CIVL3141

Draft Report Group 42

Harrison Daniels, Vikram Nair, Will Teen,

Parva Shah
Table of Contents
Task 1 – Critical review..........................................................................................................................2
Task 2 – Catchment characterisation.....................................................................................................3
Task 7 – Team charter...........................................................................................................................4

Table of Figures
Figure 1 Catchment Map.......................................................................................................................3

Table of Tables
Table 1 Area range and number of squares...........................................................................................3
Task 1 – Critical review
The Probable Maximum Flood Estimates for the Lake Baroon Catchment (Gibbes, 2021) report
summarises the development of probable maximum precipitation (PMP) and probable maximum
flood (PMF) estimates for the Lake Baroon catchment, with the aim of comparing the estimated PMF
to the maximum discharge discussed in the emergency management procedures for Lake Baroon
(Seqwater 2020).

The purpose of this review to critically examine the content and methods of the report to identify its
strengths and weaknesses and provide recommendations for how it might be improved.

Rational values were chosen for the various terms of the GSDM and GTSMR and the methodology is
well explained. However, the process for calculating the EPW catchment, DAF, and TAF values could be
explained more clearly, perhaps with figures. Also, the report states that initial rainfall depths (D R)
corresponding to each duration were calculated from figure 4 of the GSDM. But the values for D R in
table 1 of the report do not seem to correspond with chart found in figure 4 of the GSDM, for the
catchment area of 67 km2. The DR values in table 1 should be checked for correctness. Or, if D R are
not obtained directly from figure 4, this should be explained more clearly.

The final GTSMR PMP depths were not derived correctly according to the conventions outlined in
section 2.5 of the GTSMR guidebook. The guidebook states that values of the enveloping curve
should always be greater than or equal to the corresponding PMP value – this is not the case for
several of the adjusted PMP values in table 1 of the report. Furthermore, preliminary GSDM PMP
values should not be altered for the purpose of fitting an enveloping curve. They should, however,
be rounded to the nearest 10mm according to section 4.5 of the GSDM.

In term of formatting, some minor issues need to be addressed. Sections of the report are separated
well with headings. However, the report’s formatting may be improved by breaking up the Results
and discussion section into multiple subsections and ensuring references are formatted consistently.

The list of symbols, acronyms and abbreviations section is a helpful tool for the reader to understand
the technical content of the report. However, the list appears to be incomplete – many symbols,
acronyms and abbreviations are not included in the list but are instead defined ad hoc in the body of
the report. For consistency, the list should either be removed or expanded to include these other
terms such as GSDM, EAF, MAF and D R, among others. Furthermore, the list’s inclusion of basic units
(such as litres and millimetres) is unnecessary as knowledge of these units is trivial and other units
found in the report are not included in the list. The term water year is included in the list despite not
being used in the body of the report. So, it is recommended that it be removed from the list.

In summary, the report is generally well constructed, with some capacity for improvement.
Task 2 – Catchment characterisation
a) To determine the catchment area, a catchment map was created using QTOPO. A scale of
1:50,000 was used over lake Baroon, with the latitude ranging from 26°40’S to 26°46’S and
the longitude ranging from 152°50’E to 152°56’E. Once the topological map was obtained,
the outlet was defined by Baroon Pocket Dam and the contours were followed to create the
catchment map, which can be seen in figure 1. The scale on the right side of the map
indicated the length of each square is 2km long, meaning each square has an area of 4km 2.

Figure 1 Catchment Map

b) To determine the catchment area, the number of squares were estimated. Each square was
determined to be either fully enclosed by the boundary, mostly in the area, half in the area,
or mostly not in the area. Due to the squares being visually examined, a range was used for
each category. The range for each category and the number of squares in each category can
be seen in table 1.
Table 1 Area range and number of squares

Category Percentage of square filled Number of squares

(%)
Full 100 6
Mostly full 100-70 8
Half 70-30 4
Mostly empty 30-5 12
 The area was then calculated using the middle of the range for each category, additionally
area for the high and low ranges were calculated, resulting in a final area of:
2
67.6 ± 13 k m
The large margin of error is due to how many mostly full and mostly empty squares there
are. The midrange area is approximately the area supplied by SEQwater, being 67 km 2,
meaning the independent catchment map is likely correct.

c)

The area of the catchment is 67.6km 2, and the length of the flow path has been found to be 25km.
The equal area slope (S¿¿ e )¿ can be found by the formula Se =h /L , where h is distance between
highest and lowest point and L is the length of the mainstream flow path. By using h=265 m and
L=25 km , equal area slope is 10.6 m/km , and we can divide by 10 to get the percentage.

1. The approach of Pilgrim and McDermott

0.38
t c =0.76 A

where t c = Concentration in hours and A = catchment area in km2

0.38
t c =0.76 ×67.6

t c =3.77 hours

2. Bransby-Williams formula

58 L
t c= 0.1 0.2
A × Se

where t c = The time of concentration (min), L = Length of flow path from catchment divide to outlet
(km), A = Catchment area (ha) and Se = Equal-area slope of stream flow path (%)

58× 25
t c=
67 600.1 × 1.060.2

t c =593 mins ≈ 9.9 hours

3. The Kirpich formula

( )
0.8
L
t c =0.00025
√S
Where t c = The time of concentration (hr), L = Length of the catchment along the longest flow path
(m) and S = Overall slope of the catchment (mm-1)
 ( )
0.8
25000
t c =0.00025
√ 0.0106
t c =5.08 hours

Task 7 – Team charter

Team charter – Group 42 

I. Team purpose and desired outcomes

Why is the team being formed? What is the desired outcome for the team? What would be an
acceptable outcome for the team? What is an unacceptable outcome? 
This team is being formed to discuss and share ideas to complete the CIVL3141 project. The
desired outcome for this team is to complete the initial draft project before the 10th September
and the final Team Project before 22nd October. An acceptable outcome is for the entire group to
score a minimum of Grade 5. We will not accept any of our group mates to slack and score below the
acceptable outcome. 
 
II. Duration and time commitment 
The amount of time the team will be working together needs to be documented. For example,
what is the project time frame? How much time will be dedicated each day / week to the project
by each team member? Are there any critical points / dates that occur during the project time
frame? 
The team plans to work on the project for 7 weeks which begins on Tuesday 24th August. The
workload is expected to get heavier during weeks 5-6 of the project. The team members will
allocate 4 hours per week to the project from week 1-4 and a further 7 hours from week 5-6. We will
also have weekly meetings once per week which will be set every Tuesday until the end of our
project.   
 
III. Scope 
What tasks that are within the scope of the project? What tasks are not within the scope of the
project (out of scope tasks)? 
The scope of the project covers tasks associated with lectures from Week 1 until Week 11.
The details of the task are in the CIVL3141 briefing document team project folder. When it comes
to individual reflection document, preparation for mid-semester and end of semester examinations
for CIVL3141, students are not allowed to work together since these activities are out of scope. 
 
IV. Members 
List all team members. Assign roles and responsibilities as well as a team leader if appropriate. 
Vikram Nair 
Harrison Daniels 
Will Teen 
Parva Shah 
 
V. Communication and reporting principles and protocols 
Describe how the team will communicate and report with each other during the project (i.e., face-
to-face meetings, telephone, email, instant messaging systems, social media platforms etc.) and
the frequency of these communications. Expectations for the response time to communications
(e.g., response within 24 hours of each communication) should also be outlined. A similar
description should be provided for communication and reporting to stakeholders that are external
to the project team (e.g., to other stakeholders, media etc.). These elements are often
documented in a meeting and communication plan. 
Our group members will be regularly message each other via Facebook. Whenever a group member
messages, anyone of them can and will respond in 8 hours or less. We will conduct our meetings via
zoom call. If any of the group members can’t make it, they will inform us and give us reasons why
they can’t make it. This is to ensure we know the progress of our group members. All the documents
will be stored in OneDrive. The team will meet once each week, every Tuesday afternoon.  
 
VI. Supporting resources 
List any resources that will be required to complete the team project. Resources could include
expertise from people outside the team, meeting rooms, information technology equipment,
software, information technology systems (i.e., internet access), travel budgets, catering budgets
and more. 
For this project, our group members are required to attain as much information online and cite the
sources. We will also be using spreadsheet software regularly as how we were taught during our
CIVL3141 Lectures and Tutorials.  
 
VII. Deliverables 
This section defines the outputs and their timing or due dates. It should include Key Performance
Indicators (KPIs) that measure the intended success. By considering the KPIs at this stage,
immeasurable deliverables are eliminated early. The deliverables should include the documents,
the desired behaviors, and quality assurance process that verifies the deliverables are in place. 
The key project deliverables include: 
1. Active team meetings – All group members must attend a 1-hour project meeting every Tuesday
per week. 
2. Draft team charter – The Team charter must be submitted during week 7 tutorial session
and seek feedback from tutorial staff. 
3. Draft progress report 1 – A draft version of the report with all sections from tasks 1,2 & 7 to
be included to ensure layout meets formatting requirements. It is due at the end of week 4. 
4. Final project report – Final report submitted via the Blackboard site by the end of week 12 on the
22nd October. 
 
VIII. Links  
Is the project linked to other activities and how do they overlap? How will these links be
used/managed? 
The project has overlap may occur since our course content materials are the same with
other CIVL3141 project teams. Our team will consult with Professor Badin Gibbes for any
clarifications and ensure that we will follow the University’s plagiarism policy.