Publicly available baseline surface water data are compiled to provide a common information base for resource development and regulatory decisions in the north Bowen Basin region. This data guide captures existing knowledge of the catchments and watercourses overlying the north Bowen Basin, including streamflow quality and quantity, inundation and climatological data. Most of the north Bowen Basin falls to the east of the Great Dividing Range within the Fitzroy River catchment. The basin also includes part of the Burdekin River catchment and small parts of the coastal catchments of Styx and Burnett river catchments. The data on the catchments overlying the north Bowen Basin have been summarised at a point in time to inform decisions on resource development activities. Key data sources are available from the Water Monitoring Information Portal (Queensland Government), Water Data Online (Bureau of Meteorology), DEA Water Observations (Geoscience Australia) and Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network.

Publicly available baseline surface water data are compiled to provide a common information base for resource development and regulatory decisions in the Galilee Basin region. This data guide captures existing knowledge of the catchments and watercourses overlying the Galilee Basin, including streamflow quality and quantity, inundation, and climatological data. The Galilee Basin straddles the Great Dividing Range and encompasses the headwaters of 9 major river basins, with the largest area underlying Cooper Creek, Diamantina River and Flinders River catchments. The Galilee Basin geological boundary also intersects parts of the catchment of the Burdekin River, Fitzroy River, Warrego River, Bulloo River, Paroo River and Condamine-Balonne rivers. The data on the catchments overlying the Galilee Basin have been summarised at a point in time to inform decisions on resource development activities. Key data sources are the Water Monitoring Information Portal (Queensland Government), Water Data Online (Bureau of Meteorology), DEA Water Observations (Geoscience Australia) and Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network.

Publicly available groundwater data have been compiled to provide a common information base to inform environmental, resource development and regulatory decisions in the Cooper Basin region. This data guide gives examples of how these data can be used. The data package included with this data guide captures existing knowledge of Lake Eyre Basin aquifers in the Cooper Basin region and their properties, including salinity, water levels, resource size, potential aquifer yield and surface water interactions. The methods to derive these data for the Lake Eyre Basin aquifer in the Cooper Basin region are outlined in the associated metadata files. These are described in groundwater conceptual models (Gouramanis et al., 2023). The Lake Eyre Basin overlying the Cooper Basin includes one broadly defined aquifer that includes multiple aquifer systems that are defined as Cenozoic aquifers. Compiled data are assigned to these intervals and used to characterise groundwater systems at the basin scale. The data were compiled for a point-in-time to inform decisions on potential resource developments in the Basin. The available historical groundwater data can be used to assess the potential effects on groundwater. The data can also be used for other purposes, such as exploring unallocated groundwater resource potential. Data to January 2022 were used for this compilation.

Publicly available groundwater data have been compiled to provide a common information base to inform environmental, resource development and regulatory decisions in the Adavale Basin region. This data guide gives examples of how these data can be used. The data package included with this data guide captures existing knowledge of Eromanga Basin aquifers in the Adavale Basin region and their properties, including salinity, water levels, resource size, potential aquifer yield and surface water interactions. The methods used to derive these data for all Eromanga Basin aquifers in the Adavale Basin region are outlined in the associated metadata files. These are described in groundwater conceptual models (Gouramanis et al., 2023). The Eromanga Basin overlying the Adavale Basin includes 5 broadly defined aquifer intervals: from deepest to shallowest, these are the Poolowanna, Hutton, Adori, Cadna-owie–Hooray and Winton-Mackunda aquifers. Compiled data are assigned to these intervals and used to characterise groundwater systems at the basin scale. The data are compiled for a point-in-time to inform decisions on potential resource developments in the Basin. The available historical groundwater data can be used to assess the potential effects on groundwater. The data can also be used for other purposes, such as exploring unallocated groundwater resource potential. Data to January 2022 are used for this compilation.

Publicly available geological data in the Galilee Basin region are compiled to produce statements of existing knowledge for natural hydrogen, hydrogen storage, coal and mineral occurrences. This data guide also contains assessment of the potential for carbon dioxide (CO2) geological storage and minerals in the basin region. The mineral occurrences are mostly found in the overlying basins, and they are often small and of little economic significance. There are some exceptions, such as the Lilyvale vanadium deposit found in the northern Galilee region, in the overlying Eromanga Basin. The Galilee Basin has limited potential for uranium and precious metal deposits due to relative lack of suitable formation conditions, but the depth of much of the basin makes exploration and mining difficult and expensive. There are some large coal measures found in the Galilee Basin, with 17 deposits in the Galilee and overlying Eromanga basins, containing about 38 billion tonnes of black coal. An assessment of geological storage of CO2 potential suggests the Galilee Basin Betts Creek - Rewan Play is the most prospective for storing CO2, with the highest potential around the central basin region. There are no reports of natural hydrogen in the Galilee Basin.

Publicly available data was compiled to provide a common information base for resource development, environmental and regulatory decisions in the north Bowen Basin. This data guide gives an example of how these data can be used to create the components of a workflow to identify unconventional hydrocarbon resource opportunities. The data guide is designed to support the data package that provide insights on unconventional hydrocarbon resources in the north Bowen Basin. The unconventional hydrocarbon assessment for the north Bowen Basin includes tight gas, shale resources (shale oil and gas) and coal seam gas (CSG) for 4 geological intervals, termed plays – these intervals have been defined by Wainman et al. (2023). The assessment captures data from well completion reports and government data sources, including the Bowen and Surat Basins Regional Structural Framework Study (SRK Consulting, 2008), Rangal Supermodel 2015: Rangal-Baralaba-Bandanna Coal Measures in the Bowen and Galilee Basins (Sliwa et al., 2017), Queensland Petroleum Exploration Database (QPED) from the Geological Survey of Queensland (GSQ) Open Data Portal (2020a), Coal Maturity Trends within the Bowen Basin (McKillop, 2016), and Rapid regional prioritisation for tight and shale gas potential of eastern and northern Australian basins (Hall et al., 2018) along with the scientific literature to inform the components required for unconventional hydrocarbons to be present. These datasets were used to map out gross depositional environments and their geological properties relevant for unconventional hydrocarbon assessments. The data are compiled at a point in time to inform decisions on resource development activities. The data guide outlines the play-based workflow for assessing unconventional hydrocarbon resource prospectivity. Each of the elements required for a prospective unconventional hydrocarbon system is explained and mapped. These data were merged and spatially multiplied to show the relative assessment of unconventional hydrocarbon prospectivity across the basin, at both the play interval and basin scale. As an example of assessments contained within the data package, this data guide showcases the CSG prospectivity of the Rewan–Blackwater Play interval.

Statements of existing knowledge are compiled for known mineral, coal, hydrocarbon and carbon capture and storage (CCS) resources and reserves in the Cooper Basin. This data guide illustrates the current understanding of the distribution of these key resource types within the Cooper Basin region based on trusted information sources. It provides important contextual information on the Cooper Basin and where additional details on discovered resources can be found. To date, mineral or coal deposits have not been found in the Cooper Basin, due to its depth. There are significant hydrocarbon resources found in the basin, including conventional and unconventional hydrocarbons. The Cooper Basin has been a major producer of oil and gas since the 1960s (Smith, Cassel and Evans, 2015). It is one of the largest sources of onshore hydrocarbon production in Australia. Some of the largest unconventional gas resources are contained in the basin. This is mostly basin-centred gas. The geology in the Cooper Basin is considered suitable for use in Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) projects. The Cooper Basin and overlying Eromanga Basin contain 2 CCS projects that are currently being developed.

Publicly available geological data in the Adavale Basin region are compiled to produce statements of existing knowledge for natural hydrogen, hydrogen storage, coal and mineral occurrences. This data guide also contains an assessment of the potential for carbon dioxide (CO2) geological storage and minerals in the basin region. Geochemical analysis of gas samples from petroleum boreholes in the basin shows various concentrations of natural hydrogen. However, the generation mechanism of the observed natural hydrogen concentration is still unknown. The Adavale Basin also has the potential for underground hydrogen storage in the Boree Salt. Given the depth of the Boree Salt (wells have intersected the salt at depths below 1800 m) and the high fluid pressure gradient in the basin, the construction of underground salt caverns should include consideration of stability and volume shrinkage. Mineral occurrences are all found in the basins overlying the Adavale region. However, they are small (thousands of tonnes range) and not currently of economic interest. The Adavale Basin has potential for base and precious metal deposits due to suitable formation conditions, but the depth of the basin makes exploration and mining difficult and expensive. There are no identified occurrences or resources of coal in the Adavale Basin. Given the depth of the basin, extraction of any identified coal would probably be uneconomic, with the potential exception of coal seam gas extraction. An assessment of CO2 geological storage also shows prospective storage areas in the Eromanga Basin within the Adavale Basin region in the Namur-Murta and Adori-Westbourne play intervals.

Publicly available baseline surface water data are compiled to provide a common information base for resource development and regulatory decisions in the Adavale Basin region. This data guide captures existing knowledge of the catchments and watercourses overlying the Adavale Basin, including streamflow quality and quantity, inundation, and climatological data. The Adavale Basin underlies 3 main surface water catchments that contribute to Cooper Creek, including the Barcoo, Bulloo and Warrego rivers. The Adavale Basin geological boundary also intersects the upper parts of the Paroo River catchment and a small part of the Condamine-Balonne catchment. The data on the catchments overlying the Adavale Basin have been summarised at a point in time to inform decisions on resource development activities. Key data sources are the Water Monitoring Information Portal (Queensland Government), Water Data Online (Bureau of Meteorology), DEA Water Observations (Geoscience Australia) and Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network.

Publicly available geology data are compiled to provide a common information base for resource development and regulatory decisions in the Cooper Basin region. This data guide gives examples of how the compiled data can be used. It supports a data package that presents core photographs, existing knowledge of the stratigraphy, and structural elements for the Cooper Basin and the overlying Simpson, Eromanga and Lake Eyre basins. Stratigraphic frameworks capture the geological groups and formations that make up the sedimentary sequence in the Cooper Basin region. The Cooper Basin includes 2 stratigraphic groups. From deepest to shallowest, these are the Gidgealpa Group and the Nappamerri Group. The overlying Cuddapan Formation is considered part of the Simpson Basin instead of the Cooper Basin. Overlying the Cooper Basin are the geological formations of the Eromanga and Lake Eyre basins. The frameworks include the stratigraphic intervals used by the Trusted Environmental and Geological Information (TEGI) Program. From the base of the Cooper Basin to the top of the Lake Eyre Basin, the sedimentary sequence is categorised into 16 play intervals for resource assessment mapping and 9 hydrostratigraphic intervals for characterising groundwater systems (Wainman et al., 2023). Structural elements maps summarise where the sedimentary sequence has been deposited and later deformed by crustal movements. Structure information is used in assessing the geological potential for resources and interpreting groundwater flow and connectivity at the basin scale. The stratigraphic frameworks and structural elements provide the basic geological context for the Cooper Basin region geological, resource and environmental assessments.