Access to high quality exploration data is essential to effectively assess exploration risk. To encourage exploration in its many under-explored regions, Australia has traditionally maintained better access to government geoscience and petroleum exploration data than almost anywhere else in the world. Access to petroleum exploration information has been facilitated by legislation requiring data submission and availability, and by the provision of pre-competitive studies by government agencies. This is coupled with an aggressive, globally and yearly promoted, acreage release program. Recent initiatives however have improved access even more. The Australian government has an active new program of data acquisition in poorly explored areas and the recently announced Spatial Information and Data Access Policy requires that basic data be made available at the marginal cost of transfer, or is free if via the internet. Available information includes basic field data, comprising well, seismic and other survey data, interpretative data developed as part of petroleum prospectivity assessments by industry, and pre-competitive data sets and studies carried out by government. To facilitate access, and use of these data sets, the Australian government has made publicly available, relational digital databases containing information such as source rock potential, reservoir properties, shows, biostratigraphy, and well, and survey details. Parameters from databases can be plotted on-line. The information is free via the internet, and data can be downloaded in a variety of formats for use by explorers. Seismic field data, for reprocessing or interpretation, can be ordered from the on-line survey database at minimal cost and is heavily used by industry. Currently, 5 terabytes of seismic field data are borrowed each year from the Australian Government for reprocessing. The main borrowers are petroleum companies followed by data contractors. So that explorers can access any onshore or offshore information, a single geoscience portal on the internet has been developed http://www.geoscience.gov.au/. Moreover, the Australian Government, through Geoscience Australia is conducting regional studies of petroleum prospectivity of the offshore jurisdiction to assist explorers. Access to petroleum exploration data has been subject to legislation since the 1950s when the Petroleum Search Subsidy Act subsidised exploration and required that exploration data to be submitted for subsequent release after a relatively brief confidentiality period. The requirement to lodge exploration data was retained in the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act in 1967, whereas, subsidy for exploration was then discontinued. The Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act in its current form is still in operation in Australia. The current ready access to petroleum exploration data has been of considerable assistance to companies in their exploration and in discovery of significant petroleum reserves in offshore Australia. Australia had one of the highest rates in the world in discovery of barrels of oil equivalent per year. The methods of making exploration data as conveniently accessible to explorers as possible are constantly being addressed with a view to further encouraging exploration and to maintaining Australia?s high exploration success.

Australia has an increasing number of offshore facilities for oil and gas production and gathering; all will eventually reach the end of their economic lives. Facilities include concrete or steel structures, weighing up to several tens of thousands of tons and in water depths of over 100m, several smaller structures, and hundreds of kilometres of pipelines on the sea floor. Abandonment, without adequate provision and responsibility for maintenance of navigational hazard warnings, and without offloading residual toxic wastes, is not an acceptable option to shipping, fishermen, or the community. Removal, whether partial or total, requires considerable expenditure that companies would clearly prefer to minimise; dumping offsite has environmental and other implications. This paper describes and discusses the types of facility presently installed, current legislative requirements in Australia, the question of the timing of cessation of production, and the economic and environmental implications of various options that have been proposed.

What is GIS? Many of the decisions we make every day involve being able to access, understand and utilise the space around us. This type of information is referred to as spatial information, and when visualised, we can see relationships, patterns, and trends that may not otherwise be apparent. A Geographic Information System (GIS) is mapping software that provides spatial information by linking locations with information about that location. It provides the functions and tools needed to efficiently capture, store, manipulate, analyse, and display the information about places and things. The key components of a GIS are: - Tools for entering and manipulating geographic information such as addresses, political boundaries, geological features and building information - A database management system (DBMS) - Tools that create intelligent digital maps you can analyse, query for more information, or print for presentation - An easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI)

This record describes digital data compilation product, where several individual items are grouped for delivery on single CD-ROM. Content and number of items included in the compilation package can vary, depending on size of the individual items. The contents of this CD-ROM are as follows: Catalog # Title 21285 Bathurst regolith landforms, 1:250 000 scale map 250k 30631 Cobar regolith landforms. A regional overview of regolith landforms 500k 25238 Cootamundra, interpreted geology based on geophysics and previous geological mapping 250k

This record describes digital data compilation product, where several individual items are grouped for delivery on single CD-ROM. Content and number of items included in the compilation package can vary, depending on size of the individual items. The contents of this CD-ROM are as follows: Catalog # Title 34684 Mount Isa geology 250k 36813 Mount Isa Inlier lithostratigraphy and chronostratigraphy 100k 21949 Mount Isa Inlier and Environs 1:500 000 GIS package (version 1.2) 500k

This record describes digital data compilation product, where several individual items are grouped for delivery on single CD-ROM. Content and number of items included in the compilation package can vary, depending on size of the individual items. The contents of this CD-ROM are as follows: Catalog # Title 24289 Boulia interpreted geology 250k 24290 Springvale interpreted geology 250k

This record describes digital data compilation product, where several individual items are grouped for delivery on single CD-ROM. Content and number of items included in the compilation package can vary, depending on size of the individual items. The contents of this CD-ROM are as follows: Catalog # Title 61253 Alcoota (SF5310) 250k 61257 Alice Springs (SF5314) 61233 Alroy (SE5315) 61247 Avon Downs (SF5304) 61249 Barrow Creek (SF5306) 61221 Bauhinia Downs (SE5303) 61224 Beetaloo (SE5306) 61245 Bonney Well (SF5302) 61229 Brunette Downs (SE5311) 61226 Calvert Hills (SE5308) 61219 Daly Waters (SE5301) 61250 Elkedra (SF5307) 61246 Frew River (SF5303) 61231 Green Swamp Well (SE5313) 61259 Hay River (SF5316) 61228 Helen Springs (SE5310) 61256 Hermannsburg (SF5313) 61237 Highland Rocks (SF5207) 61254 Huckitta (SF5311) 250k 61258 Illogwa Creek (SF5315) 61239 Lake Mackay (SF5211) 61244 Lander River (SF5301) 61240 Mount Doreen (SF5212) 61230 Mount Drummond (SE5312) 61242 Mount Liebig (SF5216) 61248 Mount Peake (SF5305) 61241 Mount Rennie (SF5215) 61236 Mount Solitaire (SF5204) 61238 Mount Theo (SF5208) 61252 Napperby (SF5309) 61223 Newcastle Waters (SE5305) 61234 Ranken (SE5316) 61222 Robinson River (SE5304) 61251 Sandover River (SF5308) 61227 South Lake Woods (SE5309) 61220 Tanumbirini (SE5302) 61232 Tennant Creek (SE5314) 61235 The Granites (SF5203) 61255 Tobermory (SF5312) 61225 Wallhallow (SE5307)

This record describes digital data compilation product, where several individual items are grouped for delivery on single CD-ROM. Content and number of items included in the compilation package can vary, depending on size of the individual items. The contents of this CD-ROM are as follows: Catalog # Title 24280 Ayr (SE5515) 25079 Burketown (SE5406) 34681 Camooweal (SE5413) 34676 Cape Van Diemen (SE5402) 23909 Cloncurry (SF5402) 34679 Croydon (SE5411) 25105 Dobbyn (SE5414) 25103 Donors Hill (SE5410) 34677 Galbraith (SE5403) 34680 Georgetown (SE5412) 34682 Gilberton (SE5416) 34678 Lawn Hill (SE5409) 25102 Millungera (SE5415) 34675 Mornington (SE5401) 25101 Normanton (SE5407) 34685 Rockhampton (SF5613) 34632 Westmoreland (SE5405)

Product Specifications Coverage: Partial coverage, predominantly in northern Australia, along major transport routes, and other selected areas. About 1000 maps have been published to date. Currency: Ranges from 1968 to 2006. Coordinates: Geographical and UTM. Datum: AGD66, new edition WGS84; AHD. Projection: Universal Transverse Mercator UTM. Medium: Paper, flat copies only.

This record describes digital data compilation product, where several individual items are grouped for delivery on single CD-ROM. Content and number of items included in the compilation package can vary, depending on size of the individual items. The contents of this CD-ROM are as follows: Catalog # Title 61263 Ayers Rock (SG5208) 61260 Bloods Range (SG5203) 61269 Finke (SG5306) 61266 Hale River (SG5303) 61264 Henbury (SG5301) 61268 Kulgera (SG5305) 61261 Lake Amadeus (SG5204) 61270 McDills (SG5307) 61262 Petermann Ranges (SG5207) 61265 Rodinga (SG5302) 61267 Simpson Desert North (SG5304) 61271 Simpson Desert South (SG5308)