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The 'Next Generation Water Engineering and River Management Hub' will support eight regionally based positions within the Charles Sturt University and will develop solutions to problems threatening Australia's inland waterways.
Professor Lee Baumgartner said the research would seek to overcome poor water quality and diminishing fish stocks.
"It will act as an opportunity for us to trial innovative approaches for water management solutions, which regional Australia needs, but which don't really fit under any of the current frameworks," he said.
"These ideas include partnering with a University in Germany to scope a design of a revolutionary new hydro power station and creating a partnership with a First Nations Elders in the Northern Basin to co-design an approach to restore traditional, cultural ways of managing fisheries."
The hub will seek to undertake projects including:
Partnering with a university in Germany to implement best-practice design of a fish-safe hydro power station - the first time this technology has been applied in the Southern Hemisphere
Restoring traditional fish management strategies and techniques of First Nations people in the Northern Basin
Partnering with an American agency which has developed a remote water quality testing unit which provides real-time data on water quality
Implementing a community-led fish tagging program
Field-testing an innovative 'fish pump' to provide fish migrations at large dams
EARLIER: The Charles Sturt University's Albury-Wodonga campus has received $3.6 million funding for a new research hub.
The Federal Government awarded funding to The Institute of Land Water and Society's 'Next Generation Water Engineering and River Management Hub' as part of $20 million to boost research capacity at regional universities and grow regional economies.
The project is to develop world-changing ideas and revolutionary products that could have a huge impact on the management of waterways.
The University of NSW, First Nations groups, partners in Germany, America and from the private industry will collaborate with Charles Sturt on the research project.