Dr Greg Davis

Dr Greg Davis.

Dr Greg Davis: researching innovative ways to measure, quantify and remediate soil and groundwater environments

Dr Greg Davis is leading cross-disciplinary teams conducting research in groundwater quality science and industrial and urban water issues.

  • 20 January 2011 | Updated 8 May 2013
  1. Overview
  2. Publishing History

Overview

Page 1 of 2

Current activities

Dr Greg Davis, leads CSIRO Land and Water's Water Reuse and Environmental Process Engineering research program. He also leads CSIRO Water for a Healthy Country's Industrial and Urban Groundwater Contaminants research.

In these roles, he leads cross-disciplinary teams and projects that generate research to support water reuse and waste stream treatment and resource and energy sector industries. This includes innovative approaches to mineral and petroleum recovery, reuse of mineral industry wastes, and geothermal energy.

Research topics of special interest have included:

  • the behaviour and fate of chemicals in subsurface environments, including petroleum hydrocarbons, solvents, pesticides, munition compounds, trace organics, nutrients such as nitrate and ammonium, and metals
  • chemical fluxes in groundwater, and especially fluxes to marine and estuarine environments
  • quantifying vapour biodegradation and vapour intrusion risks
  • evaluating remediation and treatment technologies at field scale.

He is keenly interested in the role of science in informing industry, regulatory and community assessments of polluted groundwater and soil environments.

Background

Dr Davis is keenly interested in the role of science in informing industry, regulatory and community assessments of polluted groundwater and soil environments.

Dr Davis joined CSIRO in 1983, after completing his doctoral studies on the topic of pyritic oxidation in mining industry waste rock dumps at the University of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia, and the then Australian Atomic Energy Commission (now ANSTO).

Academic qualifications

Dr Davis has been awarded a:

  • Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Mathematics (1st class Honours) degree from the University of Wollongong in 1979 and 1980
  • Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Wollongong in 1983.

Achievements

Dr Davis is the author of over 300 journal articles, book chapters, conference papers and reports to industry, regulators and community groups.

Dr Davis' achievements include:

  • In partnership with Argyle Diamonds Limited, received the Western Australian Government's Golden Gecko Certificate of Merit award in 2012
  • Awarded the Australian Water Association (AWA) of Western Australia Water Research Merit Award for 2009
  • Chairman of the 6th International IAHS Groundwater Quality Conference held in Perth Australia, December 2007
  • Australian delegate to India on Bioremediation: Biotechnology Challenges
  • Seconded to SMEC and the United Nations to assess groundwater damages due to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait
  • Commonwealth representative, Environment Advisory Committee, Department of Defence (WA)
  • President, Western Australian Chapter of the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH)
  • Chairman of the 1999 and 2000 Contaminated Site Remediation Conferences held in Perth and Melbourne, Australia
  • Member of the ‘Pumping test’ Standards Australia committee.

Professional activities

Dr Davis is:

  • Adjunct Professor, School of Earth and Environment, University of Western Australia
  • Chief Editor, Journal of Contaminant Hydrology
  • Member of panels in Western Australia and South Australia that recommend the appointment of state Contaminated Site Auditors.

Dr Davis has carried out projects for a range of industry (BP; Rio Tinto; BHP Billiton; Shell; Chevron), Local, State and Federal Government (e.g. WA Department of Environment and Conservation; Department of Defence), and others (e.g. CRC CARE).

Find out more about CSIRO Land and Water and the Water for a Healthy Country Flagship.