Roger Stone to lead national cloud seeding research

Leading Australian climatologist and University of Southern Queensland (USQ) academic, Professor Roger Stone, has been appointed Chair of the National Task Group for Precipitation Enhancement Research.

Dr Stone was appointed to run and coordinate the cutting-edge national research program while attending the Australian Cloud Seeding Research Symposium in Melbourne last week.

Dr Stone is the Director of the Australian Centre for Sustainable Catchments (ACSC) at USQ and said the creation of the research group was an important development in the area of cloud seeding science.

'The development of this important group has been driven by aspects of climate change and our enormous shortfall in water availability in many parts of Australia.

'We need to move quickly on making sure we have some practical science in this controversial area,' Dr Stone said.

Over the next four years the task group will implement and research warm cloud precipitation enhancement science, focussing on the South East Queensland region.

USQ Senior lecturer in Physics, Dr Jeff Sabburg, also attended the symposium and will be involved in the task group, especially relating to cloud physics. He said while research had previously been done into the technique in Australia, never before had it been explored on such a large scale.

'Australia broke the ground in cloud seeding science many years ago. Now the water shortage crisis and the development of technology means we need to re-evaluate the science.

'Never before has this type of collaborative project occurred in Australia, and I think it's probably the biggest thing nationally to come out of the ACSC.

'The development of the task group brings the whole science community involved in
precipitation enhancement research together for the first time.'

The State Government has allocated $7.6 million to the development of cloud seeding technology, and the University will oversee much of the research component of the project.

'The research aims to drought proof, and should not be assumed to be drought breaking.

'The new technology will help quantify the effects of cloud seeding so that it can be measured and stakeholders can get sound statistics.'

USQ will collaborate with Hydro Tasmania, Snowy Mountain Hydro, the Bureau of Meteorology Research Centre, the CSIRO and Monash University on the task group.

Media Contact: Connie-Louise Alexander, USQ Media, +61 7 4631 2977