Water Electrical Conductivity (EC)

AUS-TMI-LVG-WEC General Moderate confidence

Benchmark Value

No specific value — see range

Range: 15 to 150 µS/cm

Optimal Range: 15 to 150

Direction: Lower is desirable ↓

Form: OptimalRange

Scoring Curve

Scoring curve unavailable

The scoring engine could not generate a curve for this benchmark context. The primary form is CompositeFramework, but the benchmark data may be missing required fields (e.g., optimal range bounds for an OptimalRange benchmark). This is typically a data quality issue in the benchmark pipeline.

Contributing Benchmarks

CompositeFramework Primary OptimalRange Guard OptimalRange Guard MaximumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MaximumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MaximumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard Point Guard Point Guard MaximumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard

Evidence & Context

The scientifically defensible benchmark for Water Electrical Conductivity in surface waters of Australia's Tropical and Subtropical Maritime Islands under best-practice, sustainable livestock grazing is the range of 15 – 150 µS/cm.

Metric Definition:

Water Electrical Conductivity (EC) is a fundamental measure of the concentration of total dissolved salts, or ions, in water.

Benchmark Definition:

This benchmark defines the target range of Water Electrical Conductivity in surface waters for Tropical & Subtropical Maritime Islands under sustainable livestock grazing, indicating healthy environmental conditions with total dissolved salts between 15 and 150 µS/cm.

Justification:

The benchmark is derived from the most authoritative national standard for water quality in Australia, the ANZECC & ARMCANZ (2000) guidelines. The framework is scientifically robust, regionally specific to Tropical Australia, and conceptually aligned with the objective of defining a "best-on-offer" condition by using "slightly disturbed" ecosystems as a proxy.

Sources (1)

ANZECC & ARMCANZ (2000) guidelines - Water Quality Australia, accessed August 12, 2025 Government

ANZECC & ARMCANZ (2000) guidelines - Water Quality Australia

View Source

Supporting Sources (4)

Additional references from the underlying research that informed this benchmark.

Ecosystem Processes – Environmental Data Collection Methods - TERN Australia

Contextual Support Government

Ecosystem Processes – Environmental Data Collection Methods - TERN Australia, accessed July 17, 2025

View Source

Preview of Environmental Values, Water Quality Objectives and Targets for the Black Ross Water Quality Improvement Plan Appendices December - Creek to Coral, accessed May 11, 2025,

Environmental Values, Water Quality Objectives and Targets for the Black Ross Water Quality Improvement Plan Appendices December - Creek to Coral, accessed May 11, 2025,

Contextual Support Journal

Water quality for livestock

View Source

Mulloon Rehydration Initiative

Contextual Support

Mulloon Rehydration Initiative

View Source

Salinity Management Handbook - Queensland Government publications

Contextual Support Journal

Salinity Management Handbook - Queensland Government publications

View Source

Context

Region Australia
Biome Tropical & Subtropical Maritime Islands
Land Use Livestock Grazing & Pasture
Assessment Not Stated
Evidence Type ReferenceCondition

Lifecycle

Status Active
Version 1
Effective From 5 Jun 2026

Notes

This range represents the target for a landscape demonstrating high environmental health. Values exceeding 150 µS/cm indicate a degraded natural state. The range is consistent with empirical data from analogous well-managed catchments. AssessmentContext defaulted to 'Not Stated' because the source document did not state one.

Related Benchmarks

Other benchmarks in the AUS-TMI-LVG-WEC family.