Overview
Advanced Water Engineering will introduce you to different components of the hydrologic cycle that are essential for designing complex water infrastructures. In this unit, you will discuss concepts of probability and uncertainty governing water resources projects. You will estimate design rainfall and losses, and peak flows and volumes for engineering design. You will also be introduced to the design of pipe networks for water supply and collection of wastewater and stormwater. You will also learn how to apply the concept of Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD). In completing these tasks, you must use appropriate technical language in written communication and work in teams to solve problems.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2025
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 12-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 25 hours of study per week, making a total of 300 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from UC's reflection and in class discussion
Students initially lacked an understanding of the project's complexity.
Students should have increased in-class support to help them better understand the project scope at the outset.
Feedback from UC's reflection and in class discussion
Students demonstrated limited knowledge of Australian hydrological data and software skills.
Students should be provided with additional tutorial support to help improve their understanding of Australian data and gain more experience with the software.
- Formulate, plan, manage and complete projects individually or in teams considering stakeholder requirements and principles of sustainable development and communicate the outcomes professionally
- Design different components of urban water distribution, wastewater collection and stormwater collection systems
- Analyse a range of WSUD assets for a given urban setting
- Assess the hydrology of a catchment and estimate design floods.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Project (applied) - 30% | ||||
| 2 - Project (applied) - 30% | ||||
| 3 - In-class Test(s) - 40% | ||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Knowledge | ||||
| 2 - Communication | ||||
| 3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | ||||
| 4 - Research | ||||
| 5 - Self-management | ||||
| 6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | ||||
| 7 - Leadership | ||||
| 8 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | ||||
Textbooks
Water Resources Engineering
Edition: THIRD
Authors: David A. Chin
Pearson
ISBN: 0132833212 / 9780132833219
Binding: eBook
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- EPANET Software
- MUSIC software
- HECRAS software
- RORB software
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
r.sharma@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Probability, risk, and uncertainty in water resources engineering
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Probability models and estimation of flood at gauged stations
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Project 1: Part A Week 2 and Part B Week 5 (Friday 11:45 PM)
Module/Topic
Runoff routing and design of detention basins
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Water-Sensitive Urban Design I
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Water-Sensitive Urban Design II
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Project 1: Part A Week 2 and Part B Week 5 (Friday 11:45 PM)
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Intensity Frequency Duration (IFD) for design Rainfall depths
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Rainfall temporal patterns
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Project 2: Part A Week 7 and Part B Week 12 (Friday 11:45 PM)
Module/Topic
Rainfall to runoff for design runoff
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Urban drainage I- Longitudinal drainage
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Urban drainage II- Longitudinal drainage
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Design of Water Supply Distribution System
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Design of Wastewater Collection System
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Project 2: Part A Week 7 and Part B Week 12 (Friday 11:45 PM)
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Project (applied)
Project 1: Stormwater Drainage Strategy
Duration: Weeks 1–5
Submission Milestones:
Week 2 – Scope and preliminary progress [Letter to the council]-10% marks
Week 5 – Final report submission
In this project, you will develop a Stormwater Drainage Strategy report for a designated site, intended to support a development application to the local council. The objective is to evaluate the hydrologic and hydraulic impacts of urban development, particularly changes in water quality and quantity, and to propose appropriate mitigation strategies to address adverse post-development conditions.
This task will involve:
The design of a detention basin tailored to the site’s hydrologic context
Integration of Water-Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) principles and practices in urban design
An assessment of flood risk using deterministic and probabilistic approaches
Part A Week 2 and Part B Week 5 (Friday 11:45 PM)
Both Part A and Part B will be returned 14 days after their respective submission dates.
The assessment will be marked based on the followings:
1. Technical Accuracy & Application 40%; Must score ≥50% in this criterion to pass the project overall
2. Design Quality & Innovation 35%; Must score ≥50% in this criterion to pass the project overall
3. Structure, Communication & Clarity 15%; Only considered if Criteria 1 and 2 thresholds are satisfied
4. Engagement with Feedback and Reflection 10%; Only considered if Criteria 1 and 2 thresholds are satisfied
Scores in Criteria 3 and 4 are not awarded if the core technical work is deemed inadequate.
AI ASSESSMENT SCALE - AI PLANNING
You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas.
- Formulate, plan, manage and complete projects individually or in teams considering stakeholder requirements and principles of sustainable development and communicate the outcomes professionally
- Design different components of urban water distribution, wastewater collection and stormwater collection systems
- Analyse a range of WSUD assets for a given urban setting
2 Project (applied)
Project 2: Stormwater, and Urban Water Systems Design
Duration: Weeks 6–12
Submission Milestones:
Week 7 – Scope and preliminary progress
Week 12 – Final report submission
This project focuses on the comprehensive water infrastructure planning for a proposed residential development. Your task is to perform a flood risk assessment, while also designing an integrated urban water servicing system that includes:
Stormwater drainage infrastructure
Potable water supply network
Wastewater (sewer) collection system
The design must address:
Flood behaviour under different AEP rainfall events
Stormwater system layout and capacity for runoff conveyance and detention
Potable water supply network: layout, pipe sizing, and pressure requirements
Sewer network: gravity-based design (or alternatives), pipe gradients, and flow estimation
Part A Week 7 and Part B Week 12. (Friday 11:45 PM)
Both Part A and Part B will be returned 14 days after their respective submission dates.
The assessment will be marked based on the followings:
1. Technical Accuracy & Application 40%; Must score ≥50% in this criterion to pass the project overall
2. Design Quality & Innovation 35%; Must score ≥50% in this criterion to pass the project overall
3. Structure, Communication & Clarity 15%; Only considered if Criteria 1 and 2 thresholds are satisfied
4. Engagement with Feedback and Reflection 10%; Only considered if Criteria 1 and 2 thresholds are satisfied
Scores in Criteria 3 and 4 are not awarded if the core technical work is deemed inadequate.
AI ASSESSMENT SCALE - AI PLANNING
You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas.
- Formulate, plan, manage and complete projects individually or in teams considering stakeholder requirements and principles of sustainable development and communicate the outcomes professionally
- Assess the hydrology of a catchment and estimate design floods.
3 In-class Test(s)
The time-restricted exam-style class test will cover all learning outcomes of the unit. You need to review all the content delivered throughout the term. The format of the test will be published in week 11.
Review/Exam Week Monday (13 Oct 2025) 11:45 pm AEST
Exact test timetable will be published/advised in Week 11.
After the certification of the grades.
The following assessment criteria will be used for assessing the test:
The correctness of the answers;
The correct process was followed; and
Accuracy of the calculations.
AI ASSESSMENT SCALE - NO AI
You must not use Al at any point during the assessment. You must demonstrate your core skills and knowledge.
- Design different components of urban water distribution, wastewater collection and stormwater collection systems
- Analyse a range of WSUD assets for a given urban setting
- Assess the hydrology of a catchment and estimate design floods.
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
