Hawkesbury River Sediment Contaminant Analysis from 140 Samples

The Hawkesbury River catchment in Australia is the focus of this dataset. It contains analysis results from 140 sediment samples for texture, heavy metals, organochlorine pesticides, and nutrients. The data was published by Geoscience Australia and last updated in April 2026.

Use Cases

• Assess environmental impact from urbanization and industrial activity based on heavy metal and pesticide concentrations.
• Model nutrient sources and eutrophication risks based on sewage-derived organic content and phosphorus levels.
• Identify contaminant dispersion patterns from sources like marinas and sewage treatment plants based on spatial sediment analysis.

Strengths

• Analysis of 140 distinct sediment samples provides a substantial observational basis.
• Covers multiple contaminant classes including 10+ specific heavy metals and organochlorine pesticides.
• Spatial coverage spans from Windsor to Broken Bay, covering estuarine and fluvial sections of the river.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic/temporal bias inherent to data_gov_au.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Laboratory analysis of sediment samples collected from the Hawkesbury River system.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-20 03:52:03.870306; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Hawkesbury River catchment, Australia, from Windsor to Broken Bay.