and on the floodplain. Down the Loddon system there was a geomorphological change from confinement to an open floodplain, and then further confinement before a large slope change as the system becomes anabranching. This means that incised sludge could be found upstream, but not in the confined mid-lower catchment as there were limited surfaces for its deposition. The depositional downstream reaches are not as incised, and the sludge appears to have been laterally accreted within the channel and thus is only found in limited quantities on the floodplain. Conclusions The eighth and contemporary stage of channel management is one of stabilisation. Channels are being assessed for their stability and managers are actively strengthening channel margins to reduce“loss of land”. This approach is slowly changing, however, with rivers being allowed the freedom to move where infrastructure is not threatened. Knowing the fate of historically mined sediments will become increasingly important in helping to understand how this new management ethos will affect the mobilisation of contaminants stored on the floodplain. We have calculated that over 25% of the length of major streams in Victoria have been affected by sludge generated by mining. Much of the adjacent floodplain has been able to revegetate and become agriculturally productive. The past damage has been forgotten. The upstream scars produced by hydraulic sluicing and the mining of primary deposits will take an extremely long time to recover, and many now remain as forested regions as their productive use is limited. The same is true of the dredge holes created by bucket dredging. The multidisciplinary approach described in this paper used historical research to understand the volumes and locations of sediment production. Combining these data with sediment geochemistry has meant we could describe the consequences of the supply of sediment from mining into river systems. The original stream channel geomorphology and current catchment characteristics were paired with historical descriptions of sludge impacts. This allowed the size, location and chemistry of deposited sediments to be budgeted against its original supply characteristics. This project also provides a stepping stone for a better understanding of where aboriginal artefacts might be found. They will be underneath the sludge rather than on the surface. There are also implications for reconstructing pre-European settlement landscapes and vegetation, and pre-sludge floodplain sediments have the potential to act as seed banks. The creation of a higher resolution flood record alongside a detailed stratigraphic description of floodplain deposits is currently being undertaken, aided by the use of Optically Stimulated Luminescence. This should help to determine whether the depositional sequences observed are the result of mining operations, flood conditions or a combination of the two. The project is also trying to develop a better understanding the bioavailability of heavy metals in the sludge and the consequences for human health. Acknowledgement This research was funded by the Australian Research Council (grant number DP160100799) References Bendigo Advertiser. 1906.‘Loddon River Pollution’, Bendigo Advertiser (Vic.: 1855–1918), 4 April, p. 2., viewed 21 May 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article89565179. Davies, P., S. Lawrence, and J. Turnbull. 2015. Mercury use and loss from gold mining in nineteenth-century Victoria. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria 127, no. 2: 44–54. Davies, P., S. Lawrence, J. Turnbull, I. Rutherfurd, J. Grove, and E. Sylvester. 2018a. The environmental history of bucket dredging in Victoria. Journal of Australasian Mining History 16: 59. Davies, P., S. Lawrence, J. Turnbull, I. Rutherfurd, J. Grove, E. Silvester, D. Baldwin, and M. Macklin. 2018b. Reconstruction of historical riverine sediment production on the goldfields of Victoria, Australia. Anthropocene 21: 1–15. DEDJTR. 2018. MINTEN Mineral Tenements geodatabase. ID ANZVI0803002840, Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources, Victoria. Department of Mines. 1910. Annual report of the Secretary for Mines to the Honourable P. McBride M.P., Minister of Mines and Forests for Victoria: including statistics, reports on geological survey, sludge abatement, inspection of mines, dredging, progress of mining, boring operations, etc. for the year 1909, J. Kemp. Melbourne. Department of Primary Industries, c. 2002. Earth Resources Development Division VicMine Database. Melbourne: Geoscience Victoria. Hawdon, J. 1840. The journal of a journey from New South Wales to Adelaide (the capital of South Australia) performed in 1838; The country between Melbourne and Adelaide: report of Mr. Hawdon. Kotsonis, A., and E. B. Joyce. 2003. Regolith mapping at Bendigo, and its relationship to gold in central Victoria, Australia. In Advances in regolith, ed. I. C. Roach, 239–243. Perth: CRC LEME. Lawrence, S., and P. Davies. 2014. The sludge question: the regulation of mine tailings in nineteenth-century Victoria. Environment and History 20, no. 3: 385–410. MSV, 1888. Mineral Statistics of Victoria for the Year 1887. Parliament of Victoria, Melbourne. Morrison, E. 2002. A successful failure, A trilogy. The Aborigines and Early Settlers. Maryborough: Graffiti Publications, Centre State Printers. National Land and Water Resources Audit. 2001. The Australian agriculture assessment 2001. National Land and Water Resources Audit, Vol. 1. Natural Heritage Trust, Canberra. Prosser, I. P., P. Rustomji, B. Young, C. Moran, and A. Hughes. 2001. Constructing river basin sediment budgets for the National Land and Water Resources Audit. Land and Water Technical Report. Canberra: CSIRO. Rae, I. 2003. Mining and using arsenic in Australia. Icon, 9, 62–75. Serle, G. 1968. The Golden Age: A History of the Colony of Victoria, 1851–1861. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. Shakespear, R. H., A. F. Walker, and J. Rowan. 1887. Report of the Board appointed by his Excellency the Govenor in Council to Inquire into the Sludge Question together with minutes of evidence note by the Board, Votes and Proceedings of the Legislative assembly of Victoria, Volume 2, No. 10. Melbourne, Government Printer. The Age. 1905.‘Sludge in The Loddon’, The Age (Melbourne, Vic.: 1854–1954), 10 October, p. 6., viewed 21 May 2019, http://nla. gov.au/nla.news-article199418869. Feature Mining to mud 56 PREVIEW JUNE 2019