Hydrogeological Map Helen Springs Explanatory Notes - 1:250,000 Scale Map HYDROGEOLOGICAL MAP HELEN SPRINGS Explanatory Notes 1:250 000 Scale Map
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Hydrogeological Map Helen Springs Explanatory Notes - 1:250,000 Scale Map HYDROGEOLOGICAL MAP HELEN SPRINGS Explanatory Notes 1:250 000 Scale Map K- LIII /j. T T7r II I LE / -H 1 \\ I I I ri TT - ---- j_ • - .. ... .' ... ____-1t, ..\ '.. •-- -----U ' A 'i ------U 1\ jt1 - ----- - -- ................-:-..,.........\ ...........I ". -.\ ..............-:_ ........ ..' I \\ ,::.::J\\J --Im • . : . .......... . --- --......-: :-. ......... --r7'I L -------4---------- - / I POWER --AND----- WATER AUTHORITY Front Cover: Extract from the 1:250 000 Helen Hprincj; Hydrcgeolugical Map Back Cover: Extract from MES (Miii: ispec:ra canrier) Scene ID: 5022000302 Date: 07.10.1984 Scale: 1:250 000 Bands: Multispectral Linear Array Bands 4 5 7 Q~-r" Y~--A q I-- Northern Territory of Australia sy II3uAuigt(.]t1td N .\JERJ\IA Hydrogeology of HELEN SPRINGS Explanatory Notes for 1:250 000 Scale Map M N Verma P B Jolly 1:250000 SHEET INDEX NEWCASTLE EETALOO WALLKALLOW WATERS SF 8ç SE E3- SE .53.7 SOUTH LAKE ,HELEN BRUNETTE WOODS SPRINGS DOWNS SE 53-9 /3E53 1Q SE 53-11 GREEN SWAMP TENNANT ALROY WELL CREEK SE SE 53-13 i SE 53-14 Report 50/1992 POWER AND WATER Darwin, July 1992 AUTHORITY CONTENTS i SUMMARY 1 APPENDICES 1. INTRODUCTION 1 APPENDIX A 21 MAP PREPARATION METHOD 2. GEOGRAPHIC SETTING 1 - Co'lation of Data 2.1 Climate - Data Processing 2.2 Physiography - Remote Sensing - Landsat 2.3 Land Use MSS Images 2.4 Surface Water - Application of 015 Hydrology APPENDIX B 23 3. GEOLOGY 5 BORE DATA BASE 3.1 Stratigraphy and Description Structure Access 4. HYDROGEOLOGY 7 LIST OF FIGURES 4.1 Carbonate Rock 1 Location of Helen Springs 2 Aquifers 1:250 000 Map 4.1.1 Georgina Basin 2 Physiographic Units of the 4 - Gum Ridge Formation Map Area - Anthony Lagoon Beds 3 Geological Cross-Sections 8 4.1.2 Wiso Basin of Lines 1, 2, 3 and 4 - Moritejinni Limestone 4 Water Levels of Bores 5338 10 4.2 Volcanic Rock Aifers and 5427 and Rainfall Data - Helen Springs for Barrow Creek and Volcanics Tennant Creek 4.3 Fractured Rock 5 Durov Diagram 13 Aquifers 6 TDS, SO4 and Fluoride 14 - Tennarit Creek Block Contours for Georgina - Tomkinson Creek Beds Basin 7 SAR and HCO3 /C1 Contours 14 S. GROUNDWATER QUALITY 11 for Georgina Basin 5.1 Georgina Basin 8 Deuterium-Oxygen Graph 15 - Gum Ridge Formation for Georgina Basin - Anthony Lagoon Beds 9 Potential Areas for 15 5.2 Wiso Basin Horticultural Development - Montejinni Limestone 5.3 Volcanic Rock Aquifers LIST OF TABLES - Helen Springs 1 Mean Monthly and Annual 3 Volcanics Rainfall at Various 5.4 Fractured Rock Stations Aqui fers 2 Stratigraphy of the Helen 6 - Tennant Creek Block Springs Region - Tomkinson Creek Beds 3 Bore Statistics 9 4 A Comparison of Water 12 6. PROSPECTIVE AREAS FOR 16 Quality HORTICULTURE 5 Water Analysis Results of 12 6.1 Sustainable Yield of Tritium, Deuterium and Each Prospective Oxygen18 . Horticultural Area 7. SUMMARY OF GROUNDWATER 18 RESOURCES 8. USE AND APPLICATION OF 18 THE MAP 9. REFERENCES 19 10. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 20 3- SUMMARY 2. GEOGR7PHIC SETTING In 1989, the Power and Water Authority 2.1 Climate (PAWA) commissioned a study to The area lies in the semi-arid climatic investigate the potential of region with temperatures ranging from groundwater resources in the Tennant 10° to 25 °C between May and August to Creek region. The requirement as 20 ° to 42°C from September to April. specified by the Department of Primary Most of the rain falls during the Industries, in line with government monsoonal period between December and policy, was to identify areas where May.The average annual rainfall of groundwater of a suitable quality and 446mm has been calculated from the data quantity existed to meet the demands of available. Rainfall data for the Helen potential horticultural developments. Springs map sheet is available from Four of the six areas identified in 1873. Rainfall stations at Banka Banka that study lie within the Helen Springs (B'anka), Brunchilly (B'chly), Eva 1:250 000 map sheet area. This Downs (EvaDn), Helen Springs (H'Sp) and commentary and accompanying 1:250 000 Muckaty (Muc'ty) are still open. Powell hydrogeological map are intended to Creek (PowlCk) and Renr1er Springs have provide more detailed kriowl edge on closed. A summary of rainfall records these four areas, in addition to a for the study area is provided in Table broad understanding of the groundwater II Renner Springs Station data is not resources of the region covered by the included due to inconsistent Helen Springs Map Sheet. recordings. This map has been compiled on an Average monthly and annual evaporation Intergraph Geographic Information (018) have been selected from the nearest System. The map has been prepared to station located at Tennant Creek for Australian Water Resources Council the period from 1973 to 1980.This data Luidelines, with minor modification to is considered to be representative of suit the GIS system, and therefore the sheet area. Average monthly confirms to the colour scheme and evaporation rates for January, April, principles of the UNESCO International July and October are 335, 324, 228 and Legend for hydrogeological maps. The 384mm respectively, with average annual project included the compilation and evaporation of 3778mm (Bureau of production of the map and a data base Meteorology 1988. containing information on 218 bores. 2.2 Physiography 1. INTRODUCTION The Helen Springs sheet area is a part of Hays' (1967) Main Plateau of the The 1:250 000 scale Helen Springs northern part of the Northern hydrogeological map sheet area is Territory, which comprises the Barkly bounded by latitudes 18 ° 00 1 S and 19c Tableland (Dunn et al, 1968) in the 00'S, longitudes 1330 30'E and 135 00'E east, and the Wiso Tableland (Hossfeld, and covers an area of about 18,000 sq 1954) in the west, separated by the km. The Stuart Highway is the main Ashburton and Whittington Ranges. Three bitumen thoroughfare traversing north- physiographic units have been south through the middle of this area differentiated on the basis of and access to various cattle stations topography and superficial deposits and is usually by well-graded gravel roads. are shown on Figure 2. The map and explanatory notes provide an assessment of the hydrogeology and a) The Ashburton and Whittington Ranges groundwater resource potential of this form the highest country with peak area. The area includes all or part of elevation of about 405m AHD decreasing nine cattle stations - Anthony Lagoon, in height towards the north. These Banka Banka, Brunchilly, Eva Downs, ranges are composed mainly of resistant Helen Springs, Muckaty, Newcastle silica cemented sandstone of the folded Waters, Powell Creek and Rockhampton Pre-Cambrian Tomkinson Beds which form Downs. The map area extends from the strike ridges and plateau. The highest Ceorgina Basin on the east to the Wiso plateaux appear to be remnants of a Basin on the west, separated by the former more extensive plain, the Tenuarit Creek Block (Figure 1) Ashburton Surface of Hays (1967). Less 1 To Darwin &2 DARWIN Daly Waters.___-N4914 KATHERINE Dunmarra HIGHWAY MAP AREA C,) -4 -.4 TENNANT CREEK/ / • Beetaloo Newcastle - Waters Elliott -- -- / ALIcE Ucharonidge / SPRINGS - Lake Woods E±E _- • Mungabroom -Walhaliow Cress eii/L _j - - - .-- Down: Anthony NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA Lagooi / Powell Creek EvaDowns/Ip:boo/ Helen Springs - / ,'Brunette Downs • Muckty\ Banka Banka BrunchillYj ic> Rockhampton Downs I-c Phillip Creek. 1 BARKLY Ways TENNAN T CREEK Three Barkly Homestead To Mount Isa Wauchope Wycliffe Well All Curung Barrow Creek krn5O 0 50 100km - To Alice Springs Figure 1: LOCATION OF HELEN SPRINGS 1: 250000 MAP 2 TABLE 1 MEAN MONTHLY AND ANNUAL RAINFALL AT VARIOUS STATIONS Month B'Banka B'Chly H'Sp PowiCk EvaDn Muc'ty Average Jan 101.4 88.3 115.3 109.9 147.4 108.8 111.8 Feb 125.5 103.3 115.6 125.4 115.5 106.0 115.2 March 79.3 75.0 67.4 76.5 54.4 55.9 68.2 Apr 15.4 15.9 12.3 16.5 29.7 11.8 16.9 May 16.7 15.9 13.0 7.9 6.5 13.0 12.1 June 5.1 6.1 3.5 5.2 2.7 5.1 4.6 July 4.8 8.9 3.6 6.0 0.0 2.6 4.3 Aug 2.3 1.9 2.4 2.8 2.9 2.0 2.4 Sept 8.5 9.7 7.5 6.0 13.1 7.1 8.7 Oct 22.1 19.7 19.6 16.0 27.0 18.5 20.5 Nov 19.5 38.4 26.0 33,6 29.0 20.9 27.9 Dec 43.7 53.1 55.6 67.9 50.1 51.4 53.6 Annual 444.3 437.0 441.8 473.7 478.3 40.31 446.2 All measurements in mm; Source Bureau of Meteorology resistant int:ervals in the Tomkinson ground there are low rises with rubble Creek Beds eroded preferentially to of Cambrian and Mesozoic rocks. Some form valleys which were partially of these rises have a capping of infilled with Cambrian volcanic and laterite and may represent outliers of sedimentary rocks and Lower Cretaceous a more extensive laterite tablelanci on sediments. Seasonal streams draining the Beetaloo sheet to the north (Brown the ranges terminate in floodouts in and Randal, 1969). the sand plains bordering the ranges. 2.3 Land Use b) Sand Plains, with a superficial The major user of land in this area is cover of red sand supporting spinifex the pastoral industry.