Details concerning the reserves of iron ore in Australia have been tabulated in this report. The report provides estimates of the grade and probable reserves of ore for the known Australian deposits.

This report summerises the kinds, sources, and handlers or processors of asbestos in Australia, 1944.

An examination was made of a wolfram vein seven miles north of Broken Hill, on July 8th, 1943. This report contains brief notes on the nature of the vein and the mineral specimens examined.

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.

"Greisen Lode" is the name given locally to the foot-wall section of a wider mineralised zone, which will be referred to as the Greisen Orebody in this report. Mining operations have been carried out by tributers in recent years on several portions of the orebody, namely, stoping from the Main Tunnel, stoping from an adit-crosscut driven from the No. 4 Gossan Bench, and some stoping operations from a level above the latter bench. During the past three months a level has been driven for 260 feet westwards from the Main Tunnel to prospect the orebody at this level and develop it for mining. Over the past few weeks a detailed geological examination of the orebody has been made and the area involved mapped on a scale of 20 feet to an inch by means of plane table and alidade.

During the period August 1942 - August 1943, a boring campaign was conducted in the Coorabin section of the coalfield by the Commonwealth Coal Commission. The boring was done by the Water Conservation and Irrigation Commission of New South Wales under the supervision of the Mineral Resources Survey Branch of the Department of Supply and Shipping. When the Coal Commission withdrew, and before the plant was removed from the field, an additional bore was put down by the Department of Supply and Shipping in the Oaklands section of the field. This report contains the results of analyses of the bores.

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.

The Wallaroo-Moonta copper field offers a challenge to modern geological and geophysical ore-finding methods. After the production of some 338,066 tons of copper valued at over 20 million pounds, large scale mining ceased in 1923. In spite of the present urgent need for copper, investigators have agreed that no good purpose can be served by re-opening the old mines and that any further substantial production from the field depends upon the discovery of new ore-bodies. Since the ore-bearing rocks are almost completely covered by superficial deposits, it is not unreasonable to suppose that there are still undiscovered ore-bodies in the field. Nevertheless some 30,000 feet of diamond drilling have been carried out in the past and the results, generally speaking, have been very poor. This is not surprising, perhaps, when the local nature of ore occurrences and the vast extent of barren country rock is contemplated. It appears that there is a clear task for geological and geophysical methods to select sites where diamond drilling will have the maximum chance of intersecting ore. The masking of the surface geology immediately suggests the application of geophysical methods and in 1929 some work was carried out at Moonta by the Imperial Geophysical experimental Survey. After a limited amount of work this Survey was forced to the conclusion that the field presented greater difficulties to electrical prospecting, owing principally to the screening effect of the saline overburden. Since 1929, however, geophysical technique has progressed considerably, and more is known concerning the physical conditions of the field. In view of the possible prize at stake it was therefore decided early this year to re-open and carry out further geophysical surveys. The work was carried out in close co-operation with the South Australian Mines Department, which had previously made extensive investigations of the structural geology, and had recommended the use of the geophysical methods.

Boring by the Alice Springs Works Department and by Webb Bros. of Mt. Riddock Station showed that subterranean water supplies in the schists and gneisses in this area are usually small in quantity and that the water is brackish. The best chances of obtaining water for the mining fields seems to lie in sinking relatively shallow wells on the creeks and depressions running northward from the Harts Range. These depressions are believed to contain from 30 to 60 ft. of alluvium. Eight possible sites for wells were selected, two being within the foothills of the main range and six at a distance of 1.5 to 2 miles from the foothills of the range. Six of these sites are now being tested by a light hand-boring plant. This plant is expected to penetrate the alluvium quickly and wells will be sunk where favourable results are obtained. The sites selected are within easy reach of the following mines: Jenkins' Mine, The Spotted Tiger Mine, B. Rech's (Rex?) Mine, Hit and Miss Mine, Central Mine and Eldorado Mine.

Gibsonvale tin field is situated approximately three miles southeast of the village of Kikoira. This preliminary report was prepared following an examination of the tin field by the writer. Aspects of the general and economic geology of the field are discussed herein.