Dom is a fluvial geomorphologist with particular expertise in geomorphic investigation and analysis, stream rehabilitation, stormwater management in urban waterways and post-bushfire catchment response. Dom has worked as a consultant and researcher in Australia and UK for the last 20 years.
Dom was a member of the Co-operative Research Centre for Catchment Hydrology (now eWater CRC) and carried out research into the role of riparian vegetation in controlling stream channel erosion funded by Land and Water Australia. The key finding from his research was that exotic grasses such as Phalaris spp. provide significant resistance to erosion and their removal through weed control and native revegetation programs may have the unintended consequence of increasing erosion rates.
Dom’s consulting activities have focussed on combining hydrology, hydraulics and fluvial geomorphology to develop sustainable catchment and river management solutions. He has been closely involved in the development of geomorphic flow objectives to control the impact on channel form of stormwater runoff from urban development and the assessment of various risks to river health and engineering infrastructure following bushfires. Dom maintains close links with research and academia through his Honorary Fellowship at Melbourne University and informal links with various researchers at eWater CRC.