This study explored the full potential of high-resolution multibeam data for an automatic and accurate mapping of complex seabed under a predictive modelling framework. Despite of the extremely complex distributions of various hard substrata at the inner-shelf of the study area, we achieved a nearly perfect prediction of 'hard vs soft' classification with an AUC close to 1.0. The predictions were also satisfactory for four out of five sediment properties, with R2 values range from 0.55 to 0.73. In general, this study demonstrated that both bathymetry and backscatter information (from the multibeam data) should be fully utilised to maximise the accuracy of seabed mapping. From the modelled relationships between sediment properties and multibeam data, we found that coarser sediment generally generates stronger backscatter return and that deeper water with its low energy favours the deposition of mud content. Sorting was also found to be a better sediment composite property than mean grain size. In addition, the results proved one again the advantages of applying proper feature extraction approaches over original backscatter angular response curves.

The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (the 'Madrid Protocol') includes provisions to protect areas of biological, scientific, historic, aesthetic or wilderness value. While these provisions have been mostly utilised to protect sites of biological or cultural significance, sites of geological or geomorphological significance may also be considered. To date, only two sites within East Antarctica (Marine Plain, Vestfold Hills and Mount Harding, Grove Mountains), have been declared as Antarctic Specially Protected Areas (ASPA) in recognition of their unique geological or geomorphological significance. Recently, however, Stornes, a peninsula in the Larsemann Hills (Prydz Bay) has been identified as a candidate due to the abundance and diversity of extremely rare granulite-facies borosilicate and phosphate minerals found there. The need for proactive intervention, protection and management of sites of intrinsic geoscientific value is becoming increasingly important. This recent example highlights the growing awareness of the intrinsic scientific value of Antarctic geological features within the AAT, including rare mineral or fossil localities. This awareness is identified within the current Australian Antarctic Science Strategic Plan and emphasises that geosciences can actively contribute to and influence the development of management plans and actively support Australia's commitments to Annex V of the Madrid Protocol. Wider recognition of the geological values achieved by invoking the provisions for area management, including creating the need to obtain the permission of a national authority to enter the area, should also mitigate casual souveniring and accidental or deliberate damage caused by ill-advised construction or other human activity.

Geoscience Australia Flyer prepared for LOCATE14.

This report provides background information about the Ginninderra controlled release Experiment 1 including a description of the environment and weather during the experiment, the groundwater conditions and a brief description of all the monitoring techniques that were trialled during the experiment. Release of CO2 began 28 March 2012 at 10:30 AM and stopped 30 May 2012 4:15 PM. The total CO2 release rate during Experiment 1 was 144 kg/d CO2. Krypton gas was also released as a tracer gas at a rate of 10 mL/min Kr in one section of the release well only. The aim of the Ginninderra Experiment 1 controlled release was to artificially simulate the leakage of CO2 along a line source, to represent leakage along a fault. Multiple methods and techniques were then trialled in order to assess their abilities to: - detect that a leak was present - pinpoint the location of the leak - identify the strength of the leak - monitor how the CO2 behaves in the sub-surface - assess the effects it may have on soil ecology Several monitoring and assessment techniques were trialled for their effectiveness to quantify and qualify the CO2 that was release. The methods are described in this report and include: - soil gas - CO2 carbo-cap (GMP343) - eddy covariance - groundwater levels and chemistry - soil microbial samples - soil flux - krypton in air - electromagnetic (EM-31) - meteorology - CO2 isotopes in tank This report is a reference guide to describe the Ginninderra Experiment 1 details. Only methods are described in this report with the results of the study published in conference papers and future journal articles.

The National Geochemical Survey of Australia (NGSA) project (www.ga.gov.au/ngsa), part of Geoscience Australia's Onshore Energy Security Program 2006-2011, was carried out in collaboration with all state and territory geological surveys. It delivered Australia's first national geochemical atlas, the underpinning geochemical database, and a series of reports and papers. Catchment outlet sediments (mostly similar to floodplain sediments) were sampled in 1186 catchments covering ~6.2 million km2 or ~81% of the country (on average one sample per 5200 km2). Samples were collected at two depths (0-10 cm and ~60-80 cm), each sieved to two grain size fractions (<2 mm and <75 mm) and analysed for total, aqua regia, and Mobile Metal Ion® element contents; other analyses (pH, electrical conductivity, grain size distribution, spectroscopy, etc.) were also performed. Results to date have been used to: (1) investigate first-order controls on the geochemical makeup of Australian regolith in comparison to Europe; (2) compile preliminary, multi-continental, empirical 'Global Soil' reference values; (3) produce continental-scale soil pH maps; (4) map Fe oxide mineralogy and soil colour; (5) investigate the level and distribution of bioavailable elements in Australia; (6) determine element associations by multivariate statistical methods and compare resulting patterns to independent geoscience datasets; (7) model the distribution of soil carbonate using multiple environmental covariates; (8) assess the potential of the dataset for mineral prospectivity analysis (e.g., for base metals, U, Au and REEs); (9) select salt lakes to be investigated for their potential to host potash, Li and B resources; (10) ground truth, infill and 'correct' airborne radiometric concentration data for K, U and Th; and (11) shed light on the phenomenon of disequilibrium in the radioactive decay chain of U by comparing actual to estimated U concentrations at the continental scale. The NGSA project was Australia's first national-scale geochemical survey, requiring certain strategic decisions to be taken about sampling medium, density, etc. The resulting atlas and dataset have proven useful and applicable to many end-uses, but limitations and challenges exist as in every geochemical survey.

Presentation to be delivered at the Western Australian Marine Science Institution Symposium, Fremantle, 21 February Abstract text: Geoscience Australia, as the Australian Government's geoscience agency, has a long history of marine environment mapping and research on the North West Shelf of Australia. In recent times, several data acquisition surveys have been completed and subsequent interpretive products have been produced under Commonwealth Government programmes, including: the Offshore Energy Security Program (2006-2011); the Marine Biodiversity Hub under the Commonwealth Environmental Research Facilities (CERF) and the National Environmental Research Program (NERP), and; the National CO2 Infrastructure Plan (NCIP, 2011-15). Collaborations, such as those facilitated by CERF and NERP, and with the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), have resulted in further work in the region. Areas of investigation have included the North Perth Basin, Bonaparte Gulf and Timor Sea. Using data from these surveys and other sources, GA is continuing to develop regional-scale seabed datasets, including bathymetry, geomorphology, sediment properties, seabed disturbance and seabed hardness that are publicly available via the internet. A pilot program was started in 2010 to collate and archive environmental data generated by the offshore petroleum industry, with a focus on the North West Shelf. Geoscience Australia is currently undertaking marine surveys to provide seabed environmental information to support assessments of the CO2 storage potential of several offshore sedimentary basins under NCIP. A marine survey over the Browse Basin in May 2013, to be undertaken in collaboration with the AIMS, will acquire high-resolution bathymetry and information on seabed and shallow subsurface geology and ecology. Follow-up surveys are also proposed during 2013-2015. The Browse survey results will be publicly released as a data package integrating existing and the newly acquired seabed data, and in a report to the Department of Resources Energy and Tourism on the CO2 storage potential of selected areas of the Browse Basin.

Spatially continuous information is often required for environmental planning and conservation. Spatial modelling methods are essential for generating such information from point samples. The accuracy of spatial predictions is crucial for evidence-based decision making and often affected by many factors. Spatial reference systems can alter the features of spatial data and thus are expected to affect the predictions of spatial modelling methods. However, the degree to which such systems can affect the predictions has not been examined yet. It is not clear whether such effect changes with spatial modelling methods neither. In this study, we aim to test how sensitive spatial modelling methods are to different spatial reference systems. On the basis of a review of different spatial reference systems, we select eight systems that are suitable for environmental variables for the Australian Exclusive Economic Zone. We apply two most commonly used spatial interpolation methods to a marine dataset that is projected using the eight systems. Finally we assess the accuracy of the methods using leave-one-out cross validation in terms of their predictive errors. The sensitivities of the spatial modelling methods to the eight spatial reference systems are then analyzed. The data manipulation and modelling work are implemented in ArcGIS and R. In this paper, we discuss the testing results; examine the spatial predictions visually; and discuss the implications of the findings on spatial predictions in the marine environmental sciences. The outcomes of this study can be applied to the spatial predictions of both marine and terrestrial environmental variables. ModSim 2013, Adelaide, South Australia

Sediment grainsize and compositional data is presented for the East Antarctic region (30-150ºE) south of 60ºS to provide insight into the nature of habitats available for benthic communities. This compilation of sedimentary properties incorporates data collected and analysed from the 1950s to 2012. Sediment grainsize data is presented from quantitative analyses (472 samples) and Folk classifications (an additional 192 samples), and composition data is presented for calcium carbonate (255 samples) and biogenic silica (304 samples). Sedimentary properties are a key environmental layer for understanding the nature and diversity of benthic habitats. In this report, sediment grainsize and composition data are overlain on maps of bathymetry and geomorphic features, to further illustrate key variations in seabed habitats. The Antarctic shelf is typically dissected by deep troughs and channels, and these form sediment depocenters for fine grained biosiliceous material. Shelf banks, by contrast, are typically composed of coarser sands and gravels due to their exposure to stronger currents and frequent iceberg scouring. The continental slope is heavily eroded into rugged canyons which also contain coarser sediments due to reworking by down slope processes. In several regions, high carbonate content occurs at the shelf break, associated with areas of known hydrocoral occurrence. These variations in physical properties across the Antarctic shelf and slope create distinct habitats for seabed communities. Maps of sediment type, together with broader-scale maps of geomorphic features, can therefore guide understanding of the nature and distribution of seabed habitats in East Antarctica, and particularly within the seven proposed Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) within this region. Sedimentary and geomorphic properties are shown to be highly variable within these MPAs, indicating that these areas likely support a wide variety of benthic communities.

The Aerial Survey Photography Records consist of more than 11,000 film negatives as well as derivative contract prints and diapositives. These records of the Australian landscape were created by Geoscience Australia and its predecessor agencies such as the Australian Surveying and Land Information Group, the Australian Survey Office and the Division of National Mapping. The records were captured during the period c.1928-1993 and have been used as the basis for the Commonwealth government's topographic map production as well as providing an opportunity to track environmental changes in the landscape over an extensive period of time. Antarctic films are also included in the collection. The entire collection was transferred to National Archives Australia in December 2010.

Geoscience Australia defines a borehole as the generalized term for any narrow shaft drilled in the ground, either vertically or horizontally, and would include Mineral Drillholes, Petroleum Wells and Water Bores along with a variety of others types, but does not include Costean, Trench or Pit. For the purposes of a Water Well as defined by Groundwater ML v1.0, the dataset has been restricted to onshore Australian boreholes only, and bores that have the potential to support assessment of groundwater resources, within a Bioregional Assessment.