Dr Stephen Lewis ~ Principal Research Officer
TropWATER
- About
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- Research Disciplines
- Socio-Economic Objectives
A Townsville original, Stephen completed a BSc (Hons) and PhD in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences at James Cook University in 2000 and 2005, respectively. Stephen is a geochemist that focuses primarily on water quality in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) catchment area and lagoon including evaluating the sources, transport and risks of various pollutants in freshwater, estuarine and marine ecosystems.
- Publications
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These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.
- Journal Articles
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- Bahadori M, Wang J, Shen J, Lewis S, Rezaei Rashti M and Chen C (2022) Soil organic matter and geochemical characteristics shape microbial community composition and structure across different land uses in an Australian wet tropical catchment. Land Degradation and Development, 33 (6). pp. 817-831
- Bahadori M, Chen C, Lewis S, Boyd S, Rashti M, Esfandbod M, Van Zwieten L and Kuzyakov Y (2021) Soil organic matter formation is controlled by the chemistry and bioavailability of organic carbon inputs across different land uses. Science of the Total Environment, 770.
- Bainbridge Z, Lewis S, Stevens T, Petus C, Lazarus E, Gorman J and Smithers S (2021) Measuring sediment grain size across the catchment to reef continuum: improved methods and environmental insights. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 168.
- Canto M, Fabricius K, Logan M, Lewis S, McKinna L and Robson B (2021) A benthic light index of water quality in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 169.
- Comeros-Raynal M, Brodie J, Bainbridge Z, Choat J, Curtis M, Lewis S, Stevens T, Shuler C, Sudek M and Hoey A (2021) Catchment to sea connection: impacts of terrestrial run-off on benthic ecosystems in American Samoa. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 169.
- Garzon-Garcia A, Burton J, Lewis S, Bainbridge Z, De Hayr R, Moody P and Brodie J (2021) The bioavailability of nitrogen associated with sediment in riverine plumes of the Great Barrier Reef. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 173.
- Jing Z, Yu W, Schneider A, Borsdorff T, Landgraf J, Lewis S, Zhang J, Tang W, Ma Y, Xu B and Qu D (2021) Interannual variation in stable isotopes in water vapor over the Northern Tibetan Plateau Linked to ENSO. Geophysical Research Letters, 48 (8).
- Lambert V, Bainbridge Z, Collier C, Lewis S, Adams M, Carter A, Saunders M, Brodie J, Turner R, Rasheed M and O'Brien K (2021) Connecting targets for catchment sediment loads to ecological outcomes for seagrass using multiple lines of evidence. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 169.
- Lewis S, Bartley R, Wilkinson S, Bainbridge Z, Kinsey-henderson A, James C, Irvine S and Brodie J (2021) Land use change in the river basins of the Great Barrier Reef, 1860 to 2019: a foundation for understanding environmental history across the catchment to reef continuum. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 166. pp. 112193-112193
- Saha N, Webb G, Zhao J, Lewis S, Nguyen A and Feng Y (2021) Spatiotemporal variation of rare earth elements from river to reef continuum aids monitoring of terrigenous sources in the Great Barrier Reef. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 299. pp. 85-112
- Zhang J, Yu W, Jing Z, Lewis S, Xu B, Ma Y, Wei F, Luo L and Qu D (2021) Coupled effects of moisture transport pathway and convection on stable isotopes in precipitation across the East Asian Monsoon Region: implications for paleoclimate reconstruction. Journal of Climate, 34 (24). pp. 9811-9822
- Bahadori M, Chen C, Lewis S, Rashti M, Cook F, Parnell A, Esfandbod M and Stevens T (2020) Tracing the sources of sediment and associated particulate nitrogen from different land uses in the Johnstone River catchment, Wet Tropics, northeastern Australia. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 157.
- More
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ResearchOnline@JCU stores 102+ research outputs authored by Dr Stephen Lewis from 2006 onwards.
- Current Funding
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Current and recent Research Funding to JCU is shown by funding source and project.
Great Barrier Reef Foundation - Contract Research
Review of water quality monitoring and evaluation for DIN-focused projects.
- Indicative Funding
- $540,000 over 2 years
- Summary
- Our team will coordinate and provide technical support across all the Reef Trust Partnership (RTP) dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) and pesticide projects that involve water quality (WQ) monitoring managed by the Great Barrier Reef Foundation. The purpose of the work is to ensure that the overall approach - including project design, equipment selection, sampling methods and analysis - is fit-for purpose and (to the extent appropriate) consistent across projects and programs. We will also ensure that project findings are communicated effectively and consistently.
- Investigators
- Stephen Lewis, Cassandra James, Zoe Bradey, Michelle McShane and Aaron Davis (TropWATER)
- Keywords
- Dissolved inorganic nitrogen; Pesticides; Monitoring; Communication; Water Quality
Queensland Department of Environment and Science - Contract Research
Great Barrier Reef catchments historical water quality data compilation.
- Indicative Funding
- $236,600 over 1 year
- Summary
- Compilation of extensive historical water quality data into a single database to be made available to all researchers, modellers and end users working in the GBR catchment area, with the data to be presented in a form consistent with that currently in use by existing WQ monitoring frameworks and databases (for example the Great Barrier Reef Catchment Loads Monitoring Program).
- Investigators
- Zoe Bainbridge, Stephen Lewis and Cassandra James (TropWATER)
- Keywords
- Sediments; Catchment to reef; Water Quality; Great Barrier Reef; Land Use; Monitoring
CSIRO - Contract Research
CSIRO - JCU Partnership - Catchment Water Quality Science (2019030726)
- Indicative Funding
- $300,000 over 4 years
- Summary
- The CSIRO Land and Water Business Unit is seeking to engage several JCU staff to support research undertaken within the Catchment Processes Research Group. These collaborative positions will synthesise and build on the Group's scientific output within the Great Barrier Reef land management and water quality research domain. It will also strengthen out collective ability to connect land management changes (CSIRO focus) with marine impact (JCU focus).
- Investigators
- Zoe Bainbridge and Stephen Lewis (TropWATER)
- Keywords
- Sediment Tracing; Great Barrier Reef; Burdekin; Marine ecological impacts; Catchment sediment processes; Sediment runoff
QLD Department of Environment and Science - Advance Queensland Research Fellowship
Identifying sources of fine sediments to protect the Great Barrier Reef
- Indicative Funding
- $180,000 over 5 years
- Summary
- This fellowship builds on Bainbridge's PhD thesis which identified the sediment fractions preferentially transported from rivers via flood flumes to the Great Barrier Reef lagoon, and which have the greatest influence on photic depth/water clarity. The research will identify both the key properties and the primary sources of this material, enabling more effective prioritisation and direct targeting of control works to improve the quality of water discharged to the Great Barrier Reef. This research is cutting edge in the field of sediment tracing and will contribute locally by identifying specific catchment sources of ecologically-damaging fine sediment, and to the broader international field of sediment tracing.
- Investigators
- Zoe Bainbridge, Stephen Lewis, Scott Smithers, Jon Olley, Joanne Burton, Scott Wilkinson and Stephen Hillier (TropWATER, College of Science & Engineering, Australian Rivers Institute, QLD Department of Science, Information Technology and Innovation, Commonwealth Scientific & Industrial Research Organisation and James Hutton Institute)
- Keywords
- Fine Sediment; Great Barrier Reef; Clay minineralogy; Sediment Tracing; Geochemistry; Catchment Management
Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment - National Environment Science Program (NESP) - Total Water Quality (TWQ)
Reducing End-of-Catchment Fine Sediment Loads and Ecosystem Impacts
- Indicative Funding
- $23,910 over 1 year
- Summary
- A wide range of NESP TWQ Hub projects have focused on the source, transport, fate and impact of sediments on estuarine, coastal and reef ecosystems. These projects have responded to the Reef 2050 Plan water quality targets and Water Quality Improvement Plan aiming to reduce the loss of sediments from catchments to the marine environment. To better manage sediment losses and prioritise remedial actions, it is important to be able to understand and contextualise all of the issues that are involved in this sediment story, from managing catchment sources to defining which types of sediment cause the most harm in the marine environment. The synthesis report will include a list of gully prioritisation tools and sampling methods for detecting sediment and bioavailable nutrients. This project will provide a narrative and synthesis to bring all these threads together. Synthesis of this new knowledge will provide advice on practical on-ground actions for land and sea managers, policy implications and identify remaining gaps for future research and management investments.
- Investigators
- Johanna Johnson, Stephen Lewis, Zoe Bainbridge, Catherine Collier, Rebecca Bartley, Andrew Brooks, Barbara Robson and Katharina Fabricius in collaboration with Rachael Smith, Alexandra Garzon-Garcia, Joanne Burton and Jane Waterhouse (Reef and Rainforest Research Centre, TropWATER, Commonwealth Scientific & Industrial Research Organisation, Griffith University, Australian Institute of Marine Science, QLD Department of Environment and Science and C2O Consulting)
- Keywords
- Sediment; Catchment; Great Barrier Reef; Ecosystem; gully
Department of the Environment and Energy - National Environmental Science Program (NESP) - Tropical Water Quality Hub (TWQ Hub)
What's really damaging the Reef? Tracing the origin and fate of the environmentally detrimental sediment and associated bioavailable nutrients
- Indicative Funding
- $598,596 over 2 years, in partnership with Queensland Department of Environment and Science ($155,870)
- Summary
- Recent research has shown that only a portion of the fine sediment fraction delivered from rivers draining into the Great Barrier Reef Lagoon (GBRL) reaches coral reefs and seagrass meadows. The specific sources of this sediment, which affects the health of corals and seagrasses, are as yet unresolved. This project will, for the first time characterise and trace the origin(s), fate and nutrient bioavailability of this environmentally detrimental sediment using samples collected in flood plumes and during resuspension events. This will enable direct spatial targeting of the sources of this material to achieve maximum benefits to GBR health from catchment management actions.
- Investigators
- Stephen Lewis, Zoe Bainbridge, Thomas Stevens and Scott Smithers in collaboration with Joanne Burton, Alexandra Garzon-Garcia, Phil Moody, Chengrong Chen, Jon Olley and Mehran Rezaei Rashti (TropWATER, College of Science & Engineering, QLD Department of Environment and Science and Griffith University)
- Keywords
- sediment flocs; sediment resuspension; Sediment Tracing; sediment transport and fate; Turbidity; Great Barrier Reef
NQ Dry Tropics - Tender
Monitoring, Modelling and Reporting Strategy for Landholders Driving Change project
- Indicative Funding
- $24,104
- Summary
- The objective of the Burdekin MIP is to work closely with groups in one or two focus areas, with the Bowen- Broken-Bogie (BBB) catchments, to trial a range of regionally tailored, coordinated actions that reduce sediment and nutrient loads. Throughout this Major Integrated Project, progress in achieving land management practice changes, economic benefits for landholders and pollutant load reductions will be closely monitored and results will inform adaptive management. This project is to develop an overarching Monitoring, Modelling and Reporting Strategy for the water quality component of the program.
- Investigators
- Stephen Lewis in collaboration with Jane Waterhouse (TropWATER)
- Keywords
- Monitoring; Modelling; Reporting; Burdekin; Suspended Sediment; Lamndholders Driving Change
Department of the Environment and Energy - National Environmental Science Program (NESP) - Tropical Water Quality Hub (TWQ Hub)
Sources, transformations and fate of particulate and dissolved organic carbon-implications for the GBR
- Indicative Funding
- $5,000 over 1 year (administered by Griffith University)
- Summary
- Organic carbon has traditionally been poorly studied in marine systems, but recent studies suggest that GBR microalgae can utilise organic matter, and that eroded soil carbon parameters can ameliorate marine algal responses to catchment nutrients. This suggests that organic carbon may play an important role in marine ecosystems than previously thought. Additionally, GBR organic carbon concentrations are increasing, but the mechanisms are unclear. The proposed study would review the literature, develop a conceptual model, and undertake data analysis on organic carbon in the GBR and catchments, and examine links to ecosystem effects. This will improve monitoring and management of water quality in the GBR.
- Investigators
- Michele Burford and Stephen Lewis in collaboration with Joanne Burton, Alex Garzon and Jon Brodie (Griffith University, QLD Department of Science, Information Technology and Innovation, TropWATER and ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies)
- Keywords
- Great Barrier Reef; catchment nutrients; Dissolved Organic Carbon; marine systems; particulate organic carbon
Department of the Environment and Energy - National Environmental Science Program (NESP) - Tropical Water Quality Hub (TWQ Hub)
What's really damaging the reef? Tracing the origin and fate of the environmentally detrimental sediment
- Indicative Funding
- $565,000 over 3 years
- Summary
- Recent research has shown that only a portion of the fine sediment fraction delivered from rivers draining into the Great Barrier Reef Lagoon reaches coral reefs and seagrass meadows. The specific sources of this sediment, which affects the health of corals and seagrasses, are as yet unresolved. This project will, for the first time characterise and trace the origin(s) and fate of this environmentally detrimental sediment using samples collected in flood plumes and during resuspension events. This will enable direct spatial targeting of the sources of this material to achieve maximum benefits to GBR health from catchment management actions.
- Investigators
- Stephen Lewis in collaboration with Zoe Bainbridge, Jon Olley, Chengrong Chen, Scott Smithers, Joanne Burton and Phil Moody (TropWATER, Griffith University, Griffith Medical School, College of Science & Engineering, QLD Department of Science and Information Technology and Innovation)
- Keywords
- sediment flocs; sediment resuspension; sediment tracing; sediment transport and fate; Turbidity; Great Barrier Reef
- Supervision
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Advisory Accreditation: I can be on your Advisory Panel as a Secondary Advisor.
These Higher Degree Research projects are either current or by students who have completed their studies within the past 5 years at JCU. Linked titles show theses available within ResearchOnline@JCU.
- Current
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- SEDIMENT DYNAMICS OF A LARGE TROPICAL RIVER SYSTEM (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
- Biogeochemical modelling of tropical marine ecosystemns in the context of climate change (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
- High Island Lifeboats - future ecosystem and cultural services provision by high island beaches on the GBR. (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
- Data
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These are the most recent metadata records associated with this researcher. To see a detailed description of all dataset records, visit Research Data Australia.
- Lewis, S. (2012) Development of an inshore fringing coral reef using textural, compositional and stratigraphic data from Magnetic Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia. James Cook University
- Brodie, J. (2011) Water quality research: baseline synthesis and year 1 summary. Australian Centre for Tropical Freshwater Research
- Lewis, S. (2011) Herbicides: a new threat to the Great Barrier Reef. James Cook Univeristy
- Collaboration
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The map shows research collaborations by institution from the past 7 years.
Note: Map points are indicative of the countries or states that institutions are associated with.- 5+ collaborations
- 4 collaborations
- 3 collaborations
- 2 collaborations
- 1 collaboration
- Indicates the Tropics (Torrid Zone)
Connect with me
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- Location
- Advisory Accreditation
- Secondary Advisor
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My research areas
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