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SW80

Location: ColacAustralian Soil Classification: Vertic, Mottled-Mesonatric, Grey SODOSOL
Great Soil Group: solodized solonetzGeneral Landscape Description: Undulating rises
Site Description: Open depressionGeology: Mapped as Tertiary-Gellibrand Marl but has alluvial material overlying it

South West Gasp Pipeline GP80 Landscape
SW80 Landscape


Soil Profile Morphology:


Surface Soil


A10-15 cmVery dark greyish brown (10YR3/2 moist), greyish brown (10YR5/2 dry) loam, fine sandy; weakly pedal; weak consistence (dry):
South West Gasp Pipeline GP80 Profile
SW80 Profile
A2e15-40 cmBrown (10YR5/3 moist), conspicuously bleached (10YR7/2 dry); loamy sand; sharp change to:
Subsoil

B21t40-90 cmVery dark grey (10YR3/1 moist) with fine yellowish brown (10YR5/8) mottles; heavy clay; coarse (up to 400 mm) columnar structure, parting with difficulty to coarse blocky structure; slickensides across ped; gradual change to:
B22gss 90-140 cmVery dark grey (10YR3/1 moist) with ~ 50% coarse olive brown (2.5Y4/4 moist) mottles; heavy clay; coarse columnar peds continuous from B21; slickensides more prominent than in B21 above; clear change to:
B23g140+ cmConspicuously mottled, gleyed clay; massive.

Key Profile Features:
  • Strong texture contrast between surface (A) horizons and subsoil (B) horizons.
  • Coarse columnar structure in upper subsoil.

Soil Profile Characteristics:

pH
Salinity Rating
Sodicity
Dispersion
Surface
(A1 horizon)
Strongly Acid
Very Low
Non-Sodic
None
Subsoil
(B21 horizon)
Slightly Alkaline
Low
Strongly Sodic
Strong
Deeper subsoil
(at 140+ cm)
Slightly Alkaline
Low - Medium
Strongly Sodic
Strong - Complete

South West Gasp Pipeline GP80 Graphs
Horizon
Horizon Depth
(cm)
pH
(water)
pH
(CaCl2)
EC
1:5
NaCl
%
Exchangeable Cations
Ca
Mg
K
Na
meq/100g
A1
0-15
5.4
4.5
<0.05
1.2
0.29
0.19
0.07
B21Bt
40-90
7.5
6.4
0.16
4.5
10
0.23
2.7
B22Bgss
90-110
7.5
6.6
0.41
0.06
3.7
8.4
0.2
4.1
B23g
140+
7.5
6.6
0.46
0.09

Horizon
Horizon Depth
(cm)
Ex Al
mg/kg
Ex Ac
meq/100g
Field
pF2.5
Wilting Point
pF4.2
Coarse Sand
(0.2- 2.0 mm)
Fine Sand
(0.02- 0.2 mm)
Silt
(0.002- 0.02 mm)
Clay
(<0.002 mm)
A1
0-15
17
5.6
3.7
62.2
23
8
B21Bt
40-90
2
35.8
14
46
B22Bgss
90-110
B23g
140+


Management Considerations:

Subsoil (B) Horizons

  • The subsoil displays vertic features (i.e. slickensides) which indicates that significant shrinking and swelling occurs during wetting and drying cycles. This may have engineering implications and is likely to explain the variability in surface horizon depth across the trench.
  • The dense and coarsely structured subsoil is strongly sodic and disperse strongly in water. This will result in restricted root and water movement down the soil profile.


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