THE Eureka Echo - South East Detector Clubsedc.webs.com/documents/2006Vol3Spring-1.pdf · THE...

THE EUREKA ECHO—Spring 2006 PAGE 1

In the last issue of the Eureka Echo our president RitaBentley expressed her concern that the Greens are likelyto gain the balance of power in the Upper House of theVictorian Parliament. Well Rita is putting her moneywhere her mouth is and, with the backing of variouspublic land user groups, is to stand as an Independentfor the Upper House at the State Election in November.She will appeal to the voters of the SouthernMetropolitan Region to reject the crazy policies of theGreens and elect Victoria’s Public Land AccessChampion so that she can continue her great work on alarger scale. An election victory for Rita will be a hugeblow to the PMAV but given the great service she hasgiven our organisation we can only wish her everysuccess. Anyone willing to help with Rita’s campaignshould phone 0408 328 640 or [email protected]

Allan Rossiter

Our Golden Girl Runs for State Parliament

Volume 25 No. 3 Spring 2006Print Post Approved PP334385/00074

THE

The Official Journal of the Prospectors and Miners Association of Victoria 'PMAV'REG No A0000422H

Eureka Echo

Visit our website: www.pmav.asn.au

35 oz nugget found in November 2005 within 1 km of Tarnagulla Caravan Park by ‘Colin’ a previous resident of the park. More nugget finds inside

The Diggers OathWe swear by the Southern Cross to stand truly by each other and fight to defend our rights and liberties.

Copyright ©

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM

THE EUREKA ECHO—Spring 2006

Officers of the PMAV:President Rita Bentley 0408 328 640Vice President Jeff Douglas (03) 5475 1718Secretary Allan Rossiter (03) 5444 0470 AHTreasurer Geoff Strang (03) 9873 1244

Committee Eric Grummett (03) 9729 1026Tom Calvert (03) 5968 9210Bruce Brown 0417 547 928Don Brereton (03) 9716 3932Rex Motton [email protected] Lellyett (03) 9795 2539

On Line Branch:Contact Steve Barnham [email protected]

(03) 5468 1405Central Victorian Branch (Maryborough):

Contact Tony Mills (03) 5461 3217(03) 5461 5067 Fax

East Gippsland Branch (Stratford):President John Munn (03) 5144 6470 AHVice President Steve Dingwall (03) 5147 1186

(03) 5147 3285 FaxSecretary TBA (03) 5143 0754

South West Branch (Ballarat):President Keith Roberts (03) 5334 0302

0402 632 288Secretary Tony Toler (03) 5345 4066Treasurer Jonathan Maberly (03) 5342 8307

West Gippsland Branch (Drouin):President Colin Johnson (03) 5623 5329Vice President Alan Ramsdale (03) 5940 2446Sec/Treasurer Doug Prestidge (03) 5160 1424

North East Branch (Yackandandah):President Jeff Kennett (02) 6027 3412Vice President Anne Gleeson (03) 5744 1263Secretary Bill Gleeson (03) 5744 1263 Treasurer Neil Hulm (02) 6027 3504

Melbourne Branch:Contact Geoff Strang (03) 9873 1244

(03) 9874 5891 Fax

Grampians Branch:Contact Andrew Overton 0409 357 153

Small Miners Action Group:Contact Jeff Douglas 0408 176 496

Rex Motton [email protected]

The postal address of the PMAV is:GPO Box 1706, Melbourne, Victoria, 3001 Fax No: (03) 9553 1032 Email: [email protected]

General inquiry number: 0408 176 496The PMAV website is: www.pmav.asn.auAnd: http://groups.msn.com/PMAV

The Echo is published in March, June, September and December.The deadline for each issue is the 15th day of the month prior topublication.

The Eureka Echo is distributed to prospectors, the mining industry,politicians and other individuals and organisations with an interest in assisting and promoting the mining and prospecting industries.

All editorial material in the Eureka Echo may be reproduced withoutpermission, however acknowledgments would be appreciated.

DisclaimerOpinions expressed are those of the original authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Editor or the Association.Persons acting on any opinion, advice, fact or advertisementpublished in this issue do so at their own risk.

To Advertise in the Eureka Echo, phone 0408 328 640

GoldGem & Treasure Expo

Saturday 21st – Sunday 22nd October 2006

Town Hall Broadway, Dunolly

Saturday 9.30 – 5pm, Sunday 9am – 12 Noon

Help Dunolly celebrate its 150th Anniversary & see the latest prospecting gear, meet gold dealers and

relic traders, see outdoor equipment, speak withexperienced prospectors

and lots more

All welcomeEntry by gold coin donation

Lots of door prizes

PMAV 26th Annual General Meeting at the same venue commencing at 1.30pm on Sunday, 22nd October

Sponsors include • Minelab Electronics • Miners Den • Coiltek Gold Shop

• Mista Gizmo ImportsProudly hosted by the Prospectors & Miners Association

of Victoria. Phone: 0409 357 153 or visit our website:

www.pmav.asn.au

Miners Liability Under Section 39 (5) of the Mineral Resources Development Act 1990 it is a m andatory requirement for all miners / ex plorers to have PublicLiability Insurance before they can operate on their licence. Not only do we have a policy to cover surface mining, exploration, mining of open cut sites and sampling. We now can arrange cover for underground mining limited to the following: * Maintenance, refurbishment or development of shafts * Audits * Underground (max. 500 metres in length) * Costeaning * Drilling All your insurance needs can also be arranged, including: * House/Contents * Equipment – above ground * Business Packages * WorkCover, and many more

Contact Tracy Basso at our office

23-25 Argyle Place South, Carlton. Victoria. 3053. P.O. Box 404, Carlton South, Victoria. 3053.

Telephone: 03 9349 2733 Facsimile: 03 9349 2787

Email: [email protected] Internet: www.midlandinsurance.com.au

m

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This issue of the Echo will be unashamedly political; after allwe are heading towards the most important election thatpublic land users in Victoria have ever faced and we have aPMAV member seeking a spot in the Legislative Council –Me!

I hope that you will all be able to support my bid for a seat inParliament. Running for Parliament is not something I amdoing lightly, it is simply something that I feel must be done.After almost 20 years working to protect the interests ofprospectors, miners and other users of public land I’m goingto have a go at trying to change things from the inside. Butperhaps more fundamental than that, the new Green forcemust be strongly opposed at all levels. Simply - I amdetermined to stop the Greens winning the balance of powerin the Upper House of the Victorian Parliament on 25thNovember. The threat is real. It will be disastrous for small-scale miners and prospectors, and most of the community. Allthose in the Southern Metropolitan Region – please put mefirst on your ballot paper. I will be running with othercandidates under the ‘Recreation Environment Group’ orREG banner. Candidates running under this name in otherRegions are also worthy of your support.

The PMAV will be working closely with other public landuser groups during the election.

I am pleased to advise that Allan Rossiter will take over ascaretaker President during my campaign. The Association isin good hands with Allan at the helm. He has been a greatsupporter during my time as President and knows the ropeswell. All of the committee is rallying round to ensure thePMAV continues to run smoothly.

Following 25th November the PMAV may be looking for anew President. However, I am not counting my chickens sowill be nominating for the position of President again. I wouldbe more than honoured to be your President for another yearif my bid for Spring Street fails.

On to other matters, this is the last Echo before the Gold Expoand AGM. I hope to see all members supporting these events.

I am pleased to advise that Theo Theophanous, Minister forResources has kindly agreed to be our AGM guest speaker.We are also fortunate to have Liberal Spokesman onResources, Philip Davis, open the Expo for us on Saturdaymorning. There will be lots of new things to see at the Expo.As last year, we will need lots of assistance to ensure the Expois a success – all volunteers warmly welcomed!

I was really pleased to receive the fantastic nugget photos touse in this Echo and sincerely thank all those who suppliedthem. If seeing these finds doesn’t make you want another tripto the goldfields, it is time to sell your detector. These photosprove that there is still lots of gold in our goldfields and weare incredibly lucky to have such great prospecting access –all, of course, brought to you by the PMAV.

We have been busy over the past quarter with variousmeetings and a surprise week of intense reading took placewhen, thanks to Shadow Resources Minister for the LiberalsPhilip Davis, we discovered that the Government hadintroduced 74 pages of amendments to the Mineral ResourcesDevelopment Act – without telling us it was happening. Wehave since received a comprehensive briefing on theamendments from the Minister’s office.

The gold production graph prepared by Allan Rossiter for thisEcho has caused quite a stir. The Liberal Opposition made fulluse of it during the debate on the amendments where it wastabled and is now part of the record of parliamentaryproceedings - Hansard. Sadly the graph shows a truth aboutgold mining in Victoria that the spin-doctors have tried theirbest to avoid.

Springtime is probably the best season in the bush, nomozzies, few flies, great weather and, hopefully, lots ofnuggets still to be found. Good luck, see you in Dunolly. Tobe successful I will need lots of assistance, including peopleto help on polling day plus financial contributions towards thecampaign. Anyone wishing to make a donation can send acheque or money order to 'REG, C/- 4WDVictoria, PO Box1015G, Balwyn North 3104 or contact me on 0408 328 640.Rita Bentley

President’s Report

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM


New Fees and ChargesApplication for Exploration Licence ........................................................................$967.50 per 500 sq km (or part thereof)Application for Mining Licence of 5 hectares and less............................................$430.00Application for Mining Licence over 5 hectares......................................................$1,451.30 for every 260 hectaresApplication for Miner's Right ..................................................................................$26.90Application for Tourist Fossicking Authority ..........................................................$322.50Application for Tourist Mine Authority ..................................................................$591.30Application for Mining Licence Renewal of 5 hectares or less ..............................$161.30Application for Mining Licence Renewal over 5 hectares ......................................$913.80 per 260 hectaresApplication for Exploration Licence Renewal ........................................................$967.50 per 500 sq km or part thereofRent for a Mining Licence (payable on the assessment date which is 30 June and 31 December in any year) ..............................................$16.10 per hectareApplication for variation of a licence ......................................................................$107.50Application for transfer of a licence ........................................................................$322.50Application for conversion of former title to corresponding new title ............................................................................................$161.30 Amalgamation of a licence under Section 36 of the Act made at the request of the licensee ....................................................................$322.50. These new prices apply from 1st July 2006.

The Department publishes a quarterly newsletter – Discovery. This, and much more, can be accessed by visiting the DPI website www.dpi.vic.gov.au

News from the Department

The PMAV & the State Election

The PMAV has written to all major political parties inVictoria – including the Greens - asking eight questionsrelevant to a secure and improving future for prospectorsand small-scale miners. We will be providing memberscopies of the answers received to help you decide who tovote for on 25th November. We have asked for responsesby mid September so should have them collated and with you soon.

In addition to this, we are working closely with otherpublic land user groups under the Recreation EnvironmentGroup (REG) banner. We are planning to have an agreed‘how to vote’ ticket for each Upper House seat that eachorganisation will be recommending to its members. Thisnew alliance has the potential to have a considerableimpact on the outcome of the election in the Upper House,to make this work we need you to support the initiative, weask that you please give positive consideration to followingthe suggested voting pattern.

These how to vote cards will be available closer to electiontime, once all nominations are known. We will not befavouring any particular party. We will be favouringindividual candidates that have shown support for publicland access, proper management and a balanced approachto environmental issues. Our aim is simple - to ensure theGreens do not get the critical balance of power and tosupport candidates with a more balanced outlook onenvironmental issues.

Gold Mine for Sale

4.5 hectare Mining Licencewith existing native title

Located in northeast Victoria.

Historical production of 5oz/tonne

Large exploration potential.

Expressions of interest pleasecontact via email

[email protected] orphone: 0418844212

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM


For nearly 40 years Victoria dominated Australian goldproduction. In the 1890’s Western Australia took overas Kalgoorlie and the surrounding fields werediscovered and developed. There was a brief resurgencein the late 1930’s and then gold production around theworld went into decline while the gold price remainedfixed at $US35 an ounce between 1934 and 1971.

Floating of the price of gold in 1971 was followed by aseries of oil-price shocks and political crises resulting ina peak over $US800 an ounce early in 1980. The rise inthe gold price coincided with the development of thecarbon-in-pulp and carbon-in-leach technologies of goldextraction. Gold production began to take off inAustralia and around the world in 1982 but, as the graphshows, absolutely nothing happened in Victoria.

What on Earth went wrong? No matter how you look atit, you have to conclude that the bureaucrats bungled.There appear to be three possibilities:

1. There was no boom in Victoria because the old-timers got all the gold. If this is the case our politicians and bureaucrats have behaved reprehensibly by talking up Victoria’s potential for at least the last decade.

2. Victoria’s bureaucrats and their political masters (servants?) are anti-mining and have done all theypossibly can to put obstacles in the way of companies trying to resuscitate gold mining in Victoria.

3. Victoria’s bureaucrats did not understand the geology of the state’s gold deposits and encouraged their development by the wrong typesof organisations. In other words the bureaucrats backed the wrong people. Perhaps small gold deposits can only be developed by small organisations.

No matter how you look at it, the above graph representsa scandal. Five thousand tonnes of gold produced by therest of the country over the last 22 years and only 65tonnes in Victoria! A scandal, and a scandal to beplaced well-and-truly at the feet of the Victorianbureaucracy.

Data used to compile the graph were taken from thefollowing sources:

Greg Baker, Federal Parliamentary Library ResearchNote No. 22 2005-2006(www.aph.gov.au/pubs/rn/2005-2006/06rn22)

Hugh Saddler, “Minerals and Energy”Australians:historical statistics, ed. Wray Vamplew(Fairfax, Syme & Weldon Associates)

Surbiton Associates Pty Ltd, Australian Quarterly GoldProduction (1995-2006) (www.surbiton.com.au)

Neil Phillips & Martin Hughes, “Gold- historicalwealth, future potential” Geology of Victoria, ed.William Birch (Geological Society of Australia).

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The Boom That Never Was! How On Earth Did This Happen?

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM


The Central Goldfields PanningChallenge at Dunolly was a greatevent, especially considering the startof the day was so cold that ice hadformed in the tubs. My son Dylan andI were definitely not looking forwardto putting our hands in the water.However, once competition started itjust got better with each turn in thepanning bays. With an attendance ofabout 150 people, competition wasfierce. The youngest competitor beinga mere 5 years old was a sure sign thatage is no handicap in this sport; everyone has an equal chance. The PMAVwas pleased to be a sponsor of theevent by providing trophies. Weencourage all members to get behindthe next panning championships inDecember on the Eureka Stockadeweekend at Sovereign Hill. We wish to

thank all the sponsors and volunteerswho made holding this event possible.Our congratulations to the VGPACommittee and the Dunolly 150thCelebration Committee. The wholeevent was run with exceptional skill,completely by volunteers. All eventsfinished on time with trophiesawarded by 4.30 pm. There were firebins placed to warm cold hands andsausages and hamburgers available atthe stalls. The championships werefollowed by a parade in main streetwith Chinese dragons and topped offby a mass photo of the peopleassembled in the main street. Resultsof the event are below – good to see some prominent PMAV names featured.

Tom Calvert

ResultsCategory 1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place

Under 12 Katrina Vosper Amber Fisher Marnie LoveYouths U17 Dylan Calvert Tom CooperWomen’s Novice Jenny Dingwall Francine Gilbert PaulineGrahamMen’s Novice Martin Byrne Eric Grummet Peter BettsVeterans Tom Calvert Anne Doran Ian Binks Women’s Skilled Anne Doran Verna Baker Pauline GrahamMen’s Skilled Henry Doran James Keays Tom CalvertGolden Triangle Marcus Binks Stephen Barnham Errol McDonald

Panhandlers Corner

Golden Triangle Still Producing Big Nuggets

Various other events are happening at Dunollyover the next few months, like this re-

enactment of the discovery of the WelcomeStranger. At left is Ben Oates, Great GreatGrandson of Richard Oates and at right

is John Deason, Great Grandson of John Deason.

This 39oz beauty was found with a MinelabGP3500 using an 18” coil at ‘good’ depth

This 27oz and 2.4oz pair are part of a larger haultotalling 40oz. The 27oz piece was found at a

depth of over 900mm, also with a GP3500 and18” Coiltek coil.

Flora & Fauna SurveysIt has come to our attention that DSEhave a limited list of people to whomthey refer miners needing to have aflora and fauna survey done. In fact thelist was limited to one Maryboroughresident who has been quite out-spokenagainst the mining industry.

Given our reluctance to see anyonegain financially who is against theindustry, we did some research andcame up with another option. RogerThomas has recently conducted asurvey for a central Victorian minerand advises he is happy to do suchwork again. He can be contacted on(03) 5334 6441, or [email protected]

We do not know, and haven’t asked,what Roger’s position on mining is –but we do know he has not campaignedto have the industry closed down!

Membership FeesAll membership fees are due on 1stJuly each year. Please ensure yourmembership is kept up to date.

Thank you to Peter Gower who donateda search coil that we sold through MinersDen for $285. Also thank you to TedMay who donated another coil that we

sold for $110. And thank you to MinersDen who did not take any commission onthe sales.

Recent Donations

Our congratulations to the finders of these fantastic nuggets on the Central Victorian fields over recentmonths. We thank you for the opportunity to make all readers jealous!!!

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM


The Midas Bug - theBacterial Alchemy of

Gold NuggetsBacteria play an important role in theformation of gold nuggets in Australiaaccording to new research published inthe international journal, Science.

The paper highlights the findings of aCo-operative Research Centre forLandscape Environments and MineralExploration (CRC LEME) project byCSIRO researcher, Frank Reith. DrReith’s research has shown that bacteriaplay a significant role in the formationof secondary gold grains.

His study of gold grains from theTomakin Park and Hit or Miss goldmines in southern New South Wales and northern Queensland, respectively,led to a series of discoveries whichshowed that specific bacteria present on these gold grains precipitate goldfrom solution.

’The origin of secondary gold grains is acontroversial topic that is widelydebated within the scientificcommunity,’ Dr Reith said. ‘There arethose who believe the grains are purelydetrital, while others believe they formby chemical accretion. A third theorysuggest that microbial processes areinvolved in gold grain formation whichmay be responsible for one of the largestgold deposits in the world, theWitwatersrand deposit in South Africa.’

Applying molecular biology techniques,Dr Reith discovered a living biofilm onthe surface of gold grains collected.DNA profiling of this biofilm identified30 bacterial species with populationsunique to the gold grains whencompared to the surrounding soils. Onespecies was identified on all of theDNA-positive gold grains from bothlocations. DNA sequence analysis ofthis species identified it as thebacterium Ralstonia metallidurans.

‘The next step was to see if we couldobserve gold precipitation in thepresence of a culture of this bacteria,’Dr Reith said. ‘By placing a culture ofthe R. metallidurans in the presence ofdissolved gold, which is highly toxic tomicro-organisms, I observed active goldprecipitation. A unique attribute of R.metallidurans is that it is able to survivein concentrations of gold that would killmost other micro-organisms.’

This research has significance for themineral exploration industry – as

current models of gold formation do notinclude a biological mechanism. ‘Theremay be new opportunities for the bio-processing of gold ores now that wehave discovered bacteria that precipitategold out of solution,’ Dr Reith said.

Source:http://www.industrysearch.com.au/Features/viewrecord.aspx?id=644

Your Executive in Action

This picture is of me on the NorthPalmer River on a mining lease some 30kms North East of Maytown. I wasdredging using a high-banker (which isjust a dredge on legs and not on floatingpontoons) with a two and a half inchKeene dredge powered by a five and ahalf horsepower Honda and a P180pump. This would normally beconsidered as overpowered, but I like tohave the extra power available andthrottle back which also saves petrol.

I only got a few grams of gold in twodays dredging but it was great fun and the water was about 26 degrees so Ionly had very light clothing on anddidn’t feel cold all day. Anybody whohas ever dredged will confirm that coldis the killer when dredging, so I was very lucky.

After dredging for the two days I thenwent out detecting with Dave the leaseholder and we turned up two goodspecimens plus about twenty smallnuggets in two days. This was at a placeknown as Jessops Hill which is one ofthe most famous places in the PalmerRiver Goldfields and was the scene ofsome huge finds back in the 1800`s. Thehillsides here are dotted with mullockheaps from shallow hard rock mines.The gullies were all mined back thenand again in the early 1980’s. Many ofthese gullies have since been mined yetagain as equipment has improved andwith the rise in the gold price.

Geoff Strang

Health & Safety ReportI attended the Mines Reference Groupwith Worksafe Victoria on behalf of thePMAV. One outcome in our favour wasthat the requirement for all ‘prescribed’mines to have two entrances would notnecessarily be applied to small mines. Itwas agreed that the mine operatorwould have to prove that it was safe forthe mine to operate with only one entrance.

The unions raised the issue of trainingcourses for small-scale miners to assistwith compliance with Worksafecompetencies.

I feel our involvement in this Group isof benefit to small-scale miners and helpskeep us on the pulse of government policy. Bruce Brown

More on Safety - Rita Bentley has beenrepresenting the PMAV at meetings ofthe Earth Resources Tripartite SafetyForum. This forum brings industry,government and the unions around thetable to discuss improved safety onmine-sites. Bruce Brown has beennominated as the PMAV’s permanentrepresentative to this forum.

TARNAGULLAGolden Triangle

Caravan andCamping Park

vPoverty St. Tarnagulla VIC 3551

Fossickers, Prospectors

& Clubs welcome.

Located in historic nugget country.

Cabins and ensuites,

On site vans or BYO.

Permanent and casual sites available.

Credit card facilities. Pets allowed.

Telephone:Ian Ford

(03) 5438 7329

v

v

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM

I have been reading with interest the story of Tech-SolResources at Mt Egerton. I had a similar experience a fewyears ago with a nearby shire. It was eventually sorted,particularly when I was able to point out that the noisyopposition was being partly organised by certain localsgrowing drugs on Crown land, the same people threateningmy staff with fire bombing!

GJ (name and address received but withheld)

I think Echo readers might be interested in knowing aboutthe bureaucratic work load imposed on my operation at MtEgerton. It has moved to the point where actually doingany work on the ground is becoming a luxury!

Terry Delahunty, Tech-Sol Resources.

Death of Community Forest ManagementDue to the CFM working parties not being able to reachagreements on logs coming out of the Wombat Forest atDaylesford, the second-last sawmill owner – JimmyDwyer – has surrendered his licence and has closed histimber mill. He found it uneconomical to continue becausethe Greens were blocking logging trucks coming out of the forest. This was happening despite an agreementbetween the working parties and DSE being reached ontimber availability. Unfortunately the Greens agenda wasto stop logging at any cost, no matter what they hadpreviously agreed to.

Bruce Brown, Daylesford

Editors note: The Greens political party has an election policy ofcreating a national park across the Wombat Forest. No more miningand limited (if any) prospecting if that happens.

Update on Our History Project.I am currently working on writing up the history of themid-1980s when conservation legislation dramaticallybegan to override the Mines Act and when miningportfolios became very junior to conservation portfolios.The shut down and cost were huge and rural Victoria, inmy view, can directly connect a lot of modern problems tothat period. Cain/Kirner killed mining in Victoria andBracks/Thwaites are doing exactly the same to timber. The

history of incompetence and destruction of productivepeople is repeating itself. We live in good times at present- what the hell will happen when the inevitable downturn hits?Steve Barnham

PAGE 8 THE EUREKA ECHO—Spring 2006

These photos show a ‘specimen’ nugget in its raw formand after it was treated with hydrofluoric acid. Rememberthat this acid is deadly and should only be handled by thosewho know what they are doing! The specimen started outas 40oz and ended at 28. It was found under a boulder in acreek in Queensland.

Queensland Nugget

Letters

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM


The Australian mining industry is suffering huge shortagesof mining engineers, geologists and metallurgists and, in aresponse to this skills shortage, the University of Adelaidewill be commencing ‘Mining Engineering’ in 2007.Professor Ian Plimer left the University of Melbourne earlierthis year to take up the position of Professor of MiningGeology at the University of Adelaide in order to establishthe ‘Mining Engineering’ degree.

Professor Plimer said ‘for the first time in human history,there are two rapidly growing nations each of more than abillion consumers. For the last 30 years there has beendecreasing global mineral exploration and hence nodiscoveries and this long-term structural change to thecommodities industry gives Broken Hill and the miningindustry a long and exciting future. New graduates in miningengineering and geology can now command starting salariesof more than $80,000’.

Students in rural areas are often not able to attend universitybecause of accommodation, sustenance and travel costs. TheUniversity of Adelaide now has more than half the places inthe new Mining Engineering degree course supported bycompany-funded bursaries, which provide $10,000 perannum plus vacation work. Furthermore, the University ofAdelaide has the largest Geology student numbers of anyAustralian university and there are now many similarbursaries from mining companies for rural students.

‘Broken Hill, a rural mining town, has provided manypeople with magnificent careers. I am one of those people’said Professor Plimer. ‘I want to give young rural people thechance to be funded to study Mining Engineering at theUniversity of Adelaide and to also have an exciting wellpaid career.’

Schools in western NSW, South Australia and Victoria arethe target areas for the intake into the new MiningEngineering degree at the University of Adelaide.

Editors note: What a refreshingly different attitude to Victoria wheremining courses are disappearing from the university options.

AGM & Expo AdviceThe people of Dunolly encourage prospectors to enjoy theweekend of 21st & 22nd October for our Expo and AGM.Dunolly has lots to see and do. Not the least of which is thesearch for nuggets in this region that has produced some ofthe world’s largest ever!!! You could pay your respects atthe Welcome Stranger Monument at nearby Moliagul.

There are other tourist features to visit including theDunolly Courthouse and the Museum. The local historicalsociety will conduct guided walks of Dunolly starting fromthe Museum at 11am on both the Saturday and Sunday ofthe Expo weekend. There is no cost involved. Otheractivities will be advised at the Expo.

Accommodation may be in short supply so it is best tobook early. The Maryborough Visitor Information Centreis a good start, phone 1800 356 511 or visitwww.visitmaryborough.com.au Of course there is stillsome State Forest in which you can enjoy a bush camp.

Hope to see you all there.

University Bursaries for Rural Students

Prof Ian Plimer surrounded by drill cores

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM


A mate and I havean explorationlicence in SouthAustralia wherewe havedelineated adrilling target byconductingmagnetic andgravity surveys.We are currentlytrying to find ajoint-venturepartner to fund adrilling program.If I lived inCanada I know

exactly what I would do. I would fork out $300 and set up adisplay in the Prospectors Tent at the Annual Convention ofthe Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada(PDAC).

The Investors Exchange of the convention comprises theInvestor Forum where guest speakers talk about the future ofmining, the Exchange Forum where a company or anindividual can give a 15-minute presentation and seek todevelop a business by finding a joint-venture partner,finding a property or securing financing, and the ProspectorsTent where self-employed prospectors display their mapsand samples. Some 450 exhibitors at the InvestorsExchange ply their wares to 14,500 (yes that is 14,500)convention delegates.

From tiny acorns great oaks grow! It there is enough interestthe PMAV will set up a Prospectors Tent at this year’sExpo/AGM (details elsewhere in this Echo). I can’tguarantee that your display will be seen by anybody withmoney to spend, but there will be interested people to chatto about your prospect/mine and we may start somethingthat will grow to be worthwhile. If you are interestedcontact me on (03) 5444 0470. I recommend all prospectorshave a look at the PDAC website (www.pdac.ca) and seehow things are done in real mining country.

Allan Rossiter

June - November Dunolly 150th CelebrationsSeptember 23rd & 24th Australian Environment

Foundation Conference, BrisbaneOctober 7th & 8th Mordialloc Lapidary

Club Gemfair October 21st & 22ndGold, Gem & Treasure

ExpoOctober 22nd PMAV’s 26th AGMNovember 11th & 12th Zeehan Gem &

Mineral Fair

November 25th Victorian State Election – all PMAV hands on deck!

December 2nd & 3rd Australian Gold Panning Championships

December 3rd 152nd Anniversary of the Battle at Eureka

December 4th St Barbara’s (patron saint of miners) Day

For a free listing of your event in this column call 0408 328 640 or email [email protected]

Minerals Business Centre ............................03 9658 4454State Mining Warden ..................................03 5442 5588PMAV ..........................................................0408 176 496DSE ........................................................................136 186

DPI ........................................................................136 186Parks Victoria ........................................................131 963Bush Telegraph ....................................................132 874Crime Stoppers ............................................1800 333 000Bush Users Group ........................................0409 000 738

Useful Phone Numbers:

Dates to Watch

Prospectors Tent at Expo?

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM


Federal Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Industry,Tourism and Resources, Bob Baldwin, told an industryconference in Melbourne recently that mineral exploration inAustralia is entering a new exciting era.

Speaking at the Australian Earth Sciences Convention, MrBaldwin said Geoscience Australia was working withthe State and Northern Territory Geological Surveys to strip

back the covers from some of Australia’s most significantmineral provinces.

’Through this program, the technical risk of exploration willbe lowered, which in turn will attract investment in mineralexploration that is currently flowing to other countries,’ Mr Baldwin said.

’Deep seismic surveys are revealing complex formationsextending to the boundary between the Earth’s crust and the mantle, commonly known as the Moho, to study itspotential for revealing a new Broken Hill, Kalgoorlie orMount Isa. Mining companies are being presented withopportunities, which only a few years ago would have seemedimpossible,’ he said.

Data from these deep seismic investigations, along withsatellite imagery and surface information gathered over thepast 60 years, would enable scientists to obtain a fullerunderstanding of the evolution of the continent.

’We are increasing the opportunities for new discoveries.Geoscience Australia expects to produce predictive maps forpotential ore deposits, which will lead industry into mineralprovinces not previously recognised,’ Mr Baldwin said.’When this is combined with the continuing emphasis ondeveloping methods to see deeper into the crust, along withnew three-dimensional maps which can identify favourableareas for ore deposits, we can expect a new wave ofpossibilities to open up.’

The program embarked on by Geoscience Australia willinclude partnerships with any interested research groups,particularly the State and Territory Geological Surveys, and collaborations with Co-operative Research Centres and universities.

From Minebox.com

Mineral Exploration Taken to a New Level

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John Winter Award

Nominations for the 2006 John Winter Memorial Awardhave now closed. The committee will consider allnominations and announce the recipient at the AGM.

Strzelecki awards The PMAV was invited by the Victorian Government toparticipate in a ‘small operator’ category of the 2007Strzelecki Awards but has officially declined to do so.These awards recognise the economic and socialcontribution of miners to Victoria. The rationale behindour decision not to participate is our belief that sincevarious governments and the bureaucracy have done theirutmost to close down the sector over the past 20 years it is highly hypocritical for them to now pretend to promote the sector.

Safety UpdateThe followinginformation appeared ina recent edition of theNSW Department of Primary Industriesmine safety updatenewsletter. The databasecontains some extremelyhelpful information.

The mining industry nowhas access to acomprehensive online

database of good practice information.

The Minerals Industry Risk Management Gateway(MIRMgate) is a website providing access to a usefuldatabase of information on hazard and risk management inmining, minerals processing and quarrying industries.

MIRMgate provides a single doorway to all thisinformation. It's like an organised library of on-lineresources that draws from national and international

sources. Basic and advanced search options are available,as well as the ability to browse by hazard, task and subject categories.

Content on MIRMgate is carefully selected, assessed andindexed by an editorial committee of representatives ofMIRMgate sponsors, such as the NSW Department ofPrimary Industries. These industry experts select resourcesaccording to a set of clearly defined criteria on content,form and process.

MIRMgate resources are ranked on their relevance tohazard identification, risk analysis, and adequate controlidentification, facilitating resource discovery structured tosuit the tasks undertaken at minerals sites.

Ranking 1 indicates 'not relevant content' and ranking 5indicates 'excellent content'.

The MIRMgate Alert Service is an automated notificationsystem which emails you when new records are added tothe MIRMgate database that match your selection criteria.Your selection criteria may consist of hazard, subject andtask categories and sub-categories. The Alert Servicerequires MIRMgate visitors to register their name,company and email address when they first visit the site.Registration to the Alert Service is free.

MIRMgate can be accessed at www.mirmgate.com

Graeme A McLaughlan, Manager - Mining and ExtractiveOperations (South-West District), Department of Primary Industries

MaryboroughCaravan Park

7-9 Holyrood Street, Maryborough, VIC 3465

Phone 03 5460 4848

www.maryboroughcaravanpark.com.au

Fully self-contained cabins, Drive thru sites

Large shady grass sites

Bunk House, Recreation hall

Coin operated laundries

BBQ area, Camp kitchen

Disabled facilities

Walking distance to town

Tourist and Residential Park

*Special Rates for Prospectors*

AAAT

2259-ECHO-SPRING 12/9/06 12:46 PM


West Gippsland (Drouin)

A couple of trips to the Triangleresulted in little or no luck with fairweather and very cold nights.

At the last meeting we had a visit fromthe Hon. Peter Hall MLC who gave atalk on the National Party, their view ofthe Greens and the effect on our hobbyof prospecting and mining. He alsoanswered questions about what theNationals are doing about things in our area.

A poem I found in The Datum Post thatwas sent to me by a friend in W.A. I feel it sums up detecting well.

The PreyAn eagle flying overheadLooks down toward the rusty ground.Inquisitively hovers, whileThe man pursues that golden sound.

Relentlessly he grids the space,Ears tuned to high-tech ‘phones,Relaying tones of nature’s spoilsResting there in dusty homes.

He halts, shifts soil with dexterous bootRevealing glints of wrapper foil,Disdainfully flick-kicks the trash,Returns the litter to the soil.

‘Eureka’ shrieks the tone again.The boot strikes out to delve the site.A Pepsi can smiles up beforeA thud, so rude, puts out the light.Then, to the tone of wishful dreams,A nugget echoes from the land.The man drops to his reddened knees.The golden prey is in his hand.

Joy Cheesman 4/4/2006

Branch meets CWA Hall, 10 Sinclair St,Drouin - second Thursday of each month.

North East (Yackandandah)

The North East branch has been inhibernation over winter with our onlyfieldtrip being to Whroo during June.Ten prospectors, a combination of bothmembers and newcomers, attendedover a four-day period. Most of usmanaged a bit of gold helped along bythe addition of a couple of GP 3000s tothe collective of Minelab machines. Aplanned trip to Cheshunt Turquoisefields had to be cancelled due to lack ofaccess to some sites caused by trackclosures by DSE management andothers by fallen trees. At the one sitethat the scouting party did access, theloose and steep nature of the mullockdump precluded safe fossicking for anymore than a couple of people at a time.Hence the cancellation of this event.Some members have ventured north tothe Queensland sapphire fields againthis winter where the weather andbureaucratic conditions are much moreconducive to mining. I hope to bringyou a further report on sapphire miningin Queensland next issue. Until nexttime, good luck.

Branch meets Yackandandah Senior Citizens,Wellsford St, Yackandandah - bi-monthly thirdWednesday.

South West (Ballarat)

To maintain member interest inmeetings, we have decided to dosomething different and hold a Dutchauction at our next meeting. This willpossibly be followed by a ‘show andtell’ on another night. Just a couple ofsuggestions for other PMAV satellites!

We were invited to demonstratedetecting at the Woolshed Gully GoldMine in May. We duly turned up andsince they had just provided us with asquare of sand of about 3 metres onconcrete our gold detectors were of nouse. Lucky we all came with coindetectors. Tony and Sally (branchmembers) and I came with old Englishcoins (mainly pennies), some Chinesecoins and a few modern ones. Thechildren and adults had a great time;every one wanted a go so we were keptbusy. There was gold panning availablewhich was popular, lots of rear ends upover the tubs. We finished about 4pmand then went on a tour of the mine siteand was surprised how large it was andthe amount of work that had been done.

They told us they had found apromising lead which they have namedthe Blue Whale Reef. They extract 8and a half grams of gold to the tonneand hope to extract 30 grams to thetonne from the new reef. I found theresident geologist and invited him toour branch meeting. He came alongthe next month and gave us a veryinformative talk on the mine and theiraspirations for the future. He also toldus he worked in Canada for a while andhow, if we went there with oursophisticated detectors, there is a lot ofgold just lying below the surface thathas never has been gone over with a detector. Maybe we could all go for a club trip …..? On that note good prospecting!

Branch meets Old Colonists Club,Lydiard St, Ballarat – 7.30pm, thirdWednesday of each month.

Around the Branches

Colin Johnson - President - West Gippsland Branch

Keith Roberts – President, South West Branch

Jeff Kennett –President, North East Branch

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Grampians (Stawell)

It’s been a less-than-busy couple ofmonths with yours truly very busy atother things such as work, business andthe Expo organising. Others in thebranch have had more luck, travellingto Tibooburra and Clermont withreasonable success including a 3ozlump to one of our more successfuloperators. The sluicers continue to confound with great results whileour rapidly depleting dams continue todry up. One bloke has an average of 6gm per day. Good returns and keeps the fat off!

A few new members have presentedthemselves bringing our number up to27. Glad to see that our presence isbeing noted. We will get to meet ournewcomers at an upcoming meeting on1st September at a new venue here inStawell. With more members joiningfrom both Horsham and Ararat, it isbecoming prudent to hold meetings inStawell as it’s more central.

A worrying recent aspect is local ParksVic rangers still advising prospectorsthat all of our local NatureConservation Reserve is off limits todetecting. I have emailed the local headranger to remind his personnel of thefacts and asked him to advise me of any change.

We expect to be holding demos andfield days on the latest detectorsincluding the Goldscan 5b, theproduction model GD1000 and thenew budget coin/relic units fromWombat. There will also be plus news

on the Wombat PI4 pulse inductionprototype. Our next meeting will havedetails on all this plus our field tripswill recommence the weekend after theExpo. The new units will be sure tomake an appearance!

Don’t forget, the Association needshelp at the Expo in October at Dunolly.We can’t do it all by ourselves! Wehave a great Expo committee butassistance is required on the day fromas many hands as we can get.

Cheers, Andrew Overton

Melbourne Branch meetings continue to be wellsupported with guest speakers helpingattract members. In June we had longtime PMAV supporter, and nowmember, Tom Burrowes who is thechairman of Stellar Resources - apublicly-listed junior explorationcompany. Tom presented a fascinatinginsight into uranium exploration andwent on to explain how all of us havedaily interaction with uranium andsome of its by-products. To find outmore about this go towww.stellarresources.com.au or youcan check with me, as we will behaving Tom back later this year to beguest speaker again.

In June we had a successful field trip toTalbot where we all first met at theFarmers Market, which is held on thethird Sunday of every month, and thenheaded off to Tunnel Hill where a goodnumber of small nuggets were found.

Geoff Strang - Branch Convener

Branch meets Miners Den, Mitcham – second

Tuesday of each month.

East Gippsland (Stratford)

We have had two field trips thisquarter. The first was a weekend trip toDoctors Flat on the Tambo River whereseveral members went prospectingamong the old workings on the terracedeposits. This was interesting andalthough not much gold was found itcertainly proved that the old timers hadbeen working worthwhile ground.Unfortunately we had to work hard and

carry our washdirt down a steep hill tothe river to pan it off. This slowedprogress considerably but was useful inhoning our prospecting skills. A fewpeople stayed and camped on theSaturday night.

Our other trip was to Bullumwaalwhere some went detecting and someelected to go panning. The Saturdaynight get-together was well attendedwith a BBQ followed by a sing alongwhich ended at a very late hour or perhaps it could have been an early morning.

Fortunately for the panners there hasnow been enough rain to get the creeksrunning again.

There have been several unofficial tripsto various places within the region.One trip being to the Goolengookblock to inspect the area currentlyunder investigation by the VictorianEnvironment Assessment Council.This was interesting and certainlyproved the worth of satellite GPStracking and computer mapping whenexploring unfamiliar territory. Wemanaged to find mines that would havetaken some finding without moderntechnology or a local guide. The EastGippsland region is certainly worthmore trips, as there must be manyprospects hidden in this rugged area.

Instead of the usual meeting in July wehad a meal and a yarn at the StratfordHotel. This was successful andeverybody seemed to enjoy the change.

Branch meets RSL Hall, Stratford, - last

Thursday of each month.

Around the Branches Cont...

Andrew Overton (Pennyweight) Grampians Branch Convenor.

Steve Dingwall - President

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The PMAV is the only group representing the interests of smaller-scale miners and prospectors in Victoria. Whether you are a hobbyist or professional, we are all that stands between you and prohibition. Join the Association and help protect your rights.For further information phone: 0408 176 496 or visit: www.pmav.asn.au To join now, just fill in the following form and send it to GPO Box 1706, Melbourne 3001

PMAV Membership ApplicationFirst Name Surname

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Membership fees for 2006/07 are Individual &/or Family $ 42.00Individual Pensioner &/or Family $ 25.00Corporate $120.00

New members joining after January 1st 2007 pay a pro-rata rate of either $21 individual or $12.50 pensioner. The pro rata membership covers these members until July 1st 2007 when all membership fees become due and payable.Payment options: Cheque or Postal Order to PMAV or Credit Card Payment

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The PMAV always needs extra resources to continue the battle for prospectors and miners rights, please consider donating to ourfighting fund by completing the following.

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I hereby apply for membership and agree to abide by the Rules of the Association

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If you know someone who may be interested in joining the PMAV, please send us their name and address and we’ll send them a complementary Eureka Echo.

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