School of Geography - Theses
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ItemThe development of the Port of Melbourne 1877-1971( 1974)The main purpose of this study is to describe and explain the physical and commercial development of the Port of Melbourne in the period 1877-1971. The year 1877 has been selected for the beginning of the study because it was the year in which the Melbourne Harbor Trust was established. The port has been modified in several ways since then and is now one of the most modern and best-equipped in the world. In tracing the port's evolution for nearly a century, the writer has tried to examine those factors, both human and physical, which have influenced its growth - world economic and political conditions, economic activities in its hinterland, policy decisions of the port authority and the national government and site conditions. The study does not encompass merely the physical development of the port, but also changes and trends in its trade and shipping. In addition, an attempt has been made to investigate those problems connected with the port's development. The growth and expansion of the manufacturing industries in the port district have also been considered. As well as these, the physical setting of the port, the discovery of Port Phillip Bay, Hobson's Bay and the River Yarra, the geology of the Yarra Delta, the condition of the port before 1877 and the genesis of the Melbourne Harbor Trust have been briefly referred to.
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ItemAn investigation into the methodology of projecting the future population of Melbourne( 1979)The study of population projection has always been of considerable interest to politicians, planners, economists and other professionals from all walks of life. Unfortunately, up until now, most of the studies done in Australia have been restricted to the nation as a whole rather than areas at the regional level. This thesis is intended to fill-at least partially - this long standing void and should be useful to anyone who is interested in the techniques of projecting the population below the national level. The thesis attempts to investigate the methodology of projecting the future population of Melbourne. It is divided into two volumes. Volume 1 contains the text of the research and the bibliography, and Volume 2 contains the relevant tabulations and appendices. There are six chapters in Volume 1. Chapter 1 sets out the aim, scope and structure of the thesis, and Chapter 2 presents a review of the past methodologies in projections. This . is then followed by an examination of the three aspects of population growth (i.e. births, deaths and migration) in Chapters 3 to -5. Each of these chapters could be considered as an independent study in itself. However, these parts are all related and are better understood in the context of the whole volume- than as separate entities. For the reader who is primarily interested in the results of the projections, the last chapter (Chapter 6) gives a summary of the assumptions, procedures and findings of the projections.
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ItemThree shopping streets, 1890 -1970: a study of changing functions( 1975)This thesis is a study of shopping centres in terms of their changing functions.l The examination of the general long term trends from 1890-1970 as well as the short term patterns within five 20 year periods of change in the commercial functions in three selected shopping streets is the objective of this study. Since the changes, representing one aspect of the urban environment, were investigated through time, this work falls in the category of Urban Historical Geography. It is necessary to emphasize here that this study is not intended to be an examination of the actual structure of shopping centres, but rather to look at changes in their functions during the period for which reliable data is available. The changes occurring in the types and numbers of commercial establishments as shopping centres developed are traced rather than the physical structure and size of shops, the morphology of the shopping centres or their service areas. Moreover, this work does not profess to expound the theory of retailing patterns or distributions, since this has previously been studied by many urban and retail geographers.3 It is a research work, hoping to provide better understanding of the development of specific shopping centres after their initial formation.
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ItemUrban road traffic noise and health( 2000)Some people say they are annoyed by traffic noise. There is rather a lot of evidence to show that where traffic noise is louder, more people say they are annoyed by it. On the basis of this sort of evidence, there is a consensus that road traffic noise causes annoyance. Traffic noise is also suspected of being dangerous to health: of making people ill; so ill they reach for painkillers or even visit a doctor to get medicine prescribed. The fundamental aim of this thesis is to find out whether this is happening in Melbourne. The available evidence contains anomalies: people seem to be healthy where noise is loudest. Even annoyance studies sometimes detect unexplained peaks of annoyance in quieter places; or a plateau of annoyance in high noise. However, the anomalies display a certain consistency. Traffic noise is orthodoxly measured by loudness. Several studies have found a peak of annoyance at around 60 decibels. The consistency of the anomalies suggests that some other physical characteristic of noise may be responsible for the anomalous responses. This thesis sets out to explore the urban soundscape in an attempt to find such a characteristic, and discovers the pattern of alternation of passby noise and background sound: passby patterns. The orthodox loudness measure is essentially a proxy for the daily average sound energy delivered to the ear by traffic. To define patterns requires taking this measure apart - splitting traffic noise into two sounds: the sound of passbys and the background sound. The definition builds up through the use of point source theory, observations in urban and rural environments, experiments with a typical sedan in isolated locations, and experimentation with techniques for the measurement of background sound generated by roads. The tools applied are ears, stopwatch and sound meter. The result is a set of techniques aimed to measure patterns of passby noise in urban environments. Application of these techniques at 102 randomly selected sites spread over 150km2 of urban environments detects passby patterns in Melbourne. By way of an example, the final stage of this investigation embeds pattern measurements within a small, orthodox study of the annoyance and health responses to traffic noise measured by decibels. The results are consistent with regular or rapidly alternating passby patterns being closely associated with annoyance and ill health. In particular, in relation to people who are sensitive to noise, it should no longer be assumed that peak distress at approximately 60dB(A) is anomalous. It may well be due to high levels of patterning of passby noise. The result requires confirmation, to be sure, but the evidence is sufficiently strong to suggest that traffic noise and patterns of passby noise, or something closely associated with them, are probably associated with health problems in Melbourne.
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ItemStakeholders' perceptions of the management of groundwater contamination in Altona, Melbourne: is there a problem?( 1997)The problem of chemical groundwater contamination in Altona has been well documented since 1962 (State Development Committee, 1962). A basalt hosted, upper most aquifer, approximately ten meters from the surface, has been the focus of investigation by the Altona Chemical Complex since the late 1980s. Currently, a contamination plume, containing known carcinogens and mutagens, extends from the Altona Chemical Complex approximately two kilometers to beneath wetlands and residents' homes (GTA, 1996). The existence of such toxic compounds, potentially in contact with biological receptors, warrants investigation into the adequacy of the current management of groundwater contamination in Altona. Interviews were conducted to analyse the perceptions of twenty eight representatives from Altona residents; the petroleum and chemical companies of Altona; the Environment Protection Authority of Victoria; City West Water (water supply company); the Department of Natural Resources and the Environment; environmental assessment and remediation consultancies; environmental pressure groups; Federal, State and local political representatives; academia; banking; and real estate agent stakeholders. Based upon the perceptions of these stakeholders and with reference to supporting literature, this thesis examines the processes of the current management of groundwater contamination with respect to, management effectiveness, management motives, adherence to the precautionary principle, intergenerational equity and compliance to ecologically sustainable development. Analysis of the interviews determined that the management of the groundwater contamination issue was effectively in the hands of the Altona Chemical Complex, with the EPA, albeit with limited resources, facilitating and reviewing works being carried out. The existence of unregistered domestic bores and a lack hydrogeological knowledge indicated that the risk to public health and the ecological environment had not been adequately defined, despite Altona Chemical Complex claims to the contrary (EVS, 1996). In addition, the current management system was found to favour chemical industry management interests as they are the most influential stakeholder. These uncertainties and conflicting motives render the current management strategy inadequate as the precautionary principle was not utilised, intergenerational equity was not safeguarded and ecologically sustainable development was not being practiced. The ramification of the current management of groundwater contamination in Altona is that while action now may appear to be cost effective, the longer term consequences for the Altona Chemical Complex, public health and the ecological environment may not be affordable. iii
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ItemCommunities of resistance: the closure of schools in Victoria, 1992-1994( 1996)The role of discourse in campaigns of local resistance to the Government has been neglected in most analyses of community protest. This thesis examines the way in which community resistance to the Victorian Government's policy of school closures has been constructed through discourse. In particular, this study demonstrates how discourses were strategically mobilised in the protests over the closures of the Fitzroy, Richmond and Northland Secondary Colleges. It is argued that constructions of community, race and gender were employed to counter the dominant economic discourse of the Liberal Government. This study also illustrates how notions of power and class were evoked to emphasise the unity and sense of purpose of the protest groups.
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ItemThe municipal boundaries of Melbourne: a study of their evolution, character and significance( 1968)No abstract available
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ItemLeaf yeasts as indicators of air pollution( 1993)In the early 1970s, Paul Dowding, a botanist at the University of Dublin accidentally discovered that leaf yeasts, especially Sporobolomyces roseus, can be used as indicators of air pollution. Dowding, having forgotten to collect leaves from the country for a 2nd year practical class, took them from his home in the suburbs and from the university grounds in the centre of Dublin. Very few pink yeasts appeared for the students to see in the practical class. Dowding, therefore, conducted a number of citywide surveys over the next few years. These confirmed that numbers of leaf yeasts were consistently lower in the suburbs than in the countryside and reduced even further in the centre of the city. (Dowding, 1980) Based on this chance discovery, a method using leaf yeasts as indicators of air pollution was developed and applied in several European cities. In most cities which monitored air pollution using this technique, maps were drawn indicating areas with high levels of air pollution. (Dowding, 1990) The leaf yeast technique developed by Dowding has the advantage that it is much cheaper than conventional air quality monitoring and facilitates the development of maps of the spatial distribution of pollution. No expensive devices are required and the material necessary for the methodology exists in every basic laboratory. The technique in itself is very simple and according to Dowding (1990) it can even be carried out by schoolchildren. The particular aim of the present study is to test the applicability of the methodology to the Melbourne setting. Air pollution in Melbourne has been monitored using the leaf yeast technique and compared to the results obtained for Melbourne by the Environment Protection Authority (EPA). Furthermore, the extension of the methodology to native species has been investigated. The following chapter reviews the literature on the nature of leaf yeasts and their relation to air pollution. The discussion begins by considering some physical aspects of air pollution and then goes on to describe the air quality in Australia and Melbourne. Additionally, the impact of air pollution on plants is outlined. This chapter concludes with a summary of the nature of leaf yeasts and their reactions to airborne pollutants. Chapter 3 describes the methods used to monitor air pollution with leaf yeasts and sets out the advantages and limitations of this technique. Chapter 4 describes preliminary investigations which were carried out to test the applicability of the method in Melbourne and the possibility of using native species as bioindicators. This is followed by a discussion of the sensitivity of leaf yeasts to air pollution. The occurrence of leaf yeast populations in different seasons and in different areas is examined and described in Chapter 5 using the same data for both investigations. Chapter 6 describes an attempt to increase the data coverage in Melbourne with the participation of schools in data collection. This chapter discusses the advantages and disadvantages of this approach which has been widely used in Europe by Dowding (Dowding, 1988,1990) In Chapter 7 an attempt is made to correlate the spatial distribution of air pollution in Melbourne as indicated by the leaf yeast surveys with data collected by the Victorian Environment Protection Authority using conventional air quality monitoring stations. Finally, an overview and summary of this work are presented in Chapter 8 with a discussion of the utility and applicability of this method in Melbourne.