Soil/Landform Unit 82

Looking east along the Drysdale-St Leonards Road over Neogene sources plains and rises

Area:

4020 ha

0.30% of CMA region

This unit of undulating rises and plains includes a few occurrences on the Bellarine Peninsula as a dunefield in the Curlewis area sitting on Neogene terrain (plateau) and to the south of Portarlington at a lower elevation east of the Neogene plateau. Unit components comprise dunes and depressions. The soils are sands (

Tenosols

Podosols

) or sands over clay (

Sodosols

) The steep dunes are very rapidly drained but susceptible to wind and sheet erosion, particularly where vegetation cover is removed. Nutrient decline (retention) is also a susceptibility. Land use is grazing (sheep and beef), minor cropping, recreation and mineral extraction.

Dune at Curlewis golf club
	Looking south-east over rises and plains north of St Leonards

Component	1	2
Proportion of soil-landform unit	70%	30%
CLIMATE Rainfall (mm)	Annual: 610
Temperature (^oC)	Minimum 10, Maximum 19
Precipitation les than potential evapotranspiration	October-April
GEOLOGY Age and lithology	Quaternary coastal sand dunes and minor alluvium, Neogene fluvio-marine sand
Geomorphology	6.2.5 Sedimentary plain, rise or low hill alluvium, alluvial terrace, floodplains and coastal plains of the Western Plains sand and 3.3.1 Dissected low hills plateaux of the Southern Uplands
LANDUSE	Uncleared areas: Nature conservation; active and passive recreation Cleared areas: Sheep and beef cattle grazing; minor cropping (cereal); regional development
TOPOGRAPHY Landscape	Undulating rises and plains
Elevation range (m)	1-95
Local relief (m)	2-15
Drainage pattern	Dendritic-parallel
Drainage density (km/km²)	0.7
Landform	Dunes
Landform element	Dune	Depression
Slope and range (%)	10 (0-25)	3 (0-10)
Slope shape	Straight	Concave
NATIVE VEGETATION Ecological Vegetation Class	Coastal Dune Scrub Mosaic (4.1%, Coastal Saltmarsh (3.9%), Grassy Woodland (2.6%), Heathy Woodland (1.9%), Calcarenite Dune Woodland (1.7%), other (1.4%)
SOIL Parent material	Sand, minor silt and clay	Sand, silt and clay
Description (Corangamite Soil Group)	Pale sands (8) and sodic yellow and brown often mottled texture contrast (1)	Pale sands (8) and sodic yellow and brown often mottled texture contrast (1)
Soil type sites	CLRA7, CLRA44, CLRA5	CLRA5, CLRA39, CLRA7
Surface texture	Loamy sand	Sandy loam
Permeability	Very high	High
Depth (m)	>2	>2
LAND CHARACTERISTICS, POTENTIAL AND LIMITATIONS	Deep sands or sands over clay. Often unconolidated material with low water and nutrient holding capacity in sands. Susceptible to sheet and wind erosion.	Deep sands or sands over clay or texture contrast. Oten unconsolidated material with low water and nutrient holding capacity in sands or lighter upper soil. Susceptible to sheet and wind erosion.

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