Assessment of sulfidic sediments at Tumudgery Creek, NSW

"May 2008".

Project Number: Drought Contingency Monitoring Back Creek and Tumudgery - M/BUS/250.

MDFRC item.

1 of 4 reports associated with project see (Drought Contingency Monitoring at Tumudgery Creek, NSW), (Assessment of sulfidic sediments at Back Creek, NSW) and (Drought Contingency Monitoring at Back Creek, NSW).

Sediment cores (to a depth of 30 cm) were taken from six sites at Tumudgery Creek on 27 March 2008 to determine if sulfidic sediments were present, following the protocol outlined in Hall et al. (2006). There were only small amounts of SCr at all sites of Tumudgery Creek, therefore the amount of reactive sulfide present in the sediment that could oxidise and lead to acidification is low. Even though there was high net acidity at most Tumudgery Creek sites there is also a low risk of net acidification related to sulfidic sediments if the creek was dry for periods of time. It is suggested that any intervention be accompanied by a monitoring program, with particular emphasis on water column pH and conductivity.