Australian mineral facts

Australia produces 19 useful minerals in significant amounts, from over

350 operating mines. From these minerals, useful materials such as metals
can be extracted. Australia is one of the world's leading producers of
bauxite (aluminium ore), iron ore, lithium, gold, lead, diamond, rare earth
elements, uranium, and zinc. Australia also has large mineral sand
deposits of ilmenite, zircon and rutile. In addition, Australia produces large
quantities of black coal, manganese, antimony, nickel, silver,
cobalt, copper and tin.

Mining occurs in all states of Australia, the Northern Territory and

Christmas Island. There is no mining in the Australian Capital Territory
apart from quarries used for construction materials. Australia's Identified
Mineral Resources, has up-to-date information on mineral resources in
Australia including resource estimates, production and export figures.

Australia plays a leading role in mining on a global platform and is continually

recognised for its strong and ever-growing industry.
The Australian mining industry amounts to 75% of the country’s exports, contributes
significantly to Australia’s workforce and is a leading influence on Australia’s standard of
living, rising incomes and flourishing economy.

Mining
ining has long been a cornerstone of the Australian economy. The gold
rushes in 1850s were pivotal in the early development of the country.
Today, it remains one of the country’s most well-established sectors. It is a
major contributor to Australia’s economy, accounting for around 13.6% of
total GDP in 2023. The industry is strongly export-oriented, with minimal
processing onshore. The outlook for Australia’s mineral exports continues
to improve, as the world economy rebounds from the impact of the COVID-
19 pandemic.

The Australian government will expand Australia’s mining science

technology capability, create jobs, and ensure a greater share of raw
materials are processed in Australia, through Labor’s $1 billion Value-
Adding in Resources Fund.

Australia is the world’s largest producer of lithium and a global top five
producer of gold, iron ore, lead, zinc, and nickel. It also has the world’s
largest uranium and fourth largest black coal resources, respectively. As
the fourth largest mining country in the world (after China, the United
States, and Russia), Australia will have ongoing demand for high-tech
mining equipment, representing potential opportunities for U.S. suppliers.

There are over 350 operating mine sites across the country, of which
approximately one-third are located in Western Australia (WA), one-quarter
in Queensland (QLD) and one-fifth in New South Wales (NSW), making
them the three major mining states. By volume, Australia’s two most
important mineral commodities are iron ore (29 mines) – of which 97% is
mined in WA – and coal (over 90 mines), which is largely mined on the east
coast, in the states of QLD and NSW. In contrast to most global production,
the majority (around 75%) of black coal in Australia is produced from open-
cut mines. This ratio of 3:1 open cut/ surface to underground mines also
applies to the broader (i.e., non-coal) local mining sector.

The United States is one of the largest exporters of mining equipment to

Australia, with Japan, China, and Germany being other important sources
of imported equipment. Major players such as Caterpillar, Komatsu,
Wirtgen, Joy Global, and Liebherr have a strong presence in the market.
Smaller-scale local manufacturers cater to niche and specialized markets
and are particularly competitive in mining-related software, fine coal
cleaning and process control, and strata reinforcement technology.

Underpinning the growth of the mining industry in Australia is a strong

demand for Australia to be a reliable and stable supplier of resources to the
United States and the world. Australia and the United States have
strengthened bilateral cooperation to improve the reliability and diversity of
global critical minerals supplies. Australia’s abundant reserves of critical
minerals such as antimony, manganese, and rare earths are crucial to
communications, renewable energy, and defense industries. In 2019, the
United States and Australia formalized their partnership on developing both
nations’ critical minerals assets between Geoscience Australia and U.S.
Geological Survey (USGS). The two partners outlined specific steps to
strengthen an existing Memorandum of Understanding by collaborating on
research and increasing critical minerals capacity for both countries. There
also is an opportunity for Australian mining projects to be funded by the US
Government to help support and maintain the security of supply chains.
Quite a starter question. GIS stands for Geographic Information Systems.

To put it in a more strict definition, GIS is a system of computer software, hardware, data,
procedures and personnel combined to help, manipulate, analyze, and present information
that is tied to a geographic location.

What is the value of GIS?

The value of a GIS comes when you are able to answer questions related to location, patterns,
and conditions

Is GIS a map?
Not exactly. It contains maps or better can create maps. Think GIS as a set of systems and
services that help you store, analyze, process and share geolocated data

What kind of software do I need to create a GIS?

There are numerous of choices. In principal they are divided into two big categories: open-
source and commercial. QGIS for example is a very popular open-source GIS software, while
ArcGIS is a very popular commercial GIS software.

What Is Geo-coding?
Geocoding is the process when you associate a place name, an address (or other kind of
information) with map coordinates.

What are the major GIS functions?

1. Data acquisition (spatial and non-spatial).
2. Data processing (data management).
3. Data analysis (Spatial & statistical analysis).
4. Data storage (Store data more efficiently).
5. Data output (Maps, graphs, tables, reports).
What are the main components of a GIS?
To create and maintain a GIS, you will need: data, servers (or access to cloud services),
software and most importantly people with GIS skills and methodology.

What is the difference between GIS commands and GIS tools?

Commands do not require interaction with the map, they just rely on surface. Tools on the
other hand require interaction with the map canvas.

What is the digitizing process?

Converting geographic data either from a hard-copy or a scanned image into vector data by
tracing the features.

How are vectors connected to other lines?

With a node, which marks the point of intersection.

Can you give me a few examples of metadata?

GIS data author, contact information, source agency, map projection and coordinate system,
scale, explanation of symbology and attributes and licensing.

In general metadata are the data that accompany the data of interest. For the GIS domain
metadata are considered information as presented above, while data are the spatial part of the
information.

What is a thematic raster dataset?

It is a raster whose values represent a specific phenomenon or parameter. For example a
Digital Elevation Model (DEM) is a thematic raster dataset. Each cell presents a pixel size in
meters.

What is a point feature?

It has zero dimensions, therefore you can measure (for example) the distance between them.
What is a polygon feature?
A polygon is a set of points connected to each other forming a closed shape.

What are the main processes that can be applied on vector data?
Clip, union, intersect, re-project, dissolve.

Clip is the process of "cutting" the data spatially to a defined geographic region

Union is the process of merging multiple vector dataset to a single vector dataset.

Intersect is process of combining two vector datasets. The result of this combination is the
creation of new spatial features. The boundaries of these new spatial features are the
combination (or better intersection) of the initial boundaries.
What is GIS?
Quite a starter question. GIS stands for Geographic Information Systems.

To put it in a more strict definition, GIS is a system of computer software, hardware, data,
procedures and personnel combined to help, manipulate, analyze, and present information
that is tied to a geographic location.
What is the value of GIS?
The value of a GIS comes when you are able to answer questions related to location, patterns,
and conditions

Is GIS a map?
Not exactly. It contains maps or better can create maps. Think GIS as a set of systems and
services that help you store, analyze, process and share geolocated data

What kind of software do I need to create a GIS?

There are numerous of choices. In principal they are divided into two big categories: open-
source and commercial. QGIS for example is a very popular open-source GIS software, while
ArcGIS is a very popular commercial GIS software.

What Is Geo-coding?
Geocoding is the process when you associate a place name, an address (or other kind of
information) with map coordinates.

What are the major GIS functions?

1. Data acquisition (spatial and non-spatial).
2. Data processing (data management).
3. Data analysis (Spatial & statistical analysis).
4. Data storage (Store data more efficiently).
5. Data output (Maps, graphs, tables, reports).

What are the main components of a GIS?

To create and maintain a GIS, you will need: data, servers (or access to cloud services),
software and most importantly people with GIS skills and methodology.

What is the difference between GIS commands and GIS tools?

Commands do not require interaction with the map, they just rely on surface. Tools on the
other hand require interaction with the map canvas.

What is the digitizing process?

Converting geographic data either from a hard-copy or a scanned image into vector data by
tracing the features.

How are vectors connected to other lines?

With a node, which marks the point of intersection.

Can you give me a few examples of metadata?

GIS data author, contact information, source agency, map projection and coordinate system,
scale, explanation of symbology and attributes and licensing.

In general metadata are the data that accompany the data of interest. For the GIS domain
metadata are considered information as presented above, while data are the spatial part of the
information.

What is a thematic raster dataset?

It is a raster whose values represent a specific phenomenon or parameter. For example a
Digital Elevation Model (DEM) is a thematic raster dataset. Each cell presents a pixel size in
meters.

What is a point feature?

It has zero dimensions, therefore you can measure (for example) the distance between them.

What is a polygon feature?

A polygon is a set of points connected to each other forming a closed shape.

What are the main processes that can be applied on vector data?
Clip, union, intersect, re-project, dissolve.

Clip is the process of "cutting" the data spatially to a defined geographic region

Union is the process of merging multiple vector dataset to a single vector dataset.

Intersect is process of combining two vector datasets. The result of this combination is the
creation of new spatial features. The boundaries of these new spatial features are the
combination (or better intersection) of the initial boundaries.