Hydrogeology of the Coastal Plain Between Cervantes and Leeman, Perth Basin
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HYDROGEOLOGY OF THE COASTAL PLAIN BETWEEN CERVANTES AND LEEMAN, PERTH BASIN HYDROGEOLOGY RECORD SERIES WATER AND RIVERS COMMISSION REPORT HG 3 1997 WRATER AND IVERS COMMISSION WATER AND RIVERS COMMISSION HYATT CENTRE 3 PLAIN STREET EAST PERTH WESTERN AUSTRALIA 6004 TELEPHONE (08) 9278 0300 FACSIMILE (08) 9278 0301 WEBSITE http://www.wrc.wa.gov.au/ Cover Photograph: Lake Indoon, 12 km southwest of Eneabba HYDROGEOLOGY OF THE COASTAL PLAIN BETWEEN CERVANTES AND LEEMAN, PERTH BASIN Alex M. Kern Water and Rivers Commission Resource Investigations Division WATER AND RIVERS COMMISSION REPORT SERIES REPORT NO HG 3 1997 Reference Details Kern, A. M., 1997, Hydrogeology of the coastal plain between Cervantes and Leeman, Perth Basin. Water and Rivers Commission, Hydrogeology Record Series No HG 3. ISBN 0-7309-7282-8 ISSN 1328-1194 Text printed on recycled stock, February 1997 ii Abstract The hydrogeology of the coastal plain between Cervantes and Leeman in the northern Perth Basin has been investigated by drilling 33 bores at 17 sites on a 7 km grid. The bores were drilled between March and May 1993, with the exception of bores 8A and 8B which were drilled in October 1990, and they range in depth from 20.0 to 105.5 m with an aggregate of 2142.6 m. Results from drilling have shown that the superficial formations comprise a number of formations of Tertiary–Quaternary age that form a stratigraphically complex sequence up to 120 m thick and which unconformably overlie the Mesozoic formations. Over most of the area, the superficial formations are underlain by the Lesueur Sandstone, Eneabba Formation, Cattamarra Coal Measures and Yarragadee Formation. In the investigation area these units have generally faulted contacts. Groundwater is contained in an unconfined aquifer system in the superficial formations and an unconfined to confined aquifer system in the Mesozoic formations. The satu- rated thickness of the unconfined aquifer varies significantly across the coastal plain and reaches a maximum of about 35 m southwest of Eneabba. The unconfined aquifer is recharged directly from rainfall and to a lesser extent by discharge from the underly- ing Mesozoic formations. Groundwater from both aquifer systems is discharged to the ocean above a saltwater interface, which in places extends as much as 5 km inland. Groundwater in the superficial formations is fresh to saline (800–33 900 mg/L TDS) whereas the Lesueur Sandstone contains large volumes of fresh to slightly brackish groundwater (500–1850 mg/L TDS). The Yarragadee Formation forms a large aquifer containing fresh groundwater in the Eneabba area. Groundwater with a salinity of less than 1000 mg/L TDS is locally present in the Eneabba Formation, whereas the rela- tively thinner sandstone beds in the Cattamarra Coal Measures contain only brackish to saline groundwater. The estimated groundwater storage in the superficial formations is 5.6 x 109 m3 and the estimated total throughflow is 82.8 x 106 m3/year. KEYWORDS: Perth Basin, Swan Coastal Plain, hydrogeology, geology, groundwater, stratigraphy. iii Contents Abstract iii Quaternary 11 Guildford Formation 11 Introduction 1 Bassendean Sand 14 Tamala Limestone 14 Location 1 Safety Bay Sand 14 Purpose and scope 1 Miscellaneous deposits 14 Climate and landuse 1 Physiography 1 Hydrogeology 15 Landforms 1 Flow systems 15 Drainage 3 Superficial formations 15 Previous work 3 Watertable configuration 15 Recharge 15 Investigation program 5 Throughflow 21 Drilling and bore construction 5 Discharge 21 Storage 21 Sampling and logging 5 Salinity 22 Water sampling 5 Potential development and utilization 22 Levelling and monitoring 5 Yarragadee Formation 22 Geology 8 Cadda Formation 24 Cattamarra Coal Measures 24 Setting 8 Eneabba Formation 24 Stratigraphy 8 Lesueur Sandstone 25 Permian 8 Potentiometric surface configuration 25 Triassic 10 Recharge 25 Kockatea Shale 10 Throughflow 25 Woodada Formation 10 Discharge 25 Lesueur Formation 10 Salinity 28 Jurassic 10 Potential development and utilisation 28 Eneabba Formation 10 Woodada Formation 28 Cattamarra Coal Measures 10 Kockatea Shale 28 Cadda Formation 11 Permian formations 28 Yarragadee Formation 11 Tertiary 11 Hydrochemistry 29 Channel sand 11 Conclusions 30 Laterite and associated sand 11 Yoganup Formation 11 References 31 iv Figures 1. Bore location vi 8. Hydraulic-head difference between superficial formations and Mesozoic aquifers 19 2. Physiography 2 9. Watertable contours in the superficial 3. Subcrop map and contours on base formations 20 of superficial formations 7 10. Groundwater salinity at the watertable 23 4. Surface geology 9 11. Isopotentials in the top of the Mesozoic formations beneath the coastal plain 26 5. Geological cross sections 12 12. Groundwater salinity in the top of the 6. Hydrogeological cross sections 16 Mesozoic beneath the coastal plain 27 7. Superficial formations: saturated thickness 18 13. Piper trilinear diagram 28 Tables 1. Bore data 4 3. Stratigraphic succession 8 2. Chemical analyses of groundwater samples 6 4. Throughflow past 30 m watertable contour 21 v 114° 116° 115 o 00’ 115 o 15’ LS21 LS19 LS20 GERALDTON Road Beekeepers Road LS18 Road North 29 o 45' 30° AREA OF 30° INVESTIGATION Second EL7 Springs 17 Eneabba - ThreeRoad 15 16 EL6 Carnamah Weelawadgi ek Cave Cre - Eneabba Coolimba - Illawong - Coolimba Eneabba 1/89 Road PERTH 2/75 32° 32° EL8 Eneabba EL9 Lake Road Coolimba caves Logue EL10 Lake Indoon EL11 Coolimba Wildlife - E n a b b a Sanctuary e B Er i in 34° 34° n d d o o o Leeman o n Road n Lagoon caves White Creek 100 km Lake C Leeman - Coolimba Stockyard Cave St r e Leeman Stockyard Gully oc e 116° k k 114° Cave y a r 12 Zamia d 14 Palm 13 Wool mu Cave l l Three a Gully o o 30 00' Springs R Road 30 00' oad Road Coorow - Green Head - Leeman 1/75 caves Head Erindoon Green Head 1/91 Green Lesueur Road National G Cockleshell I Park N G I N 11 she Road ck le ll 10 Co Gully Banovich Mt Lesueur Coomallo Gully 1 Leeman Shallow bore Drovers Cave National Road 9 LS18 Leeman Shallow bore (Stage 1) Park CS33 Cataby Shallow bore Creek caves o 30 o 15' Road 30 15' Jurien ML8 Moora Line bore Road 2/75 1/75 8 WL11 Watheroo Line bore Road Cantabilling Canover Jurien River WL11 EL8 Eneabba Line bore WL12 Canover Munbinea Pool 1/85 Town water supply bore Hill Formed road Road Yerramullah S C Track Verne Hill A R Cadda 7 P Road 5 6 Road Road Bibby Creek Bibby Road Cervantes 2 10 km 1 3 4 Cervantes o 30 o 30' 7/91 Nambung 30 30' 1/85 2/75 National Lake 1/76 Park Thetis Grey Nambung Caves Nambung River M Road o CS37 CS33 Wongonderrah un CS36 Road CS34 t Jet e k o ty C re 114 o 45’ 115 00’ ML8 CS35 AMK01 Brown Bone Cave Figure 1. Bore location vi Introduction Location The major industries in the project area are heavy-mineral sand mining in the Eneabba area, production of gas and 2 The investigation area extends over 1685 km of the Swan condensate from the Woodada gasfield and offshore rock- Coastal Plain between Cervantes and Leeman. The project lobster fishing. Agriculture consists mainly of sheep and was named the Leeman shallow-drilling project after the cattle grazing and cereal growing, and large areas have coastal town of Leeman, approximately 240 km north- been cleared for this purpose east of outcrops of the coastal northwest of Perth (Figure 1). limestone (Tamala Limestone). Irrigation of lucerne and clover is also carried out near White Lake, southwest of Eneabba. Uncleared land along the coast and in the central Purpose and scope area is mostly unalienated crown land covered by native vegetation and includes the Lesueur and Drovers Cave The Leeman shallow-drilling project (Kern, 1993a) was National Parks (Figure 1). Native plants flower throughout originally proposed as a northward extension of the Cataby the year and attract a large number of tourists and apiarists, Project, which was completed in 1987. The drilling as well as a small number of commercial wildflower program commenced in 1990 in the northern half of the harvesters. proposed area, between about 20 km north of Leeman and Dongara (sites LS18–34), and at one site (LS8) in the south Eneabba supports the nearby mineral-sand operations and in 1990 (Nidagal, 1995), but work ceased owing to the local farming communities. The coastal towns of closure of the Mines Department Drilling Branch. Drilling Cervantes, Jurien, Green Head and Leeman are centres was recommenced in the southern half of the original for the rock-lobster industry, and also support fishing and project area, between Cervantes and about 20 km north tourism. Other settlements in the area include groups of of Leeman, in 1993. This report includes the results from squatters and fishing shacks along the coast. sites LS1–17. The Brand Highway crosses the northeast of the project The investigation was carried out by the Geological Survey area and provides access south to Perth and north to of Western Australia (GSWA) as part of a long-term Geraldton. Sealed and unsealed roads provide access to program to evaluate the groundwater resources of the Perth the small coastal towns of Cervantes, Jurien, Green Head Basin. The objectives were: and Leeman. • to investigate the hydrogeology of the Swan Coastal Plain in the northern Perth Basin, Physiography • to assess the groundwater resources of the area, and Landforms • to establish a network of groundwater observation bores The investigation area covers the Swan Coastal Plain, for long-term monitoring. which is a low-lying area covered by Quaternary coastal sediments and alluvium and bounded to the east by the Gingin Scarp.