Quaternary sedimentation on the Woronora Plateau and its implications for climatic change |
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| Authors: | Ann R M Young |
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| Institution: | Department of Geography , University of Wollongong , Wollongong , Australia, 2500 |
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| Abstract: | Shallow upland valleys at 300–500 m above sea level on the Woronora Plateau near Wollongong, NSW, have been Infilled by sandy sediment during the Quaternary. Within these valleys hygrophilous shrubs and sedges occupy permanently wet, fine‐grained organic sediments and more open sedgeland occupies sandier, better‐aerated but still organic‐rich sediments. Sediments lying directly above sandstone bedrock have radiocarbon ages ranging up to 17,000 years BP, but appear very similar to sediments presently accumulating. Indeed, at one site sediments ranging in age from about 6,000 to 11,700 years BP were identical in organic contents and grainsize characteristics to contemporary deposits. Limited evidence derived from plant fossils and pollen in the sediments indicated no major vegetation change during the past 11,700 years. Hence there is no evidence to suggest that the environment of the Woronora Plateau has changed substantially in late Pleistocene to Holocene times. Furthermore, the considerable range in the basal dates of the sediments indicates that the onset of sedimentation at any site does not necessarily correspond to changes either in climate or in the sedimentary processes operating within particular catchments. |
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