Bf5 Moorabool River, Batesford - Tertiary Sections

Geelong - Maude Area, Tertiary Stratigraphic Sites

This information has been developed from one or more of these publications:

Sites of Geological and Geomorphological Significance in the Westernport Bay Catchment (1984) by Neville Rosengren.
Sites of Geological and Geomorphological Significance in the Western Region of Melbourne (1986) by Neville Rosengren
Sites of Geological and Geomorphological Significance on the Coast of Port Phillip Bay (1988) by Neville Rosengren.
Sites of Environmental Significance in the Flood Plain of the Upper Yarra Valley Region (1983) by Neville Rosengren, Douglas Frood and Kim Lowe (as part of a study of Sites of Environmental Significance by the University of Melbourne for the then Upper Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges Authority).

Geological heritage sites, including sites of geomorphological interest and volcanic heritage sites, are under regular revision by the Geological Society of Australia, especially in the assessment of significance and values.Reference should be made to the most recent reports. See the Earth Science Heritage section of the Geological Society of Australia website (external link) for details of geological heritage reports, and a bibliography.

Location	Batesford - 623793. Former Shire of Bannockburn. East side of Moorabool valley, 2 km south of Batesford.	Bf5 - Batesford Limestone (L), Fyansford Formation (F) and Newer Basalt (N), Moorabool River, Batesford.
Access	From Midland Highway.
Ownership	Private land.
Site Description	The site is a cliff and former quarry that exposes the upper surface of the Batesford Limestone in contact with the overlying Fyansford Formation. Clay beds of Fyansford Formation interdigitate with limestones marking the transition zone between the two formations. As the composition of the beds also changes laterally from clayey to sandy, it is not possible to select any particular bed as the boundary of the formations. The uppermost part of the cliff also exposes the contact between Moorabool Viaduct sand overlying the Fyansford Formation. The Fyansford beds have a gentle dip to the southeast and the contact with the overlying Moorabool Viaduct beds is a low angle unconformity. The top of the section is capped by Newer Volcanics basalt.
Significance	State. This is the best accessible exposure of three of the major Tertiary formations of the Geelong area. It is the only locality where a true unconformity has been observed between the Fyansford Formation and the Moorabool Viaduct Sand.
Management	Class 1. The site should not be reclaimed or artificially stabilized or regraded. The outcrops should be retained as an accessible reference site without the need for examination of the quarry.
Reference	Bowler, J.M. (1963). Tertiary Stratigraphy and Sedimentation in the Geelong/Maude Area, Victoria. Proc. R. Soc. Vict. 76:69-137.

BF3,4,5,6

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