Hawkesbury River Sediment Contaminants and Nutrients, 140 Samples

140 sediment samples from the Hawkesbury River system between Windsor and Broken Bay were analyzed for texture, heavy metals, organochlorine pesticides, and nutrients. The dataset, provided by Geoscience Australia, offers a long-term integrated assessment of environmental impact in a large dynamic ecosystem. It reflects land use patterns, with low contaminant levels in the main channel and elevated concentrations near urban, industrial, and recreational areas.

Use Cases

• Modeling the source and dispersion of contaminants like heavy metals and pesticides based on sediment composition.
• Assessing the impact of urbanization and sewage effluent on sediment nutrient enrichment and potential for algal blooms.
• Evaluating the environmental risk from industrial and recreational activities, such as marinas, using integrated sediment data.

Strengths

• Analysis of 140 sediment samples provides a substantial spatial snapshot of the catchment.
• Measures a wide range of analytes including texture, 8 heavy metals, 10+ organochlorine pesticides, and multiple nutrient fractions.
• Spatial coverage spans from Windsor (130 km inland) to Broken Bay, capturing fluvial and estuarine sections.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data freshness should be verified as the last update is listed as 2026-04-30.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Laboratory analysis of physically collected sediment samples.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-30 13:53:30.913056; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Hawkesbury River system, New South Wales, Australia, between Windsor and Broken Bay.