiliser using a stool splitter or beside the stool, at the correct Six Easy Steps rate). As a result, Terrain estimates that the incentive grants achieved considerable reductions in nitrogen, phosphorus, sediment and pesticide loads. The program supported nutrient management training of 167 growers managing farms covering over 20% of the area harvested in 2008, and 18 industry advisors and resellers. This resulted in 115 growers (155 farms) developing nutrient management plans. The program also supported Integrated Weed Management training of 80 growers managing farms covering 8% of the area harvested in 2008, and 6 industry advisors and resellers. This report, which draws on the best available Reef Rescue Management Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting, and Improvement (MERI) information to evaluate program performance and impact on water quality outcomes, is the first in a series of annual reports that will assess and evaluate the impact of the Reef Rescue program on agricultural practices and water quality outcomes. The assessment is predominantly focused on the cane industry because of data availability. In the next stage, efforts will expand to: · improve practice data for the banana and grazing industry; · gain a better understanding of the water quality trends and the factors influencing them in the Wet Tropics; in particular work will focus on linking the results of the Paddock to Reef monitoring program and practice change data to assess program impact; · enhance estimations of the impact of practice change on pollutant loads from agricultural land use; · gain a better understanding of the extent of ancillary practice (change not directly funded) resulting from Reef Rescue training/ education/communication programs; and · provide a better understanding of the economic cost of practice change across the Wet Tropics region. From an ecological perspective, water quality trends and the factors that may be contributing to change, require further investigation. There is a critical need to work towards an enhanced understanding of the link between catchment land management practice change and reef water quality, so that reduced nutrient, sediment, and pesticide discharge to the Great Barrier Reef can be quantified. This will also assist with future prioritisation of grants money to agricultural industries, catchments and sub catchments. From a social perspective, the program has delivered significant water quality benefits from landholder education and training. It is believed that these activities are giving landholders the information and tools to implement further lasting change in their production systems and in doing so, creating a change in attitude that is supportive and inclusive of Natural Resource Management (NRM). The program in the Wet Tropics has also considerably strengthened institutional partnerships for NRM, particularly between NRM and industry and extension organisations. As a result of the Reef Rescue program, all institutions are actively working together to collectively improve water quality. The Reef Rescue program is improving water quality entering the Great Barrier Reef Lagoon by catalysing substantial activity in the Wet Tropics region to improve land management practices and reduce the water quality impact of agricultural landscapes. The solid institutional partnerships between the regional body, industry, catchment and government organisations have been fundamental to the successful delivery of the landholder grant and catchment rehabilitation programs. Landholders have generally had a positive perception and reaction to the program, its intent, and the practical, focused nature of grant-based support. Demand in the program was extremely high in 2008-09 and is expected to increase in 2009-2010.

Disturbed appetite and nutrient intake in peritoneal dialysis patients

OBJECTIVE Malnutrition is common among peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. Reduced nutrient intake contributes to this. It has long been assumed that this reflects disturbed appetite. We set out to define the appetite profiles of a group of PD patients using a novel technique. DESIGN Prospective, cross-sectional comparison of PD patients versus controls. SETTING Teaching hospital dialysis unit. PATIENTS 39 PD patients and 42 healthy controls. INTERVENTION Visual analog ratings were recorded at hourly intervals to generate daily profiles for hunger and fullness. Summary statistics were generated to compare the groups. Food intake was measured using 3-day dietary records. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Hunger and fullness profiles. Derived hunger and fullness scores. RESULTS Controls demonstrated peaks of hunger before mealtimes, with fullness scores peaking after meals. The PD profiles had much reduced premeal hunger peaks. A postmeal reduction in hunger was evident, but the rest of the trace was flat. The PD fullness profile was also flatter than in the controls. Mean scores were similar despite the marked discrepancy in the profiles. The PD group had lower peak hunger and less diurnal variability in their hunger scores. They also demonstrated much less change in fullness rating around mealtimes, while the mean and peak fullness scores were little different. The reported nutrient intake was significantly lower for PD. CONCLUSION The data suggest that PD patients normalize their mean appetite perception at a lower level of nutrient intake than controls, suggesting that patient-reported appetite may be misleading in clinical practice. There is a loss of the usual daily variation for the PD group, which may contribute to their reduced food intake. The technique described here could be used to assess the impact of interventions upon the abnormal PD appetite profile.

Does psychological stress mediate social deprivation in tooth loss?

It is unclear which theoretical dimension of psychological stress affects health status. We hypothesized that both distress and coping mediate the relationship between socio-economic position and tooth loss. Cross-sectional data from 2915 middle-aged adults evaluated retention of < 20 teeth, behaviors, psychological stress, and sociodemographic characteristics. Principal components analysis of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) extracted 'distress' (a = 0.85) and 'coping' (a =0.83) factors, consistent with theory. Hierarchical entry of explanatory variables into age- and sex-adjusted logistic regression models estimated odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals [95% CI] for retention of < 20 teeth. Analysis of the separate contributions of distress and coping revealed a significant main effect of coping (OR = 0.7 [95% CI = 0.7-0.8]), but no effect for distress (OR = 1.0 [95% CI = 0.9-1.1]) or for the interaction of coping and distress. Behavior and psychological stress only modestly attenuated socio-economic inequality in retention of < 20 teeth, providing evidence to support a mediating role of coping.

Beyond Bryan: Builders' liability and pure economic loss

In Bryan v Maloney, the High Court extended a builder’s duty of care to encompass a liability in negligence for the pure economic loss sustained by a subsequent purchaser of a residential dwelling as a result of latent defects in the building’s construction. Recently, in Woolcock Street Investments Pty Ltd v CDG Pty Ltd, the Court refused to extend this liability to defects in commercial premises. The decision therefore provides an opportunity to re-examine the rationale and policy behind current jurisprudence governing builders’ liability for pure economic loss. In doing so, this article considers the principles relevant to the determination of a duty of care generally and whether the differences between purchasers of residential and commercial properties are as great as the case law suggests

Simulation of the nutrient supply in fracture healing

The healing process for bone fractures is sensitive to mechanical stability and blood supply at the fracture site. Most currently available mechanobiological algorithms of bone healing are based solely on mechanical stimuli, while the explicit analysis of revascularization and its influences on the healing process have not been thoroughly investigated in the literature. In this paper, revascularization was described by two separate processes: angiogenesis and nutrition supply. The mathematical models for angiogenesis and nutrition supply have been proposed and integrated into an existing fuzzy algorithm of fracture healing. The computational algorithm of fracture healing, consisting of stress analysis, analyses of angiogenesis and nutrient supply, and tissue differentiation, has been tested on and compared with animal experimental results published previously. The simulation results showed that, for a small and medium-sized fracture gap, the nutrient supply is sufficient for bone healing, for a large fracture gap, non-union may be induced either by deficient nutrient supply or inadequate mechanical conditions. The comparisons with experimental results demonstrated that the improved computational algorithm is able to simulate a broad spectrum of fracture healing cases and to predict and explain delayed unions and non-union induced by large gap sizes and different mechanical conditions. The new algorithm will allow the simulation of more realistic clinical fracture healing cases with various fracture gaps and geometries and may be helpful to optimise implants and methods for fracture fixation.

Optimal allocation and sizing of capacitors to minimize the transmission line loss and to improve the voltage profile

To allocate and size capacitors in a distribution system, an optimization algorithm, called Discrete Particle Swarm Optimization (DPSO), is employed in this paper. The objective is to minimize the transmission line loss cost plus capacitors cost. During the optimization procedure, the bus voltage, the feeder current and the reactive power flowing back to the source side should be maintained within standard levels. To validate the proposed method, the semi-urban distribution system that is connected to bus 2 of the Roy Billinton Test System (RBTS) is used. This 37-bus distribution system has 22 loads being located in the secondary side of a distribution substation (33/11 kV). Reducing the transmission line loss in a standard system, in which the transmission line loss consists of only about 6.6 percent of total power, the capabilities of the proposed technique are seen to be validated.

Exercise alone is not enough : weight loss also needs a healthy (Mediterranean) diet?

Objective: In the majority of exercise intervention studies, the aggregate reported weight loss is often small. The efficacy of exercise as a weight loss tool remains in question. The aim of the present study was to investigate the variability in appetite and body weight when participants engaged in a supervised and monitored exercise programme. ---------- Design: Fifty-eight obese men and women (BMI = 31·8 ± 4·5 kg/m2) were prescribed exercise to expend approximately 2092 kJ (500 kcal) per session, five times a week at an intensity of 70 % maximum heart rate for 12 weeks under supervised conditions in the research unit. Body weight and composition, total daily energy intake and various health markers were measured at weeks 0, 4, 8 and 12. ---------- Results: Mean reduction in body weight (3·2 ± 1·98 kg) was significant (P < 0·001); however, there was large individual variability (−14·7 to +2·7 kg). This large variability could be largely attributed to the differences in energy intake over the 12-week intervention. Those participants who failed to lose meaningful weight increased their food intake and reduced intake of fruits and vegetables. ---------- Conclusion: These data have demonstrated that even when exercise energy expenditure is high, a healthy diet is still required for weight loss to occur in many people.

Tesofensine : a novel potent weight loss medicine

Background: The incidence of obesity is increasing; this is of major concern, as obesity is associated with cardiovascular disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, respiratory tract disease, and cancer. Objectives/methods: This evaluation is of a Phase II clinical trial with tesofensine in obese subjects. Results: After 26 weeks, tesofensine caused a significant weight loss, and may have a higher maximal ability to reduce weight than the presently available anti-obesity agents. However, tesofensine also increased blood pressure and heart rate, and may increase psychiatric disorders. Conclusions: It is encouraging that tesofensine 0.5 mg may cause almost double the weight loss observed with sibutramine or rimonabant. As tesofensine and sibutramine have similar pharmacological profiles, it would be of interest to compare the weight loss with tesofensine in a head-to-head clinical trial with sibutramine, to properly assess their comparative potency. Also, as teso fensine 0.5 mg increases heart rate, as well as increasing the incidence of adverse effects such as nausea, drug mouth, flatulence, insomnia, and depressed mode, its tolerability needs to be further evaluated in large Phase III clinical trials.

Nutrients build-up and wash-off processes in urban land uses

This thesis describes outcomes of a research study conducted to investigate the nutrient build-up and wash-off processes on urban impervious surfaces. The data needed for the study was generated through a series of field investigations and laboratory test procedures. The study sites were selected in urbanised catchments to represent typical characteristics of residential, industrial and commercial land uses. The build-up and wash-off samples were collected from road surfaces in the selected study sites. A specially designed vacuum collection system and a rainfall simulator were used for sample collection. According to the data analysis, the solids build-up on road surfaces was significantly finer with more than 80% of the particles below 150 ìm for all the land uses. Nutrients were mostly associated with the particle size range below 150 ìm in both build-up and wash-off samples irrespective of type of land use. Therefore, the finer fraction of solids was the most important for the nutrient build-up and particulate nutrient wash-off processes. Consequently, the design of stormwater quality mitigation measures should target particles less than 150 ìm for the removal of nutrients irrespective of type of land use. Total kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) was the most dominant form of nitrogen species in build-up on road surfaces. Phosphorus build-up on road surfaces was mainly in inorganic form and phosphate (PO4 3-) was the most dominant form. The nutrient wash-off process was found to be dependent on rainfall intensity and duration. Concentration of both total nitrogen and phosphorus was higher at the beginning of the rain event and decreased with the increase in rainfall duration. Consequently, in the design of stormwater quality mitigation strategies for nutrients removal, it is important to target the initial period of rain events. The variability of wash-off of nitrogen with rainfall intensity was significantly different to phosphorus wash-off. The concentration of nitrogen was higher in the wash-off for low intensity rain events compared to the wash-off for high intensity rain events. On the other hand, the concentration of phosphorus in the wash-off was high for high intensity rain events compared to low intensity rain events. Consequently, the nitrogen washoff can be defined as a source limiting process and phosphorus wash-off as a transport limiting process. This highlights the importance of taking into consideration the wash-off of low intensity rain events in the design of stormwater quality mitigation strategies targeting the nitrogen removal. All the nitrogen species in wash-off are primarily in dissolved form whereas phosphorus is in particulate form. The differences in the nitrogen and phosphorus wash-off processes is principally due to the degree of solubility, attachment to particulates, composition of total nitrogen and total phosphorus and the degree of adherence of the solids particles to the surface to which nutrients are attached. The particulate nitrogen available for wash-off is removed readily as these are mobilised as free solids particles on the surface. Phosphorus is washed-off mostly with the solids particles which are strongly adhered to the surface or as the fixed solids load. Investigation of the nitrogen wash-off process using bulk wash-off samples was in close agreement with the investigation of dissolved fraction of wash-off solids. This was primarily due to the predominant nature of dissolved nitrogen. However, the investigation of the processes which underpin phosphorus wash-off using bulk washoff samples could lead to loss of information. This is due to the composition of total phosphorus in wash-off solids and the inherent variability of the wash-off process for the different particle size ranges. This variability should preferably be taken into consideration as phosphorus wash-off is predominantly in particulate form. Therefore, care needs to be taken in the investigation of the phosphorus wash-off process using bulk wash-off samples to ensure that there is no loss of information and hence result in misleading outcomes. The investigation of different particle size ranges of wash-off solids is preferable in the interest of designing effective stormwater quality management strategies targeting phosphorus removal.

Foreseeability of pure economic loss and causation

In Bonny Glen Pty Ltd v Country Energy [2009] NSWCA 26 (24 February 2009) the New South Wales Court of Appeal held that the pure economic loss suffered by the appellant was recoverable. However, rather than arguments as to whether the appellant was vulnerable and a member of an ascertainable class, whether the respondent had knowledge of the risk to the appellant and was in a position of control and considerations as to indeterminate liability as in Perre v Apand Pty Ltd (1999) 198 CLR 180, the arguments raised related to the foreseeability of the loss and causation.

Understanding nutrient build-up on urban road surfaces

This paper discusses the outcomes of a research project on nutrients build-up on urban road surfaces. Nutrient build-up was investigated on road sites belonging to residential, industrial and commercial land use. Collected build-up samples were separated into five particle size ranges and were tested for total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and sub species of nutrients, namely, NO2-, NO3-, TKN and PO43-. Multivariate analytical techniques were used to analyse the data and to develop detailed understanding on build-up. Data analysis revealed that the solids loads on urban road surfaces are highly influenced by factors such as land use, antecedent dry period and traffic volume. However, the nutrient build-up process was found to be independent of the type of land use. It was solely dependent on the particle size of solids build-up. Most of the nutrients were associated with the particle size range <150 μm. Therefore, the removal of particles below 150 µm from road surfaces is of importance for the removal of nitrogen and phosphorus from road surface solids build-up. It is also important to consider the differences in the composition of nitrogen and phosphorus build-up in the context of designing effective stormwater quality mitigation strategies.