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Springs of the Mataranka Area 4

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Springs of the Mataranka Area 4 THE BIG PICTURE SPRINGS OF THE MATARANKA AREA 4. THE SWAMP Timor Sea A cavernous limestone aquifer extends The large swampy area located on the south side of across a large part of the Northern Territory the Roper River also owes it’s existence to a and into Queensland. The springs at The Mataranka area is notable for its many springs. geological structure that has caused the aquifer to DARWIN Mataranka are one of several outlet points for become shallower and to thin out towards the Roper the aquifer. Other big springs are found on 295000mE This map shows the location of the main springs and other groundwater discharge features. River (see the cross-section). This has resulted in a the Flora, Katherine and Daly Rivers and in broad area underlain by a shallow watertable and Queensland on the Lawn Hill Creek and It explains why the springs are there and describes some of their characteristics. zones of seepage. Extensive tufa deposits formed there because a ridge of bedrock located downstream Daly River Springs KATHERINE Gulf Gregory River. At Mataranka the water of originates from areas to the southeast as far of the seepage zone, ponded the water in a similar Flora River Springs MATARANKA Carpentaria away as the Barkly Tablelands and from the manner to the rock bars in streams as described in 300000mE northwest as far as the King River. Qa1 the note on tufa formation. The ridge formed a base for tufa to accumulate. Tufa dams merged and grew - Waterhouse Cmt over older ones, eventually forming a continuous sheet of limestone. This occurred in the recent geological past. Tufa is not forming in this 305000mE environment at the present day. Barkly Tablelands River Kl 8355000mN Lawn Hill Springs Kl Gregory Bare saline soil caused by a shallow brackish watertable. TENNANT CREEK River WHY ARE THE SPRINGS - B WESTERN AUSTRALIA Springs Roper Cmt WHERE THEY ARE ? 310000mE Creek The edge of the limestone aquifer is at its - Cmt Pri- 5. FRESH AND BRACKISH SPRINGS lowest point in the catchment where the Roper River cuts it just east of Mataranka. Qa1 The water from Rainbow Springs, Bitter Springs and Groundwater flows from high areas to low 315000mE Elsey Creek can be classed as fresh. This contrasts areas; thus Mataranka is the natural outlet for with most other springs in the area, which have two the water. The location of individual springs is Qa1 ALICE SPRINGS or three times the amount of dissolved solids (salts) governed by geological structures. Rainbow and which can be termed as brackish. The reason for and Bitter Springs lie along fractures that run this is that the first three springs are sourced directly from northwest to southeast. These provide 2 from the aquifer probably via caverns. No Kl 320000mE weaknesses in the rock where caves can more evaporation takes place prior to the water emerging easily form and allow groundwater to escape QUEENSLAND from the springs and so their water quality is similar to the surface. The Roper Creek has a very to that of the regional groundwater. Beneath the straight course, which coincides with such a SOUTH AUSTRALIA Bitter Spring swampy areas however, the watertable is located fracture. 1 close to ground level. Over thousands of years the 3 Rainbow Spring and Thermal Pool swampy vegetation (paperbarks, pandanus and 8350000mN palms) have tapped the watertable, removing water but leaving behind the salts. In some cases the THE AQUIFER - Cmt Cmt- watertable is close enough to the surface to allow direct evaporation and accumulation of salts in the A layer of rock known as the Tindall Limestone hosts the Mataranka - Botanic Walk Spring soil. The end result is that salt concentrations have regions main aquifer. The limestone was deposited in a Czk Cmt Pri- increased in the shallow groundwater and in the - Qa1 shallow sea some 500 million years ago. It has been Cmt Fig Tree Spring (at arrow), a brackish spring emerging from cliffs of tufa limestone. Note the bare rock pavements composed of ancient tufa many springs, which drain from it. subjected to weathering over a long period, resulting in a network of solution cavities ranging from microscopic to the - size of caves. These cavities together with cracks in the Czk Cmt Czk rock comprise the aquifer. A large volume of groundwater is 4 River stored in and flows through the aquifer. 6. TUFA, AN INDICATOR OF PAST AND 5 Fig Tree Spring Roper PRESENT SPRINGS. Qa1 Tufa is a type of limestone commonly associated with springs. It forms when evaporation causes the spring 6 Mataranka Falls water to become super-saturated with calcium carbonate. The mineral then precipitates as a rocky Djilkminggan deposit. It often forms "dams" across streams, Elsey ELSEY NATIONAL PARK Homestead commonly on top of existing rock bars. Evaporation 7 concentrates the minerals in the waterholes upstream of the rock bar. As the water cascades over the bar, STUART 8345000mN turbulence provides the trigger to precipitate the 1. THERMAL SPRINGS Kl calcium carbonate as tufa. The process is self-sustaining. As the tufa builds up, the water level - Rainbow Spring is commonly referred to as a "thermal" - RN034033 Cmt Czk Cmt behind the dam is raised, more turbulence occurs at the spring. Both Rainbow and Bitter Springs are 33C at their dam, resulting in more tufa formation. Tufa dams have a sources. This is within the range of the ambient Creek characteristic scalloped shape and often form a series temperatures of groundwater in the Top End, indicating that of step like terraces. Only two active tufa dams are they are not true "thermal" springs. The Douglas Hot Springs Elsey present today, Mataranka Falls on the Roper and an north of Katherine is one of the few thermal springs in the unnamed one, not far away on Salt Creek. Tufa Northern Territory, with a temperature of 50C. - Cmt formation was apparently much more active in the past, Bitter Springs on the Roper Creek Mataranka Falls - as evidenced by extensive tufa deposits adjacent to the Cmt HIGHWAY Roper River. Many good examples can be seen along Creek the walking track that follows the river. 2. MATARANKA SPRINGS Salt There are many springs just east of 7. "UNDERWATER" STALACTITES Mataranka between the Roper River and Qa2 the Roper Highway. The most prominent RN033679 ROPER A six metre high wall of tufa once damned the Elsey are Rainbow and Bitter Springs, which RN031483 issue directly from caverns in the Creek. It formed at a time when average rainfall was limestone. These have large flows of higher than at present, causing elevated watertables Kl crystal clear water and flow throughout and thus more groundwater discharge. The dam must 8340000mN the year. Less obvious but more HIGHWAY have held back a permanent waterhole many widespread sites of groundwater kilometres long. During the Dry season the water discharge are rivers and swamps. Rivers would have been saturated with calcium carbonate. receive groundwater seepage through Qa2 Pandanus roots extending into the water became encrusted with limestone, forming "stalactite" like their beds and banks. Some of these Pri- streams flow throughout the dry season, Kl features that lined the dam wall. The "stalactites" while others dry up before the wet often have hollow cores where the roots once were. season begins. Swamps are also Cmt- Czk groundwater discharge sites. Vegetation When the climate dried waterlevels dropped, taps the shallow watertable and water is exposing the dam wall. It would have been subjected to corrosion by the areas slightly acidic rainfall. also directly evaporated through the The Waterhouse River near Rainbow Spring soil. Qa1 Solution cavities developed and the wall was Qa1 eventually breached. It now stands as a relic feature, reflecting a wetter climate. Note that this site is on private property. 3. A LOT OF WATER ! An ancient tufa dam on Elsey Creek showing "stalactites" that grew underwater - around pandanus roots (view looking downstream). Cmt The combined flow from all the springs - in the area is typically about 1500 litres Kl Cmt per second at the end of the dry season. 8. A GROUNDWATER FED STREAMS This amount has varied between 700 and A 6000 litres per second depending whether rainfall in the preceeding years Some local rivers and creeks receive groundwater inflow through their Qa1 has been above or below average. Bitter beds as well as from springs along the banks. In some cases discrete Spring and Rainbow Spring contribute springs can be seen under the water but often the water probably seeps the most water, with flows averaging 130 8335000mN through wide areas of stream bed. In the case of Elsey Creek a 20 and 300 litres per second respectively. ELSEY STATION kilometre long waterhole is maintained throughout the Dry season, The volume of groundwater discharged Kl upstream of the Roper Highway. in swamps via vegetation use and evaporation is comparable to that Qa2 discharged in springs. Elsey Cemetry 8 Kl The source of Rainbow Spring, a cavern in limestone. - - Cmt Cmt Qa1 Cmt- GROUNDWATER FEATURES Cmt- Qa1 GENERAL FEATURES Stream, seasonally groundwater fed Stream Major road Swamp or marsh 83300000mN 8335000mN 8340000mN 8345000mN 8350000mN 83300000mN Vehicle track Sinkhole Qa2 Cadastral boundary Spring Creek Geological boundary Bore - Cmt Elsey RN32148 Bore registered number Park boundary Tufa dam inactive Cmt- Elsey Place name A waterhole on Elsey Creek maintained during the Dry Tufa dam active Qa1 season by groundwater inflow. Gauging station Qa2 A B Line of cross-section Qa2 Groundwater flow Cmt- LEGEND 295000mE 300000mE 305000mE 310000mE 315000mE 320000mE MAP LOCALITY 0 Silt and clay often with tufa at shallow depths, swampy areas, seasonally groundwater fed, Qa numerous springs Map compiled by S.
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