Dr Larry Barber - Visiting International Fellow

Citation

Land & Water Australia. 2009. Dr Larry Barber - Visiting International Fellow. [Online] (Updated August 24th, 2009)
Available at: http://lwa.gov.au/node/3519 [Accessed Tuesday 26th of April 2011 04:14:00 AM ].

An Australian roadshow by Dr Larry Barber

Background

International research has shown that populations of aquatic wildlife exposed to Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) exhibit skewed sex ratios, abnormal gonad development and reproductive failure. This is because EDCs mimic, block or disrupt the actions of hormones and disrupt the normal functioning of the endocrine system. Under sustained drought in regional Australia, treated effluents are increasingly used for environmental flows. EDC chemicals have been found to be present in Australian environments where existing treatment technology substantially reduces chemical concentrations but does make them ecologically trivial. Australian native fish may be more or less susceptible to EDC effects than those studied internationally. In some riverine environments, where the effluent contributes to a large volume of the flow, it is possible that EDCs may cause adverse biological responses however this needs to be balanced against the benefits greater volumes of environmental water flows.

Land & Water Australia, the US Geological Survey and CSIRO funded the visit by Dr Barber to improve our knowledge and highlight the need for ongoing research in this area with key policy makers and industry as little is known about EDCs in an Australian context.
The visit aimed to:

build capacity for Australia’s scientific community;
build on our local knowledge; and
create an experimental setting that will promote discussion about this work with policy makers (Department of Environment,Water,Heritage and the Arts, Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Ministers), water managers and industry (water utilities etc).

Dr Larry Barber Biography

Dr. Larry B. Barber is a research geochemist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Boulder, Colorado. He received his Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in geology from the University of Colorado and his BS degree in Geology at the University of Arkansas. For the past twenty five years he has conducted research on the fate of organic and inorganic chemicals in natural water systems, with a focus on consumer-product derived contaminants in treated wastewater and the implications for water reuse. His research involves field and laboratory studies that quantitatively integrate chemistry, biology, hydrology, and geology in evaluating the environmental fate of contaminants.

Knowing the fate of contaminants from waste water treatment plants The US experience - Australian implications

Dr Larry Barber’s (USGS) Land & Water Australia International Fellowship enable him to visit Australia for 2 months and work with Australian researchers, water utilities and policy makers to improve their skills and knowledge about the impacts of using treated effluent as environmental flows. Larry presented to over 200 people in 5 states during his visit and started what will be an ongoing collaboration between Australian and US researchers.

Dr Larry Barber (USGS) gave seminars in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane and Canberra. He summarised research conducted by USGS on the fate of organic and inorganic contaminants of consumer-product origin in WWTP effluents and receiving streams. These field-based, process-level investigations provide insights into the occurrence and sources of the compounds, the rates and mechanisms controlling their transport and attenuation, and their effects on aquatic ecosystems. Dr Barber also shared his technical knowledge and skills used for assessing reproductive disruption of fishes in the USA due to exposure to WWTP effluents.

This visit was possible through the support of Land & Water Australia and CSIRO. In each state the seminars were hosted and those hosts are thanked for their leadership and generous support.