Management of Karst in Pleistocene Aeolianite

Solutional features including substantial caves are found in the very extensive areas of Pleistocene aeolianite dunes along the southern coast of Australia. This paper will review the interesting features of the karst and discuss the issues of management. The management of such soft limestones includes their land tenure and land use issues, the nature of the karst and the interpretation of such features. The rock is very friable and easily collapses; many caves have large amounts of very delicate calcite formation including huge areas of moonmilk; and many sites are close to areas of population and so can easily suffer from overuse. The interpretation of dune karst has suffered from the lack of understanding by many managers of syngenetic karst and some spectacular misinterpretation examples will be examined. The paper will concentrate on the dune karst of the Otway Basin in Victoria and South Australia in particular Bats Ridge and Codrington where intensive karst occurs in mid-Pleistocene dunes