Infrastructure Engineering - Theses
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ItemUnderstanding the Co-evolution of Land, Water, and Environmental Governance in Victoria during 1860 - 2016( 2019)There are many cases where the changes in government interventions have resulted in considerable negative consequences to social-ecological systems (SESs) instead of promoting improvement. Difficulties occur in guiding governance change to steer SESs onto desirable pathways. However, the linkage between the degradation of SESs and governance failure remains unclear. To address this gap, this research aims to understand the co-evolution of land, water, and environmental governance through the integration of policy into social-ecological system frameworks (SESFs). This research is presented into three chapters to answer the following three research questions: Research Question 1: How does land, water, and environmental governance steer the SES condition? Research Question 2: How have policy instruments for land, water, and environmental governance developed from 1860 to 2016 in Victoria, Australia? Research Question 3: How have the policy instruments for land, water, and environmental governance co-evolved? Is there any association with biophysical changes? Chapter 3 developed an SES framework by extending the SES frameworks proposed by Ostrom and Anderies. In the proposed framework, SES condition is viewed as the product of the accumulation of policy instruments used in land, water, and environmental governance to rule the interaction between and among components of biophysical and social systems. Policy instruments can help policy analysts explain the linkages between resources, resource users, and public infrastructure providers and which has a significant role in enhancing the robustness of SES. The framework provides a new way to develop a wider recognition and appreciation of dynamic, site-specific biophysical and social system conditions in influencing the government intervention, and in turn, have been shaped by them. In particular, the framework can help policymakers elucidate: 1. how the biophysical system has been understood in SES governance as represented by the relevant policy instruments; 2. how the social system has been set up in SES governance; and 3. how the synergies and trade-offs between the biophysical and social systems have been managed in the governance of the SES. It can help for systematically analyzing SES governance through the configuration of policy instruments. Chapter 4 used the proposed framework to investigate the evolution of policy instruments used in the land, water, and environmental governance in Victoria, Australia. The content analysis of Victorian Acts related to land, water, and environment practices between 1860 to 2016 was conducted. The investigation found that policy instruments to manage the behavior in resource utilization (substantive and procedural policy instruments) did not vary. However, they were differences in the circumstances in which they were implemented, in this case, differing interactions among components of the biophysical and social systems. The policy instruments held a particular focus in managing components of SESs in different periods and the evolution of each policy instrument has its pathway. Four regimes were identified in the evolution of policy instruments used in water governance: reserve, authority, information, and integration regimes. Whilst, policy instruments used in land governance experienced three regimes (authority, information, and integration regimes) and policy instruments used in environmental governance experienced two regimes (information and integration regimes). Chapter 5 associated the co-evolution of land, water, and environmental governance and biophysical changes. The co-evolution was analyzed by unpacking the integration of policy instruments used in land, water, and environmental governance. The integration was analyzed by examining the relationships between SES components covered in policy instruments. Represented by the subtle changes in their integration, the analysis showed the Victorian government’s learning process in adapting and accommodating the natural system and its desire to avoid significant negative impacts on the land, water, and environmental conditions have resulted in the inclusion of the dynamic interaction within SES as the consideration in formulating its policy instruments. Comparing the co-evolution of policy instruments used in land, water, and environmental governance with state-wide changes within the biophysical system, it is found that there is a strong association between the integration of land, water, and environmental governance and the change in SES condition in Victoria from 1860 to 2016. This longitudinal study of Victoria land, water, and environmental governance developed a new way to explain the linkage between natural resources governance and SES condition. Re-constructing government intervention through policy instruments implemented in the land, water, and environmental governance, the study found the way policy instruments were designed and implemented varied with the state of understanding of the dynamic interactions within the SESs. Looking back over Victoria’s history in developing policy instruments used in land, water, and environmental governance, the study suggests that policy instruments should be formulated to address the interactions among components within SES, in this case, policy instruments as managers of interaction within SES. This is crucial to steer SES conditions onto desirable conditions.
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ItemUnlocking the key to mega project delivery( 2017)The Tier 1 contractors operating in the Australian marketplace have consistently failed to deliver their tendered financial targets on mega projects, which are defined as projects with contract values of more than $500m. Although these organisations have theoretically developed clear expertise in delivery, employed the best leaders, remunerated at the upper end, been governed by executive high profile directors and developed infallible systems, there is a high risk that the financial results on future mega projects will continue to erode shareholder value. The aims of this study were to quantify the scale and impact of financial failures in the industry and then develop a method of improving the management of mega projects. To achieve this, the research examined the performance of 91 current and completed projects in Australia since 2000. The data used for the research was collected from the following categories of projects: • 28 completed mega projects from 2000–2015 • 22 current mega projects from 2015–2020 • 24 completed minor projects from 2010–2016 • 17 other projects from 2011–2015 that were used to test the model hypothesis. The large number of projects sampled, the 20-year time span of the sample and access to unpublished industry data enabled this research to break new ground in the study of contractors’ financial performance. Analysis of the results from the mega projects studied indicates that on average, each completed project has posted a loss of 16%. This suggests that each project destroys its original 9% profit margin plus a further deterioration of 7%. In dollar terms, this represents a loss of $215m on an average project size of $1.32b. This equates to a $6b loss from corporate balance sheets between 2000 and 2015. The causes of project financial failure have been extensively studied in the published literature. Many of them are technical in nature and can therefore be easily understood and quantified. Examples of technical causes are inappropriate risk transfer, inclement weather, latent conditions, industrial relations, scope growth and the like. However, contractors tend to regard their own lessons learned from project failures as valuable intellectual property and seldom share this knowledge externally to benefit the wider construction industry. To develop a deeper understanding of the industry and search for potential solutions, the research explored the personal experiences of over 100 project leaders with experience of delivering mega projects. While the interviews with these project leaders confirmed that financial failure is indeed a real problem in the industry and that technical causes contribute to it, leadership and people factors emerged as being equally relevant when determining the causes of mega project failure. Although the technical aspects of a project can and do reduce project profitability, losses caused by human behaviours are very significant. To study this hypothesis, a new and original model of personnel selection (the ‘A+ model’) was developed and tested on a series of infrastructure projects ranging over a period of five years. The model is designed to provide a set of tools that executives can use to select project leaders and build project teams that have the skills and knowledge to eliminate the technical causes of financial failure. The correlation between the model outputs and the financial outcomes from the projects studied provides confidence that it can be used to structure and maintain teams that will deliver outstanding performance against all key result areas on a project, not just financial performance. The model is robust, simple to use and can be successfully applied to a diversity of project locations, types and sizes, ranging from $10m to over $500m in value across the road, rail, social and water infrastructure sectors. The results achieved by the model are exceptional and provide the theoretical basis for unlocking the key to mega project delivery.
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ItemModelling multi-year phosphorus flow at the regional scale: the case of Gippsland, Australia( 2015)Phosphorus (P) is an essential element for global food production, but it is geographically limited, non-substitutable, and non-renewable. In the traditional P management system, there exist a number of challenges to the sustainability of this vital resource, which, if not properly tackled, may lead to global P scarcity and hinder global food security. In order to provide effective policy and management response to overcome these challenges, and to safeguard global P sustainability, there is need for a sound understanding of the nature and magnitude of P flow through different systems at various geographical and temporal scales. An in-depth review of the available P flow analyses at different geographical and temporal scales has revealed that the regional scale which is significant in terms of the magnitude of P flow, has received limited attention in the multi-year analysis of P flow. Thus, there is a knowledge gap regarding the nature and magnitude of P flow over several years at the regional scale, but this understanding is essential for providing long-term and effective P management decisions. Therefore, utilizing the Substance Flow Analysis (SFA) method that relies on the mass balance principle, this study has performed a quantitative modelling of P flow over multiple years at the regional scale. In this regard, this study has developed SFA model of P in MATLAB/Simulink® software platform that can be utilized for analysing the nature and magnitude of multi-year P flow at the regional scale. This model takes into account both structurally and operationally, all the relevant P flows and storage associated with all key systems, subsystems, processes or components, and associated interactions of P flow to represent a typical P flow system at the regional scale. The main advantage of this model over available regional scale SFA models is that it is capable of analysing the trends or dynamic changes in P flow and storage over many years at an annual time step, whereas the available P flow models are static and can analyse P flow only for a particular year at a time. The unique capability of the model to comprehensively analyse various P flows and storage in a system, subsystems, or/and different components within subsystems and sub-subsystems while taking into account all interactions of P flow render it as a robust and powerful tool for the regional scale P flow analysis. This study has utilized this model in the case of Gippsland region in Australia to analyse the nature and magnitude of P flow and storage over a six-year period (2008-2013). This analysis has revealed that approximately 29% (4,445 tonnes) of the mean annual total inflow (15,349 tonnes) of P in this region eventually exited the system, indicating a substantial amount (10,904 tonnes) of P storage. The inflow of P mainly occurred as commercial fertilizer (10,263 tonnes) and livestock feed (4,443 tonnes), and the outflow mainly occurred as livestock products (4,181 tonnes); whereas the majority (66% or 7,218 tonnes) of P storage occurred in soils of the livestock farming system. The analysis has also revealed that the majority (approximately 90%) of the P flow and storage in this region was associated with the livestock farming subsystem. A significant annual variation in the magnitude of nearly all P flow and storage has been observed in the case of the main system (Gippsland region) and all subsystems. These variations in annual P flow and storage implies that making judgement based on a single year analysis may not represent the true picture of the magnitude of P flow, and therefore, emphasises the significance for multi-year analysis. This analysis also indicates that over the study period, a total of about 3,241 tonnes P were lost as soil erosion and runoff from different subsystems to water bodies in this region, eventually causing a substantial environmental and economic damage. Over the study period, a total of approximately 65,424 tonnes P storage (mainly in soils of the livestock farming subsystem) occurred in this region, which is more than the total quantity of P imported as commercial fertilizer into this region in that period. The accumulation of P in this manner over several years may lead to a massive stock of P in soils, which may ultimately intensify the risk of P loss as soil erosion and runoff. The findings of this analysis could be effectively utilized for making better P management decisions towards achieving P sustainability in this region. However, this study suggests that future research should investigate the reasons for the variations and trends in multi-year P flow as identified in the case of Gippsland region.