The UHRRI team are developing a programme of research that seeks to understand the relationship between physical and biological patterns and processes at different spatial and temporal scales, and their response to revegetation and the re-establishment of large woody debris. The hypothesis is that the river is a complex, adaptive system where change at any one level of ecological organisation will affect emergent patterns and processes at other levels of ecological organisation.

The key elements of the research are:

1. To understand how the patterns and processes of an emerging riparian ecosystem are influenced by patterns and processes at different scales.
2. To understand how emerging riparian ecosystem patterns and processes influence the development of patterns and processes at different scales.
3. To understand how fluvial geomorphic patterns and processes have been affected by historical land use, and how revegetation and reinstatement of large woody debris will affect these.
4. To understand how the structure and composition of the riparian plant community is driven by the species pool and environmental conditions (ecological assembly).
5. To understand how the animal community assembles in response to plant community development.
6. To understand how the re-establishment of large woody debris affects current and emerging instream and hyporheic (sub-riverbed) ecosystem patterns and processes.
7. To understand how emerging instream and hyporheic ecosystem patterns and processes affect community development.

The current research programme involves scientists and postgraduate students from Macquarie University, University of New England, Griffith University and the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources. Financial support for this research has been obtained from Macquarie Generation, Mt Arthur Coal, Bengalla Mining Company, the Australian Research Council, and DIPNR.

The guiding philosophy of this research is that collaboration, partnership, and synergy is essential to understanding and solving environmental problems. This research programme also seeks to train postgraduate students in interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary science.

The Australian Museum has recently obtained funding from the Environmental Trust for a PhD student to examine the response of terrestrial invertebrates to revegetation.

Post graduate (honours and Masters) students from Macquarie University are currently researching terrace evolution and formation, tributary evolution and development, and the history and success of engineered riverworks in the Upper Hunter catchment.

A post graduate student from the University of New England is looking at the relationship between aquatic invertebrates and existing habitat.