Determining an Appropriate Airborne Electromagnetic System for Groundwater Exploration

The social and economic viability of the southern Eyre Peninsula relies on access to sustainable groundwater resources. Determining the sustainable yield of these aquifers requires improved understanding of their characteristics, geometry and spatial (vertical and horizontal) variability. Airborne geophysics, particularly airborne electromagnetics (AEM) has the potential to address some of these issues. A forward modelling study was conducted to determine which AEM system, if any, would be best suited for mapping variations associated with the Quaternary aquifer systems in the Southern Basins Area of the Eyre Peninsula. The forward modelling suggests that the HOISTEM, SkyTEM and TEMPEST AEM systems are likely to yield comparable results, although SkyTEM is the best of the three. A recent TEMPEST survey was flown over the area. Variations in conductivity appear to be related to the hydrogeological characteristics of the area, including changes water quality, although this requires further investigation linked to a detailed study of available bore data.