Other initiatives
Besides the NSW Government funded projects, there are also many other cooperative initiatives committed to the minerals and energy industries.
National Virtual Core Library (NVCL)
National Virtual Core Library (NVCL), alteration scanning technology for NSW, is a collaborative project between GSNSW and the CSIRO. It falls under the auspices of AuScope, a National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) funded program which is part of the Federal government’s Backing Australia’s Ability: Building Our Future through Science and Innovation package.
The aim of the NVCL project is to use the CSIRO-developed HyloggerTM spectroscopic core scanning technology to generate digital information on rock, ore and alteration minerals in drill core. The information will be stored in a state-based network of digital core libraries which will provide digital assay, high resolution hyperspectral data and corresponding photo-logs of drill holes via the web. This will allow core to be viewed remotely and increase access for the exploration industry and for researchers. The project is embedded at the W B Clarke Geoscience Centre at Londonderry.
Onshore Energy Security Initiative
Rankins Springs and Yathong Trough Seismic Survey
The seismic survey is a collaborative project between Geoscience Australia and DPI NSW, under the auspices of the 2002 National Geoscience Agreement. The project is jointly funded by the NSW Government’s New Frontier initiative and the federal government's Onshore Energy Security Initiative.
GSNSW acquired 220 km of high resolution reflection seismic along two lines across the Rankins Springs and Yathong Trough in the southeastern Darling Basin in March 2008. A study by FrOG Tech showed the area comprises an extensive sediment-filled structural low, a large part of which has basement depths in excess of 3500 m. The processed data are available from Geoscience Australia.
Geochemical Survey of NSW
The Geochemical Survey of NSW (GSNSW) is part of the National Geochemical Survey of Australia project established under the Australian Government's Onshore Energy Security Initiative and is part of the initiative's five year work plan. The primary aim of the National Geochemical Survey is to provide pre-competitive data and knowledge to support exploration for energy resources in Australia. In particular, it will improve the existing knowledge of the concentration and distribution of energy-related elements at the national scale. GSNSW has now completed collection of all 147 samples as part of this Australia-wide survey.
Broken Hill Exploration Initiative (BHEI)
The Broken Hill Exploration Initiative (BHEI) is a collaborative arrangement between the NSW Department of Primary Industries, Primary Industries and Resources SA and Geoscience Australia. The initiative aims to provide the best possible knowledge and information base for mineral and petroleum exploration investment in Broken Hill and surrounds. Application of new technologies and exploration methodologies will enhance knowledge of the geological controls of mineral deposit systems at Broken Hill and its environs.
BHEI comprises several projects, in particular the Broken Hill Interpretive Mapping Project, and the BHEI 2009 conference to be held in Broken Hill. The theme for BHEI 2009 is "Discovering the future" and will showcase technical and geological advances pertinent to mineral deposit potential in the economic catchment of Broken Hill. As such, the event will include geothermal and heavy mineral potential, as well as uranium potential in South Australia.
Past collaborative projects
National Geoscience Agreement (NGA)
The NSW Government has worked cooperatively with the Commonwealth over the past 50 years to provide an improved framework of regional geology to support mineral and petroleum exploration and resources development in Australia. The National Geoscience Mapping Accord (NGMA) was introduced in 1990 to accelerate geological and geophysical mapping and provide a more appropriate framework for exploration.
The NGMA program began in New South Wales in 1991 with the flying of high resolution airborne geophysical surveys over the Dubbo, Forbes, Cootamundra and Goulburn 1:250 000 map sheets. The NGMA regional geological mapping program undertaken by the Geological Survey of NSW (GSNSW) and Australian Geological Survey Organisation (AGSO) throughout the 1990s covers the Bathurst, Dubbo and Forbes 1: 250 000 map sheets.
The NGMA ended in June 2000 with the completion of the regional geological mapping of the Forbes 1:250 000 map sheet. Since the NGMA was established in 1990, there have been a number of changes to the industry and the roles of Governments.
These changes include:
- Changes in Commonwealth Government priorities
- Establishment of State Government exploration initiatives
- Massive restructuring of the exploration industry
- The information management revolution
The National Geoscience Agreement, a new memorandum of understanding, has been enacted to provide the framework for ongoing geoscience cooperation between the Commonwealth Government and the states.
Please contact geoscience.products@dpi.nsw.gov.au for more information.
Cooperative Research Centre for Landscape Evolution and Mineral Exploration (CRC LEME)
GSNSW was involved with the CRC LEME from 1995. CRC was an unincorporated joint venture between the Australian National University, University of Canberra, AGSO and CSIRO Division of Exploration and Mining. Its objective was to improve the understanding of the Australian landscape in terms of its geomorphology, regolith (soil cover), weathering and alteration processes to aid in the search for new mineral resources.
In New South Wales, the research group was active in the Lachlan Orogen and at Broken Hill. In particular, there was extensive research around Broken Hill, Cobar and Forbes. GSNSW provided support for the CRC and collaborated in some of the work, particularly the landscape mapping projects.
For more information about CRC LEME, please visit http://crcleme.org.au/ or contact geoscience.products@dpi.nsw.gov.au.
Cooperative Research Centre for Predictive Mineral Discovery (pmd*CRC)
A number of Australia's major mining and exploration companies were party to this CRC, as well as Geoscience Australia, CSIRO Division of Exploration and Mining, Australian Mineral Industries Research Association (AMIRA), Victorian Institute of Earth and Planetary Sciences and James Cook University, plus other state governments.
GSNSW participated with this CRC in exploration research projects at Broken Hill. A major project was the application of an airborne gravity gradiometer survey and three-dimensional modelling to provide new insights into the subsurface structure of the ore sequence.
A study of the lead isotope signatures of both the mineralisation and country rocks in the Broken Hill Block was conducted to provide age estimates and tectonic associations of major hydrothermal activity in the Broken Hill Block.
For more information about pmd*CRC please contact geophysics.products@dpi.nsw.gov.au.
(Last updated on 24/02/2009)