Note: this dataset description is metadata (data about data) which describes the actual dataset in accordance with the ANZLIC (Australia New Zealand Land Information Council) Core Metadata Guidelines Version 2 (February 2001)
ANZLIC unique identifier: ANZNS0359000199
Title: Groundwater Management Areas in NSW
Custodian: Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources (DIPNR)
Jurisdiction: New South Wales
Groundwater in NSW is managed according to designated groundwater management areas (GWMA) contained within administrative boundaries. These areas are designated with either precise geographical boundaries or as some geological feature, the precise extent of which may not be known. An example of the former might be a GWMA defined as bounded by roads, property boundaries, rivers etc. An example of the latter might be a GWMA defined as the alluvium associated with a particular river even though the precise extent of this alluvium might not be known. In most cases, the GWMA will attempt to isolate an area that encompasses an entire groundwater resource, eg an entire fractured Basalt geological unit or a continuous but discreet coastal sand or river alluvium. In some cases, a GWMA will define a geographical area that contains a a number of discontinuous and unrelated groundwater resources either because they are minor in nature or are poorly understood. An example might be the miscellaneous alluvium of a particular region. Some GWMA's might be sub-divided into zones and managed on a zone basis. Zones are usually closely related to each other in terms of proximity and shared characteristics but have other characteristics distinct enough to warrant a separation. Each GWMA (or zone) will have determined for it a quantity of groundwater that can be allocated for extractive use. Once this amount has been issued, the area is then embargoed for further extraction. GWMA's are proclaimed at DIPNR regional office level. A DIPNR report that outlines each of the currently proclaimed GWMA's has been compiled (Groundwater Management Areas within NSW, May, 2002). This includes descriptions of each area and maps showing their geographical extent. Maps are available in the form of shape files for GIS display. GWMA's will continually be created, deleted, and merged etc as needs arise.
- BOUNDARIES Administrative
- GEOSCIENCES Hydrogeology
- WATER Groundwater
- WATER Hydrology
- Geographic extent name:
- NEW SOUTH WALES - State or Territory - New South Wales
- Geographic extent polygon:
- 141 -37.5, 154 -37.5, 154 -28, 141 -28, 141 -37.5
Note: The format for each Geographic extent name is: Name - Identifier - Category - Jurisdiction (as appropriate)
Geographic bounding box:
The bounding box encloses the maximum extents of the dataset. There may be voids or gaps within the bounding box, depending on the defined coverage of the dataset. Outer bounding rectangle as Latitude/Longitude coordinates based on the WGS84 datum (expressed as both Degrees Minutes Seconds and as decimal Degrees):
- North bounding latitude: 28 00 00.0 S (-28)
- South bounding latitude: 37 30 00.0 S (-37.5)
- East bounding longitude: 154 00 00.0 E (154)
- West bounding longitude: 141 00 00.0 E (141)
Lineage:
Data used to define GWMA's is variable across the State. These areas are designated with either precise geographical boundaries or as some geological feature, the precise extent of which may not be known. An example of the former might be a GWMA defined as bounded by roads, property boundaries, rivers etc. An example of the latter might a GWMA defined as the alluvium associated with a particular river even though the precise extent of this alluvium might not be known. Some boundaries are defined with a relatively high level of accuracy and others are not. In many cases, boundaries are derived from mapping previously carried out by the New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources and AGSO. In such cases, accuracy is dependent upon the accuracy of these maps. DIPNR should be consulted if accuracy is important to the user. The accuracy of the data is sensitive to scale and the data should not be used for a scale at which it is not intended.
Positional accuracy:
Accuracy is variable between GWMA's and DIPNR should be consulted if accuracy is important to the user. Furthermore, boundaries are subject to change and these changes are not necessarily updated on a regular basis.
Attribute accuracy:
Variable.
Logical consistency:
All polygons are tagged. Topological consistency is performed as part of the quality assurance procedures using ArcInfo.
Completeness:
Complete. New GWMA's are added as required.
This dataset description complies with ANZLIC Core Metadata Guidelines Version 2 (February 2001) and XML DTD ANZMETA NSW NRIMS Page 1 v1.0 which extends ANZMETA 1.3 (metadata validation date: 2004-07-11)