Lawson, Australian Capital Territory
Encyclopedia
Lawson is a suburb in the Canberra
district of Belconnen. The postcode is 2617. It does not have any suburban houses, consisting only of part of Lake Ginninderra
, the Belconnen Naval Radio Station, and an open area of grassland where there is a reservoir and substation. A bicycle path runs alongside Ginninderra Drive, another along the shore of the lake. The area is surrounded by Baldwin Drive, William Slim Drive and Ginninderra Drive. It lies next to the suburbs of McKellar
, Giralang
, Kaleen
, Bruce
and Belconnen
.
The suburb is planned to be opened for residential development, with first release of land for subdivision to begin in 2011.
Currently, an intersection is being built for the suburb. The intersection points are off Haydon drive and Ginninderra Drive.
and Silurian
ages.
The Ordovician
age greywacke
from the Pittman Formation is in the far south and east of Lawson, including a band of black Acton Shale
. Greywacke is formed by underwater landslides of mud settling out on the ocean floor. The black shale was formed in the deep ocean when the water had no oxygen. Then in the north west there are late Silurian
sedimentary rocks. From the center of Lawson there is mudstone
, State Circle Shale, and then Black Mountain Sandstone
that contains mica
lenses of shale.
On the west side of lake Ginninderra there is calcareous shale from the Canberra Formation in the north, Glebe Farm Adamellite intrusion in the center and a porphyry
of Green-grey Dacitic intrusive containing large white Feldspar
crystals in the south.
A long fault that follows the east bank of the Lake Ginninderra, and Ginninderra Creek
passes through Lawson in the north north west direction. It is likely that this fault has determined the location of the creek. The late Silurian sediments are to the east of the fault.
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
district of Belconnen. The postcode is 2617. It does not have any suburban houses, consisting only of part of Lake Ginninderra
Lake Ginninderra
Lake Ginninderra is an artificial lake located on the Ginninderra Creek in Canberra. It is adjacent to the Belconnen Town Centre. The lake was constructed in 1974 to collect stormwater discharge from a 98.8km² catchment that includes the surrounding suburbs of Aranda, Macquarie, Cook, Bruce,...
, the Belconnen Naval Radio Station, and an open area of grassland where there is a reservoir and substation. A bicycle path runs alongside Ginninderra Drive, another along the shore of the lake. The area is surrounded by Baldwin Drive, William Slim Drive and Ginninderra Drive. It lies next to the suburbs of McKellar
McKellar, Australian Capital Territory
McKellar is a residential suburb of Canberra, Australia in the Belconnen district. The suburb is named after Colin McKellar who was Minister for Repatriation from 1964-70. The suburb name was gazetted on 15 January 1974...
, Giralang
Giralang, Australian Capital Territory
Giralang is a suburb of Canberra, Australia in the district of Belconnen. The suburb is named after the word in the language of the Wiradhuri Aboriginal tribe of the Central West of New South Wales, meaning star. The suburb name was gazetted on 15 January 1974...
, Kaleen
Kaleen, Australian Capital Territory
Kaleen is a suburb in the Canberra district of Belconnen. The postcode is 2617. The suburb's name means ‘water’ in the language of the Wiradhuri Aboriginal tribe of the Central West of New South Wales. It was gazetted on 15 January 1974. The streets are named after Australian Rivers.The suburb is...
, Bruce
Bruce, Australian Capital Territory
Bruce is a suburb of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Bruce was gazetted as a division on 6 June 1968 in recognition of Viscount Stanley Melbourne Bruce, the first Chancellor of the Australian National University and eighth Prime Minister of Australia. S. M. Bruce served as...
and Belconnen
Belconnen, Australian Capital Territory
Belconnen is a suburb of Canberra, Australia in the district of Belconnen. It contains the Belconnen Town Centre, Lake Ginninderra and several residential areas. It is bounded by Ginninderra Drive, Aikman Drive, Eastern Valley Way, Belconnen Way and Coulter Drive...
.
The suburb is planned to be opened for residential development, with first release of land for subdivision to begin in 2011.
Currently, an intersection is being built for the suburb. The intersection points are off Haydon drive and Ginninderra Drive.
Geology
The rocks in Lawson are from OrdovicianOrdovician
The Ordovician is a geologic period and system, the second of six of the Paleozoic Era, and covers the time between 488.3±1.7 to 443.7±1.5 million years ago . It follows the Cambrian Period and is followed by the Silurian Period...
and Silurian
Silurian
The Silurian is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Ordovician Period, about 443.7 ± 1.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Devonian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya . As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period's start and end are well identified, but the...
ages.
The Ordovician
Ordovician
The Ordovician is a geologic period and system, the second of six of the Paleozoic Era, and covers the time between 488.3±1.7 to 443.7±1.5 million years ago . It follows the Cambrian Period and is followed by the Silurian Period...
age greywacke
Greywacke
Greywacke or Graywacke is a variety of sandstone generally characterized by its hardness, dark color, and poorly sorted angular grains of quartz, feldspar, and small rock fragments or lithic fragments set in a compact, clay-fine matrix. It is a texturally immature sedimentary rock generally found...
from the Pittman Formation is in the far south and east of Lawson, including a band of black Acton Shale
Shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering...
. Greywacke is formed by underwater landslides of mud settling out on the ocean floor. The black shale was formed in the deep ocean when the water had no oxygen. Then in the north west there are late Silurian
Silurian
The Silurian is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Ordovician Period, about 443.7 ± 1.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Devonian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya . As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period's start and end are well identified, but the...
sedimentary rocks. From the center of Lawson there is mudstone
Mudstone
Mudstone is a fine grained sedimentary rock whose original constituents were clays or muds. Grain size is up to 0.0625 mm with individual grains too small to be distinguished without a microscope. With increased pressure over time the platey clay minerals may become aligned, with the...
, State Circle Shale, and then Black Mountain Sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
that contains mica
Mica
The mica group of sheet silicate minerals includes several closely related materials having highly perfect basal cleavage. All are monoclinic, with a tendency towards pseudohexagonal crystals, and are similar in chemical composition...
lenses of shale.
On the west side of lake Ginninderra there is calcareous shale from the Canberra Formation in the north, Glebe Farm Adamellite intrusion in the center and a porphyry
Porphyry (geology)
Porphyry is a variety of igneous rock consisting of large-grained crystals, such as feldspar or quartz, dispersed in a fine-grained feldspathic matrix or groundmass. The larger crystals are called phenocrysts...
of Green-grey Dacitic intrusive containing large white Feldspar
Feldspar
Feldspars are a group of rock-forming tectosilicate minerals which make up as much as 60% of the Earth's crust....
crystals in the south.
A long fault that follows the east bank of the Lake Ginninderra, and Ginninderra Creek
Ginninderra Creek
Ginninderra Creek is a water course that flows across the Ginninderra Plain through the Gungahlin and Belconnen regions in Canberra, Australia....
passes through Lawson in the north north west direction. It is likely that this fault has determined the location of the creek. The late Silurian sediments are to the east of the fault.