Salinity Province 22, Cowangie Underbool

Thumbnail image showing the location of Cowangie Underbool Salinity Province in Victoria The large Cowangie_Underbool Salinity Province is some 216,000 ha and contains mostly primary salinity associated with Pink Lakes and other ephemeral lake features of the Murray-Sunset National Park.

As with all other Mallee CMA region salinity provinces, this province is underlain by a regional scale Groundwater Flow System (GFS) comprising marine and alluvial origin sediments containing high salinity groundwater. Salt deposits are a natural feature of this semi-arid landscape.

While structural geological processes may allow deep groundwater to discharge to the primary salinity features, this province is also overlain by local scale GFSs of sand dunes and inter-dune swales, where secondary salinity associated with the development of cropping and higher rainfall periods has, at times, developed on lower lying parts of the landscape. This can adversely affect cropping activity on the relatively small areas of farmland. Avoiding these areas and optimising plant water use are appropriate management responses to these occurrences.

Province Attributes

Catchment Management Region:	MALLEE
Priority Status:	High
Province Area:	215,930 ha
Recorded Soil Salinity Area ¹:	29,186 ha
Dominant Surface Geology Type:	Sedimentary
Influence of Geological Structure on Salinity Occurrence/s:	Definite
Relevant Geomorphological Mapping Units (GMUs):	5.X
Predominant Groundwater Flow Systems (GFSs):	Local & Regional
Relevant Irrigation Areas:	N/A

Cowangie Underbool Salinity Province Map

A detailed map showing the Cowangie Underbool Salinity Province

Links to further reading and material related to the Mallee Salinity Province
For further information relating to groundwater levels and salinities in this Province please see: Visualising Victoria's Groundwater (VVG)

¹ Please Note: The ‘Recorded Soil Salinity Area’ indicated in the Salinity Province Attribute Table, comprises the total geographic area that has been mapped as having, or showing symptoms of, dryland soil salinity at some time (past or present). As dryland salinity occurrence in the Victorian landscape exhibits many different levels of severity and can change due to climate, landuse and vegetation, previously mapped areas may no longer be showing symptoms. In addition, as not all parts of the State have been mapped, or mapped in the same way, the mapping may not have captured some occurrences.

The soil salinity mapping used to calculate this ‘area’ does not cover irrigation regions. In irrigation regions, depth to watertable and watertable salinity mapping has been used to convey the threat of high watertables on soil waterlogging and/or soil salinisation and these areas are not included in this ‘area‘ calculation.

Please contact the Department, your Catchment Management Authority or your rural water provider for more information about salinity in your location.

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