Groundwater Resources, Uses, and Organizations of Groundwater Studies in Aus t r a lia

-Groundwater Hydrology in Australia (1)

Abstract

The first part of two-series paper deals with the groundwater resources and uses in Australia, and the organization of the groundwater studies.
Groundwater in Australia occurs in surficial aquifers which cover 25 percent of the continent, and in the underlying sedimentary basins which cover about 65 percent and fractured rock provinces about 35 percent. Groundwater abstraction from the aquifers is roughly in the proportions: surficial aquifers,60 percent; deeper aquifers in sedimentary basins,30 percent; and fractured rock aquifers,10 percent.
The total potential yield of groundwater is about 70×10⁹m³ per year. The total groundwater withdrawal is about 2.5×10⁹m³ per year, equivalent to about 14 percent of the total amount of water used in Australia, from about 500,000 bores. About 60 percent of Australia is totally depend on groundwater, and in another 20 percent of the country more groundwater than surface water is used.
The organization of the groundwater studies in Australia divides into three types which are Commonwealth Government Laboratories, Universities and State Government Organization. Two hundred staffs research the hydrology in the Division of Water Resources, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO). Water Authority in each state has the responsibility for planning and managing water resources and water services. They have done joint studies on groundwater with CSIRO and Universities.