This report is written as a result of observations made at Mansfield during an examination of the phosphate deposits in company with members of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Rural Industries on the 20th March.

The Moonta-Wallaroo copper field was discovered in 1860 and has been one of the most productive copper fields in Australia. At the time that large scale mining operations ceased in 1923, copper to the value of over £20,000,000 had been produced. At the present time no active mining is in progress and the old mines are closed and the mining plant completely dismantled. There are two main copper producing areas in the field, namely Moonta and Kadina which are 10 miles apart. There are a number of smaller copper areas between and around the main ones. A recent investigation by Mr. S.B. Dickinson of the South Australian Mines Department indicates that while some of the old mines have small known ore reserves, the cost of re-establishing these mines would be too high to warrant such an enterprise. It is probable that all the surface showings of copper have been fully investigated but it is also probable that many lodes exist which show no surface signs. How these lodes are to be discovered is a matter of immediate concern. The present report deals with an extensive survey of parts of the Moonta and Kadina sections of the field. The work was commenced on a large layout pegged to the south-west of Beddome's and Green's lodes on the centre belt of fracturing at Moonta. Following the findings of the test report, the layout was covered by potential ratio and phase surveys and by a self-potential survey. Upon resumption of field work it was decided to use the electromagnetic method in a large scale test on Beddome's layout. Some self-potential and potential ratio work was carried out on the Kadina layouts, but it was found that these methods suffered from the same disability, namely a great number of effects which obviously were due to lode shears, as had been found in the case of Beddome's layout. In this report, the interpretation is based solely on the results of the electromagnetic surveys.

The Hatches Creek wolfram field is situated at the south-east end of the Davenport Ranges approximately 300 miles by road north-north-east of Alice Springs. The present report is written primarily to indicate the amount of ore which may be expected in the principal mines, chiefly by limited development in depth, and to suggest certain lines of prospecting and development which are likely to result in production of ore and which will enable a more confident statement of possibilities to be made at an early date.

Four lines of diamond drill holes were selected at the King Island scheelite mine and holes were drilled as follows: No. 1 line - Nos. 35, 39, 29, 32 and 33; No.2 line - Nos. 34, 37, 22 and 24; No.3 line - Nos. 31, 38, 23, 25 and 26; No. 4 line - Nos. 36, 28, 30, 40 and 27. The results of drilling are described herein. The amounts and the average grades of ore on each of the four lines of drill holes are recorded.

The uranium ores of the Mt. Painter area, in South Australia, although inadequately developed or proved, are the most important sources of uranium compounds yet discovered in Australia. Their chemical treatment is relatively easy, whereas the extraction of uranium from certain other recorded ores is difficult. The possibility of the Mt. Painter ores being amenable to appreciable beneficiation is not remote. The uran-ilmenite from Radium Hill (in South Australia) can be considered as a comparable source of uranium only if the ore is processed for its titanium content so as to obtain the uranium as a by-product. This ore is not amenable to significant beneficiation as regards its uranium content. The remaining minerals listed require several modifications of chemical treatment, detailed consideration of which is not yet justified by known reserves of ore. The recovery of the associated uranium can be effected from any uranium ore without substantial modification of the processes advocated for the extraction of the uranium. The methods suggested for the recovery of uranium from these several minerals aim at the production of sodium diuranate which is a convenient intermediate for conversion into other uranium derivatives. The methods discussed were formerly applied on a small commercial scale to the treatment of South Australian uranium ores, particularly those from the Mt. Painter field.

The Ashford Caves are situated on M.L. 1, Parish of MacIntyre, County of Arrawatta, approximately 12 miles north-westerly from Ashford and 47 miles from rail at Inverell. Claims have been made that there are large reserves of both guano and phosphate rock in these caves. It has been claimed in the Press that 1,200,000 tons of guano are available. The caves were visited on 17.6.43 by the writers in company with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Joint Committee on Rural Industries. The writers' conclusions regarding the guano and phosphate rock deposits are summarised herein.

The following information regarding calcium phosphate deposits or phosphate rock in Tasmania has been obtained from the following sources - published reports and typewritten reports of the Tasmanian Mines Department and my own personal knowledge gained while Government Geologist of Tasmania.

A brief description of the talc deposits is given in this report. Details including situation, geology, and tonnage are noted.

The presence of muscovite on Yinnietharra Station in commercial sizes and qualities has been known since 1913, but little active development was carried out in the locality until 1926, when a syndicate, formed in England, took up leases and began operations. Activity lapsed the following year, but desultory prospecting more recently has led to the production of a few small cases of spotted mica, some of which was sold in Melbourne in the early part of 1942. The deposits described hereunder are shown on the accompanying locality map, Plate 1. At this stage only brief references are made to deposits containing stained and spotted mica unsuitable for critical electrical or radio applications.

This report is written chiefly to present estimates of reserves of bauxite proved to date in Gippsland. Consequently, discussions of the geological aspects of the investigation, though essential to an understanding of the subject, are kept to a minimum. The existence of bauxite in the neighbourhood of Boolarra and Thorpdale, County Buln Buln, South Gippsland has been known for some years and bauxite from Nahoo, Allot. 8 Ph. Narracan South, has been used for chemical purposes for over 20 years. Eleven additional discoveries were made from time to time up to April, 1942, when an extensive prospecting programme was undertaken. In the short time that has elapsed since then a further twelve deposits have been discovered, making a total of twenty-four deposits in the adjoining parishes of Moe, Allambee East, Narracan South, Mirboo and Budgeree in the county of Buln Buln. Several of these deposits have been systematically tested by shaft sinking and boring. This exploration is still in progress.