La3 Hovells Creek - Mid-Holocene Sea Level Site

This information has been developed from the publications:

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 Geological and Geomorphological Significance in the Shire of Otway (1984) by Neville Rosengren.

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 (external link) section of the Geological Society of Australia website for details of geological heritage reports, and a bibliography.

Location	Lara - 724867. Former Shire of Corio. Immediately upstream of the Princes Highway bridge over Hovells Creek, 14 km north of Geelong.	La3 - Stranded former shore platform, Hovells Creek at princes Highway Bridge.
Access	Princes Highway Service Road.
Ownership	Crown land.
Site Description	The valley of Hovells Creek is incised through the crystalline freshwater Lara Limestone which lies above the Newer Volcanics basalt. Upstream from the Princes Highway bridge, the limestone is overlain directly by deposits of marine and estuarine shells, which have accumulated on benches eroded into the limestone on the lower valley slopes. A radiocarbon date of the marine shells returned a value of 5,629 - 90 years.
	The limestone surface on which the marine shells rest has been bored by the marine mollusc Venerupis, and paired shells occur in place in the burrows. It is therefore possible that the benches originated as shore platforms that are now two metres above present sea level. The radiocarbon date of the shells is evidence that a mid-Holocene sea level two to three metres above the present level was responsible for the erosion of the limestone benches and the accumulation of the shell beds.
Significance	State. The site is one of a small number of dated Holocene shell deposits on the Victorian coast that suggest a mid-Holocene sea level some metres above the present. As dated evidence for such levels is sparse on the Victorian coast, this site is important in contributing to an understanding of the chronology of recent sea level changes.	LA1,2,3 - Site of Geological and Geomorphological Significance
Management	Class 1. The lower valley slopes of Hovells Creek between the Princes Highway bridge and the Melbourne-Geelong railway bridge should be reserved for low intensity uses. The slopes should not be regraded, and artificial channelling, dredging, widening or filling of the creek should not be undertaken.
References	Gill, E.D. (1972). Emerged Marine Shell Beds nar Geelong, Victoria. Vic. Nat. 89:315-319. Wilkinson, H.E. (1972). The Duck Ponds Fossil Marsupial Fauna, Hovell's Creek, Lara, Victoria. Memoirs Nat. Mus. Vic. 33:41-46.

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