Mr. Masters questions the construction, cost, and responsiveness of monitoring bores intended to detect water level changes in upper aquifers due to new production bores in the Yarragadee Formation near Carine. The answer focuses on a broader context of water abstraction and modelling predictions.

AnsweredQoN 762Legislative Assembly
Asked
25 February 2003
Portfolio
the Environment and Heritage

QuestionView source ↗

(1) What additional monitoring bores are being constructed to monitor possible water level changes within the upper aquifers that may be impacted upon by the three new production bores being put into the deeper Yarragadee Formation aquifer in and around Carine?
(2) What is the cost of these bores and where are they located?
(3) Under a worse case scenario, how long should it take for these monitoring bores to detect changes to surficial and/or shallow groundwater levels as a result of pumping from the three deep bores?

AnswerView source ↗

Answered
6 May 2003
Responded by
Minister for the Environment and Heritage
Response time
70 days
(2) The independent review is expected to cost approximately $40,000. Any recommendation to construct new monitoring bores will be at additional costs. (3) It may not be possible to accurately predict the time taken for monitoring bores to detect changes as impacts are considered in context of the total abstraction from the Gnangara Mound and not the incremental changes resulting from individual sources. Abstraction from the Water Corporation production bores is managed and distributed to mitigate potentially unacceptable impacts. However, modelling has indicated that impacts resulting from abstraction from the three Yarragadee bores will mainly be experienced in the northern part of the Gnangara Mound.
(3) It may not be possible to accurately predict the time taken for monitoring bores to detect changes as impacts are considered in context of the total abstraction from the Gnangara Mound and not the incremental changes resulting from individual sources. Abstraction from the Water Corporation production bores is managed and distributed to mitigate potentially unacceptable impacts. However, modelling has indicated that impacts resulting from abstraction from the three Yarragadee bores will mainly be experienced in the northern part of the Gnangara Mound.

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