Staff   

Dr David B. Croft BSc. Hons (Flinders), PhD (Cambridge) Email: mailto:d.croft@unsw.edu.au	Director
Mr Zane Turner Email: z.turner@unsw.edu.au	Manager, Stock and Station Resources
Mr Garry Dowling	Senior Field Assistant

 

In Residence

Ms Isabelle Wolf

PhD student

 Management committee

The Management Committee determines the utilisation of resources to maintain an adequate level of income, and to meet the needs of the University in carrying out its teaching and research programs at the Field Station. The Management Committee reports to Professor Michael Archer, Dean, Faculty of Science and Chair of the Management Committee.

Dr D.B. Croft	Director, Fowlers Gap Research Station
Dr. I. Murphy	College of Fine Arts
Dr S. Mooney	School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences
Assoc. Professor R. Corkish	School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering
Dr D. Eldridge	School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences
Ms M. Debus-Rogers	New South Global
Mr. G. Mulligan	Campus Services Zone Operations
Mr. P. Ampt	UNSW FATE programme

 Graziers' Committee

This committee was established in 1980 to advise the Management Committee on pastoral activities on the Station. The current members are:

Mr. J.A.. Bartholomaeus, Pine Creek Station
Mr. P.R. Beven, Sturts Meadows Station
 

 Consultative Committee

The inaugural meeting of this committee was held on the 13th April 1967 and foundation members played a major role in the development of the Station and the initial formulation of research directions.

The Committee has always comprised distinguished people from the rural industry and their input into the Station over the years has been greatly appreciated by the University.

Mission

 To further our understanding of the functioning of the arid-zone environment of New South Wales through:

Teaching

Research

Interpretation

Knowledge diffusion

The University of New South Wales, in taking over the lease of Fowlers Gap, undertook to carry out research and provide facilities for relevant research programs, which might be proposed by other authorities, including government or university organisations. Research has been conducted by various schools/units of UNSW including: Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, Civil and Environmental Engineering, the former school of Wool and Animal Science, Architecture and the Centre for Remote Sensing. A number of other tertiary institutions have also conducted investigations at the Station, chiefly Macquarie University, University of Sydney, University of New England, Monash and Melbourne Universities. Government organisations, which have utilised the facilities, include: Department of Land and Water Conservation, CSIRO, and New South Wales, South Australian and Queensland Departments of Agriculture. Funding has been provided by the Australian Research Council, Wool Research Trust Fund, Rural Credits Development Fund, Water Research Foundation of Australia, Australian Housing Research Council, CRC for Sustainable Tourism and a number of overseas governments and universities. In addition to its use for research, Fowlers Gap is used extensively for teaching. Student field excursions are undertaken regularly from tertiary and other educational institutions. The Station also attracts visitors from overseas and within Australia. Studies on the Station have been the subject of many television documentaries, radio interviews and newspaper articles.

The Field Station is administered by a Management Committee consisting of representatives from the UNSW Schools that use the Field Station. This Committee is assisted by two advisory groups - the Graziers Committee, comprising a small group of pastoralists who supply support and advice at an informal level, and the Consultative Committee, an advisory group representing organisations of the pastoral industry. In May 1996 Fowlers Gap was awarded inclusion in the register of the National Estate (Database number: 019186) under Criterion C.1. The statement of significance is as follows:"Fowlers Gap Research Station is a significant arid zone reference area and an important research and education facility. It is the only research station in the arid zone of New South Wales and is the only research station in the winter rainfall arid zone of Australia. The invertebrate fauna of the place is better known and documented than any other range land area in New South Wales, while all other features of the natural environment have been well researched and documented. Areas within the station have been monitored, regularly photographed and data collected for over thirty years, providing an unparalleled record of environmental change and response to monitored environmental conditions in the arid zone of southern Australia. Over 100 scientists have done research and field experiments in the place, with many scientific publications resulting. Research topics are varied and relate to most aspects of the arid zone and its management."