This report summarises information regarding groundwater processes considered to have direct influence on the water balance for the Great Artesian Basin (GAB). These processes are recharge, discharge, and connectivity within the GAB sequence, as well as connectivity with underlying basins and overlying cover.
The substantial body of literature available on the GAB gives the impression that there is a considerable degree of understanding of the GAB groundwater system. This is, however, misleading. The reality is that many reports and reviews have been cited or reworked from pre-existing studies without carrying over the original uncertainties. Over time, the scale of knowledge gaps has been reduced only incrementally, while there has been a growing appreciation of the complexities in the system. With so much conceptual and quantitative uncertainty, much additional investigation is still required.