Authors / CoAuthors
Cook, S.B.
Abstract
This report presents key results of groundwater barometric response function development and interpretation from the Upper Burdekin Groundwater Project in North Queensland, conducted as part of Exploring for the Future (EFTF)—an eight year, $225 million Australian Government funded geoscience data and information acquisition program focused on better understanding the potential mineral, energy and groundwater resources across Australia. The Upper Burdekin Groundwater Project is a collaborative study between Geoscience Australia and the Queensland Government. It focuses on basalt groundwater resources in two geographically separate areas: the Nulla Basalt Province (NBP) in the south and the McBride Basalt Province (MBP) in the north. The NBP and MBP basalt aquifers are heterogeneous, fractured, vesicular systems. This report assesses how water levels in monitoring bores in the NBP and MBP respond to barometric pressure changes to evaluate the degree of formation confinement. The main process used to evaluate water level response to barometric pressure in this study is based on barometric efficiency (BE). The BE of a formation is calculated by dividing the change in monitoring bore water level by the causative barometric pressure change. Both parameters are expressed in the same units, so BE will typically be some fraction between zero and one. BE is not necessarily constant over time; the way BE changes following a theoretical step change in barometric pressure can be described using a barometric response function (BRF). BRFs were calculated in the time domain and plotted as BE against time lag for interpretation. The BRF shape was used to assess the degree of formation confinement. Although there is some uncertainty due to monitoring bore construction issues (including long effective screens) and potentially air or gas trapped in the saturated zone, all BRFs in the current project are interpreted to indicate unconfined conditions. This finding is supported by the identification of recharge at many monitoring bores through hydrograph analysis in other EFTF project components. We conclude that formations are likely to be unconfined at many project monitoring bores assessed in this study.
Product Type
document
eCat Id
135438
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Cnr Jerrabomberra Ave and Hindmarsh Dr GPO Box 378
Canberra
ACT
2601
Australia
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- Contact instructions
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- theme.ANZRC Fields of Research.rdf
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- PHYSICAL SCIENCESHydrogeologyEARTH SCIENCES
- ( Project )
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- Exploring For The Future
- ( Project )
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- EFTF
- ( Product )
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- barometric response function
- ( Place )
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- Nulla Basalt Province
- ( Place )
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- McBride Basalt Province
- ( Discipline )
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- groundwater
- ( Feature type )
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- groundwater levels
- ( Feature type )
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- barometric efficiency
- ( Place )
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- Upper Burdekin region
- ( Place )
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- Queensland
- ( Place )
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- North Queensland
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- Published_External
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completed
Purpose
This report presents the assessment of aquifer confinement state in groundwater bores monitored by Geoscience Australia for the Exploring for the Future program in the Nulla and McBride basalt provinces in the Upper Burdekin region of North Queensland. The assessment focuses on how water levels in monitoring bores respond to barometric pressure over time.
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notPlanned
Topic Category
geoscientificInformation
Series Information
Record GA RECORD 2020/052
Lineage
This report was created as part of Geoscience Australia's Exploring for the Future program. It includes time domain barometric response functions to assess the confinement state of monitoring bores in the Nulla and McBride basalt provinces in the Upper Burdekin region of North Queensland.
Parent Information
Extents
[-20.50, -17.50, 143.50, 146.50]
Reference System
GDA94 (EPSG:4283)
Spatial Resolution
Service Information
Associations
Association Type - informed
Exploring for the Future – Groundwater level interpretations for the McBride and Nulla basalt provinces, Upper Burdekin region, North Queensland
eCat Identifier - 135439,
UUID - 2b9df0b1-e9a1-49fb-b0b2-7e536e86d55d
Association Type - wasInformedBy
Exploring for the Future—Groundwater level data release for the McBride and Nulla basalt provinces: Upper Burdekin region, North Queensland
eCat Identifier - 135445,
UUID - 7340b3c8-a6c1-4835-bab5-1824606721ce
Source Information