My name is Peter Marcus Bach and I am a researcher in the field of integrated urban water management. My interests include the use of models for exploring and planning sustainable futures for our growing cities. I am passionate about bridging knowledge across disciplines in pursuit of better understanding the complexity of our urban environment.
I graduated from a Bachelor in Civil Engineering with Honours in 2009 from Monash University and began my PhD in 2010. My research topic was on the development of an integrated model for helping urban water managers plan sustainable urban water technologies in urban precincts. My thesis titled “UrbanBEATS: A virtual urban water system tool for exploring strategic planning scenarios” has led to the development of a new software tool of the same name (for more information, see the UrbanBEATS Project Page). I graduated from my PhD in 2014 and have since been working as a Research Fellow at Monash University.
My Research Interests include:
- Integrated urban water management – in particular how we can better manage our urban water infrastructure by considering its interaction with other infrastructure, the environment, economy and society. I also teach integrated urban water management in several courses.
- Water Sensitive Urban Design – an emerging practice of low-energy, green infrastructure that are scalable and distributed across our cities to provide a number of benefits including pollution control, environmental protection, alternative water supply and amenity and liveability improvements
- Integrated Modelling and Assessment – the field of integrated modelling of urban water systems has been very active over the last 30 years across the globe. There is a lot to learn still about how we can link different types of numerical models together and I believe that now is an exciting time to get involved.
- Planning-support systems/modelling – engineering models have typically be about simulating and predicting the performance of infrastructure. A new type of modelling has, however, emerged in the recent decade, which are used to support decision-making in infrastructure planning
- Stormwater Management – I began my research career in the stormwater management field, looking at pollution from urban catchments and how we can accurate model their occurrence. I am still actively research in this area and linking its science with other fields.
- Water Supply Management – The Australian drought has raised a lot of awareness about water supply security and the need for alternative water sources. With the uptake of recycled water in our Australian cities, there is a need to understand how these new sources interact with our existing infrastructure. My research on water supply management looks into this interaction.
- Urban Microclimate – Ever noticed how hot it gets on a summer day in urban areas and how it can suddenly change when you enter a local park? Urban microclimate is a hot research topic that I have investigated through some work on thermal imaging and am currently looking at in the modelling sphere.
- Infrared Thermal Imaging – a form of remote sensing that relies on the detection of thermal radiation from surfaces, I have been looking into how detecting thermal anomalies in the urban environment can help us make rapid assessment about the condition of our urban infrastructure or the liveability of our urban precincts.
- Big Data Applications in Urban Water Management – it is currently a buzzword in data science. Our modern technologies are generating large amounts of data that can potentially teach us about the behaviour of the urban population. I am currently looking into what opportunities exist for urban water management.
Apart from research, I also have a keen interest in computer game design and am actively learning to use the Unity Engine. I believe that there is great potential in bringing the gaming industry closer to research. Games provide highly immersive environments that have the potential to evoke emotion and engagement in the players. I believe that there is potential in using games to improve the way we communicate our research outputs and knowledge to the broader community.
About this Website:
This website is one of the many ways I like to communicate my work and my general interests. I hope that you will find it useful and entertaining in one way or another. For regular updates, you can refer to my blog. If you would like to know more about my ongoing research, you can refer to different research or other projects that I am currently involved in or read up on my work in detail in my publications. If there are research opportunities available at my institution, you will be able to find them here. If you would like to get in touch, feel free to contact me by email or through social media.
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Welcome to my journey!