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3.3 Very low relief (very low elevation, generally less than 100 m)

3. Southern Uplands (SU)

3.3.1 Plateau (Bellarine Peninsula, Cape Liptrap, Moorooduc Plains; including Mt Martha and Mt Eliza)
3.3.2 Hills and low hills (Barwon Downs, French Island)
3.3.3 Basaltic residuals (Phillip Island)
3.3.4 Terraces and floodplains (Aire River, Barham River, Tarwin River, Morwell River, Carlisle River, Gellibrand River, Fosters Creek, Upper Bass, Lang Lang and Tarago River, Birregurra River)

West of Port Phillip Bay

The foothills of the Otway Ranges and the Bellarine Peninsula represent the dissected low hills of the Southern Uplands in the Corangamite CMA region.

North of the Bambra Fault, the landscapes comprise more gently undulating hills formed on Palaeogene and Neogene sediments. This area has not experienced the same tectonic uplift as the Otway Ranges, so the degree of dissection is much lower. Here the elevation reaches up to 160 m.

The Bellarine Peninsula has formed by uplift of a fault-bounded block sometimes referred to as the Bellarine Horst. Lithologies are much more varied than the other components of the Southern Uplands, and comprise basalts of the Older Volcanics and
Pliocene marine sands, which are more prevalent than the Otway Group.
Image: 3.3

East of Port Phillip Bay

The northern part of the Mornington Peninsula and most of Phillip and French Island form the uplands of low relief east of Port Phillip Bay. As Phillip Island is predominantly Older Volcanics (Paleogene) it will be discussed in more detail in Section 3.3.3.

The northern Mornington Peninsula is comprised of plateau and broad ridges that are weakly dissected by widely spaced drainage lines resulting in a landform of low relief, generally with very gentle (1-3%) to gentle (3-10%) slopes. Much of this part of the Mornington Peninsula is a gently undulating plain typified by the area around Moorooduc.

The entire Mornington Peninsula has formed by uplift of a fault-bounded block sometimes referred to as the Mornington Horst which is bounded on the west by the Selwyn Fault. Lithologies are quite varied and comprise Palaeozoic sediments and granites, early Neogene sediments and, in the northern part, late Neogene sand sheets.

The landforms of French and Phillip Islands are described here as gently undulating rises to undulating low hills with widely spaced and weakly incised drainage lines. The islands are quite different in lithology, with Phillip Island being mostly comprised of older basalts (Paleogene). Much of French Island is comprised of early Neogene sediments, most of which is overlain by later sand sheets. The north-western part of French Island is topographically lower and comprises dunefields (See 7.1.3).

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