Salinity Province 62, Lexton

Thumbnail image showing the location of the Lexton Province in Victoria The Lexton Salinity Province is a small province of less than 10,000 ha that makes up part of the headwaters of the Loddon River catchment. Approximately 2% of the Province is salt effected land, which contributes a high salt load to the river. The province features local to intermediate scale Groundwater Flow Systems in weathered, fractured Palaeozoic rocks (including granite), which dominate the landscape with some rocky ridges extending to the upland alluvial plains. Some salinity is expressed as ‘break-of-slope’, but most is mapped along drainage lines, many of which are deeply eroded.

Extensive tree plantation farming was undertaken for salinity control adjacent to the many discharge sites, some of which has been harvested in recent years. This Province is one of the most 'typical' areas for dryland salinity in the state and has therefore had a number of extensive studies into the causes, landscape distribution and management options for dryland salinity completed within it. Bore monitoring has been ongoing since the 1980s.

A number of further references to salinity in this province can be found elsewhere within the VRO Pages.

Province Attributes

Catchment Management Region:	NORTH CENTRAL
Priority Status:	High
Province Area:	9,910 ha
Recorded Soil Salinity Area ¹:	235 ha
Dominant Surface Geology Type:	Sedimentary
Influence of Geological Structure on Salinity Occurrence/s:	Possible
Relevant Geomorphological Mapping Units (GMUs):	2.1.1, 2.1.X
Predominant Groundwater Flow Systems (GFSs):	Local/Intermediate
Relevant Irrigation Areas:	N/A

Lexton Salinity Province Map

A detailed map showing the Lexton Salinity Province

Links to further reading and material related to the North Central 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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