National Hydrogeological Inventory
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This Murray Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Murray Basin, a significant sedimentary basin in Australia, displays varying sediment thickness across its expanse, with the thickest layers concentrated in its central regions. The basin's geological evolution is characterised by distinct depositional phases. During the Paleocene to Eocene Renmark Group phase, sedimentary deposits encompass fluvial sands at the base, transitioning into paralic carbonaceous clay and lignite layers. These sediments indicate the shift from riverine to shallow marine environments, dating back to the Paleocene and Eocene periods. The Oligocene to Middle Miocene period encompasses the Ettrick Formation and Murray Group Limestone. The former includes marl, and the latter displays glauconitic grey-green marl and bryozoal limestone, revealing prevailing marine conditions during the Oligocene to Middle Miocene. In the Late Miocene to Early Pliocene Bookpurnong Formation, marine shelly dark grey clay and silt, previously known as the Bookpurnong Beds, coexist with Pliocene fluvial to marginal marine quartz sands (Loxton Sands), marking the transition back to terrestrial and nearshore marine settings. During the Late Pliocene to Pleistocene, the Blanchetown Clay, a substantial unit within Lake Bungunnia, signifies lacustrine phases. Overlying ferricretes in the central/eastern basin and the Norwest Bend Formation's oyster coquinas in the western region, the clay exhibits variable coloration and laminations. Lastly, the Pleistocene to Holocene phase witnesses river-induced reworking and erosion of underlying sediments, giving rise to the Shepparton and Coonambidgal formations. In the western Murray Basin, Cenozoic sedimentary rocks are relatively thin, typically measuring under 200-300 meters. The Renmark Trough area presents a maximum thickness of 600 meters.
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A compilation of thematic summaries of 42 Australian Groundwater Provinces. These consistently compiled 42 summaries comprise the National Hydrogeological Inventory. The layer provides the polygons for each groundwater province in the inventory and thematic information for each province, including location and administration information, demographics, physical geography, surface water, geology, hydrogeology, groundwater, groundwater management and use, environment, land use and industry types and scientific stimulus.
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This Carnarvon Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Carnarvon Basin is a large sedimentary basin covering the western and north-western coast of Western Australia, stretching over 1,000 km from Geraldton to Karratha. It is predominantly offshore, with over 80% of the basin located in water depths of up to 4,500 m. The basin is elongated north to south and connects to the Perth Basin in the south and the offshore Canning Basin in the north-east. It is underlain by Precambrian crystalline basement rocks. The Carnarvon Basin consists of two distinct parts. The southern portion comprises onshore sub-basins with mainly Paleozoic sedimentary rocks extending up to 300 km inland, while the northern section consists of offshore sub-basins containing Mesozoic, Cenozoic, and Paleozoic sequences. The geological evolution of the Southern Carnarvon Basin was shaped by multiple extensional episodes related to the breakup of Gondwana and reactivation of Archean and Proterozoic structures. The collision between Australia and Eurasia in the Mid-Miocene caused significant fault reactivation and inversion. The onshore region experienced arid conditions, leading to the formation of calcrete, followed by alluvial and eolian deposition and continued calcareous deposition offshore. The Northern Carnarvon Basin contains up to 15,000 m of sedimentary infill, primarily composed of siliciclastic deltaic to marine sediments from the Triassic to Early Cretaceous and shelf carbonates from the Mid-Cretaceous to Cenozoic. The basin is a significant hydrocarbon province, with most of the resources found within Upper Triassic, Jurassic, and Lower Cretaceous sandstone reservoirs. The basin's development occurred during four successive periods of extension and thermal subsidence, resulting in the formation of various sub-basins and structural highs. Overall, the Carnarvon Basin is a geologically complex region with a rich sedimentary history and significant hydrocarbon resources. Exploration drilling has been ongoing since 1953, with numerous wells drilled to unlock its hydrocarbon potential.
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This Central Australian Cenozoic Basins dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. Cenozoic basins are an important source of readily accessible groundwater within the arid deserts of central Australia. This province represents a collection of six notable Cenozoic basins within the region, including the Ti Tree, Waite, Hale, Mount Wedge, Lake Lewis and Alice Farm basins. Many local communities in this region (such as Papunya, Ti Tree and Ali Curung) rely upon groundwater stored within Cenozoic basin aquifers for their water security. The basins typically contain up to several hundred metres of saturated sediments that can include relatively thick intervals of hydraulically conductive sands, silts and minor gravels. It is noted that the potential groundwater storage volumes in the Cenozoic basins are much greater than the annual amount of runoff and recharge that occurs in central Australia, making them prospective targets for groundwater development. Groundwater quality and yields are variable, although relatively good quality groundwater can be obtained at suitable yields in many areas for community water supplies, stock and domestic use and irrigated horticulture operations, for example, in the Ti Tree Basin. However, not all of the Cenozoic basins have the potential to supply good quality groundwater resources for community and horticultural supplies. With the exception of several small sub-regions, most of the Waite Basin has very little potential to supply good quality groundwater for agricultural use. This is mainly due to limited aquifer development, low yielding bores and elevated groundwater salinity (commonly >2000 mg/L Total Dissolved Solids). However, bores have been successfully installed for smaller-scale pastoral stock and domestic supplies and small communities or outstations in the Waite Basin.
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This Central Australian Fractured Rock Province dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Mesoproterozoic Musgrave Province is a significant geological feature in Central Australia, covering around 130,000 square kilometres across the tri-border region of Northern Territory, South Australia, and eastern Western Australia. It is characterized by east-west trending, metamorphosed igneous rocks, including granites, intrusions, and volcanics. The province experienced various deformation events, including the Mount West Orogeny and Musgravian Orogeny, resulting in the emplacement of granites and high-grade metamorphism. The Ngaanyatjarra Rift (1090 to 1040 Ma) is a failed intracontinental rift that formed due to magmatism-induced extension. The associated Giles Event was characterised by mafic to ultra-mafic intrusions (Giles Suite), bimodal volcanism and rift sedimentation (Bentley Supergroup), granitic intrusions and dyke emplacement. The Giles Event was followed by the emplacement of dolerite dykes including the Kullal Dyke Suite and the Amata Dolerite, approximately 1000 Ma and 825 Ma. The Peterman Orogeny played a crucial role in shaping the geological architecture of the Musgrave Province, forming the distinctive east-to-west-directed ranges.
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This Karumba Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Karumba Basin is a shallow geological basin in Queensland, Australia, composed of sedimentary rocks and unconsolidated sediments that cover the Mesozoic Carpentaria Basin. Deposition started during the Late Cretaceous to Early Paleocene and has continued into the Holocene. The basin extends from western Cape York Peninsula into the Gulf of Carpentaria, where it connects with Cenozoic sediment deposits in Papua New Guinea. Although the sediments in both areas share lithostratigraphic and biostratigraphic similarities, their tectonic histories differ. The basin's structural geology is relatively uniform, with a significant downwarp known as the Gilbert-Mitchell Trough in Cape York Peninsula and another depocenter offshore in the Gulf of Carpentaria. The depositional history and stratigraphy of the Karumba Basin can be divided into three cycles of deposition, erosion, weathering, and the formation of stratigraphic units. The earliest cycle (the Bulimba Cycle) began in the Late Cretaceous to Early Paleocene, with episodes of significant uplift along the eastern margins of the basin. This resulted in the deposition of the Bulimba Formation and the Weipa Beds, primarily consisting of claystone, sandstone, conglomerate, and siltstone with minor coal layers. This cycle was followed by a period of planation and deep weathering, creating the Aurukun Surface. The second cycle (the Wyaaba Cycle) was initiated by large-scale earth movements along the Great Dividing Ranges, forming much of the eastern boundary of the Karumba Basin, and leading to the formation of the Wyaaba beds and other equivalent units. These beds consist mainly of fluvial to paralic clay-rich sandstone, conglomerate, siltstone, and claystone. In the south-west, Oligocene to Pliocene limestone deposits also formed in lacustrine settings, and were sourced from and deposited upon the underlying Georgina Basin. The cycle ended with ensuing periods of erosion and weathering and the development of the Pliocene Kendall Surface, as well as widespread basaltic volcanism. The final cycle (the Claraville Cycle) started in the Pliocene and continues to the present. It has experienced several episodes of uplift and deposition controlled by sea level change, climate variability and volcanism in the south. The Claraville beds are unconsolidated sediments, chiefly comprised of clayey quartzose sand and mud with minor gravels, reaching approximately 148 m thickness offshore, and approximately 70 m onshore. As this cycle is still ongoing, no terminal surface has been formed, and most units consist of unconsolidated surficial sediments.
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This Lake Eyre Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Lake Eyre Basin (LEB) is a vast endorheic basin covering approximately 15% of the Australian continent, spanning about 1.14 million square kilometres. Its development began during the Late Palaeocene due to tectonic subsidence in north-eastern South Australia, resulting in a wide and shallow intra-cratonic basin divided into Tirari and Callabonna Sub-basins by the Birdsville Track Ridge. The depocenter of the LEB has shifted southwards over time. During the Cenozoic era, sediment accumulation was highest near the Queensland-Northern Territory border. The depo-center was in the southern Simpson Desert by the late Neogene, and is currently in Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre, leading to the deposition of various sedimentary formations, which provide a record of climatic and environmental changes from a wetter environment in the Palaeogene to the arid conditions of the present. The LEB is characterized by Cenozoic sediments, including sand dunes and plains in the Simpson, Strezelecki, Tirari, and Strezelecki deserts, mud-rich floodplains of rivers like Cooper, Diamantina, and Georgina, and extensive alluvial deposits in the Bulloo River catchment. The basin's geology comprises rocks from different geological provinces, ranging from Archean Gawler Craton to the Cenozoic Lake Eyre Basin. The Callabonna Sub-basin, confined by the Flinders Ranges to the west, contains formations such as the Eyre and Namba formations, representing fluvial and lacustrine environments. The Cooper Creek Palaeovalley hosts formations like the Glendower, Whitula, Doonbara, and Caldega, and features significant Quaternary sedimentary fill. The Tirari Sub-basin, located on the border regions of three states, contains formations like the Eyre, Etadunna, Mirackina, Mount Sarah Sandstone, Yardinna Claystone, Alberga Limestone, and Simpson Sand. The northwest of Queensland includes smaller Cenozoic basins, likely infilled ancient valleys or remnants of larger basins. The Marion-Noranside Basin has the Marion Formation (fluvial) and Noranside Limestone (lacustrine), while the Austral Downs Basin comprises the Austral Downs Limestone (spring and lacustrine). The Springvale and Old Cork Basins tentatively have Eocene and Miocene ages. Cenozoic palaeovalleys in the Northern Territory are filled with fluvial sands, gravels, lignites, and carbonaceous deposits and are confined by surrounding basins. Overall, the sedimentary sequences in the Lake Eyre Basin provide valuable insights into its geological history, climate shifts, and topographic changes, contributing to our understanding of the region's development over time.
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This Sydney Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Sydney Basin, part of the Sydney–Gunnedah–Bowen basin system, consists of rocks dating from the Late Carboniferous to Middle Triassic periods. The basin's formation began with extensional rifting during the Late Carboniferous and Early Permian, leading to the creation of north-oriented half-grabens along Australia's eastern coast. A period of thermal relaxation in the mid Permian caused subsidence in the Bowen–Gunnedah–Sydney basin system, followed by thrusting of the New England Orogen from the Late Permian through the Triassic, forming a foreland basin. Deposition in the basin occurred in shallow marine, alluvial, and deltaic environments, resulting in a stratigraphic succession with syn-depositional folds and faults, mostly trending north to north-east. The Lapstone Monocline and Kurrajong Fault separate the Blue Mountains in the west from the Cumberland Plain in the central part of the basin. The Sydney Basin contains widespread coal deposits classified into geographic coalfield areas, including the Southern, Central, Western, Newcastle, and Hunter coalfields. These coalfields are primarily hosted within late Permian strata consisting of interbedded sandstone, coal, siltstone, and claystone units. The coal-bearing formations are grouped based on sub-basins, namely the Illawarra, Tomago, Newcastle, and Wittingham coal measures, underlain by volcanic and marine sedimentary rocks. Deposition within the basin ceased during the Triassic, and post-depositional igneous intrusions (commonly of Jurassic age) formed sills and laccoliths in various parts of the basin. The maximum burial depths for the basin's strata occurred during the early Cretaceous, reaching around 2,000 to 3,000 metres. Subsequent tectonic activity associated with the Tasman Rift extension in the Late Cretaceous and compressional events associated with the convergence between Australia and Indonesia in the Neogene led to uplift and erosion across the basin. These processes have allowed modern depositional environments to create small overlying sedimentary basins within major river valleys and estuaries, along the coast and offshore, and in several topographic depressions such as the Penrith, Fairfield and Botany basins in the area of the Cumberland Plain.
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This Port Phillip-Westernport Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Port Phillip and Westernport basins are small, shallow sedimentary basins located in south-central Victoria, formed during the Late Cretaceous rifting of Australia and Antarctica. They share similar stratigraphy with nearby basins. The Port Phillip Basin is bounded by the Selwyn and Rowsley Faults to the east and west, while the Heath Hill Fault marks the eastern boundary of the Westernport Basin. Both basins have pre-Cenozoic basement rocks comprising folded and faulted Paleozoic metasedimentary rocks and granites from the Lachlan Fold Belt. The Port Phillip Basin's stratigraphy includes Maastrichtian to Cenozoic sedimentary units with intercalated volcanic rocks. The main depocentres are the Sorrento Graben, Ballan Graben/Lal Lal Trough, and Parwan Trough. Notable formations are the Yaloak and Werribee formations, with coal-bearing strata and marine sediments. The Westernport Basin has coastal sediments and volcanic deposits from Paleocene to Holocene. It experienced marine transgressions and regressions due to sea-level fluctuations. Fault movements in the late Pliocene and early Pleistocene formed a fault-bounded depression centered on the Koo Wee Rup Plain. The main units are the Childers Formation, Older Volcanics, Yallock Formation, Sherwood Marl, and Baxter Sandstone. Both basins have Quaternary sediments, including Pleistocene eolian sand sequences, Holocene alluvial and paludal clays, and fluvial sediments in valleys and palaeovalleys. The Port Phillip Basin contains distinct phases of terrestrial and marine deposition, while the Westernport Basin has Eocene volcanism and marine sediments. These basins are important geological features in the region, with various formations representing millions of years of geological history.
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This Otway Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Otway Basin is an elongated sedimentary basin located on the south-east continental margin of Australia. Covering approximately 150,000 square kilometres and stretching about 500 km from South Australia's Cape Jaffa to Victoria's Port Phillip Bay and Tasmania's north-west, most of the basin is offshore, with a smaller portion onshore. Geological studies of the Otway Basin have primarily focused on its hydrocarbon prospectivity, examining thick Cretaceous aged rocks both onshore and offshore. However, the shallower onshore sedimentary units are more relevant from a groundwater perspective. The basin's formation began with rifting between the Australian and Antarctic plates during the Late Jurassic, leading to regional subsidence and the development of the elongated sedimentary basin. Following the Cretaceous plate breakup, a passive margin basin formed, which subsequently underwent basin inversion, reverse faulting, and folding, interspersed with extensional periods and normal faulting. This complex evolution, combined with sea level variations and volcanic activity, resulted in numerous sedimentary cycles. The sedimentary succession in the basin comprises non-marine sediments and volcanic rocks from the Jurassic and early Cretaceous, with a period of tectonic compression interrupting sedimentation during the mid-Cretaceous. The late Cretaceous and Cenozoic sedimentary and volcanic rocks form the primary groundwater-bearing aquifers of the basin, with various sedimentary environments developing in the Neogene and Quaternary. The basin's structural geology is intricate, with numerous basement highs, sub-basins, troughs, and embayments. Fault systems are prevalent, separating tectonic blocks and potentially influencing groundwater flow, offering conduits for inter-aquifer connectivity. Overall, the Otway Basin's geological history has shaped its hydrocarbon potential and groundwater resources, making it an essential area for ongoing research and exploration in Australia's geological landscape.