TAG – August 1974 – Issue 3

The Austrolian_Geologist

PRESIDENT Dorothy

Hill

Hon . Federal Secretary Dr. G. Playford , Dept . of Geology and Mineralogy , University of Queensland , St . Lucia .

Queensland 4067.

Society Office

Newsletter Editor

Miss Laurel Tuckwell, Gemmology House , 24 Wentworth Avenue , Sydney , 2010 .

Dr. D. F. Branagan, Dept. of Geology & Geophysics, The University of Sydney, N.S.W. 2006.

' phone:

'phone:

61-9504.

660-0522 extn. 2358 or 2912.

Divisional Officers Territories

N. S.W. Chairman: Hon. Sec.:

J . R. Roberts K. R. Johnson

w. Hawkins

B.

c. G. Murray

South Australia Chairman: Hon . Sec.:

P. A. Arriens V. Passmore

Victoria

Queensland Chairman: Hon . Sec . :

Chairman: Hon. Sec.:

K. R. Yates A. Webb

Chairman: Hon . Sec.:

R. J. Elliot M. J. Garratt

Western Australia Chairman: Hon . Sec.:

J. Sofoulis D. Fyfe

Tasmania Chairman : Hon . Sec.:

Cover Photo:

R. Underwood W. C. Cromer

Columnar jointed outcrop of small intrusive body within the Canobolas Volcanic Complex in Central New South Wales.

2

The Australian Geologist NEWSLETTER OF THE GEOLOG ICAL SOCIETY OF AUSTRALIA I NCORPORATED No. 3 August 1974 ED ITORI AL This issue of the newsletter contains the second information bulletin on the Twenty-fifth I.G.C. prepared by the Secretary, Sandy Renwick.

With the prospect of numbers approaching 3000 from 80 countries we are certain to be in for a busy period in Au g ust 1976 and in the months before, and already many society members have been involved in planning technical sessions, organising excursions and entertainments.

By the time the Congress is over it is likely that just about all the geologists in Australia wi ll have had some part in its affairs .

This is a far cry from the First Congress held in Pa ris in 1878 when Arch iba ld Liver sidge was Australia's sole representative and is some meas·ure of our growth in the last one h undred years.

Although there wi ll undoubtedl y be pu blicity about the Congress it seems to me t ha t the profession might be able to use the Congress period in an even more po sit ive way to inform the public what geology is all about a nd how knowledge of geology makes a p ositive contribution to man's activities.

Colour T.V. will be well entrenched by 1976 and a s eries of well p lanned programmes on aspects of geology could make really g ood viewing and be useful in the lon g t erm for educa tional purposes.

Could we do - for instance - 'The Growth of Australia' - The Shield, the Adelaide Geosyncline (or the pre sent equivalent O.K. term), The Eastern Highlands , the Great Artesian Basin, The Pleistocene g lac iation - the list is endless?

Perhaps those divisions not directly involved in congress organisation might give the idea a thought.

Local sponsorship for each segment could probably be arranged and something of permanent value presented.

A follow-up at the time of the congress using topquality speakers from overseas might also be fruitful, perhaps under the aegis of some of the special ist g roups.

It isn't too late to get moving on suc h a pro ject but if it is going to be do ne it wi ll have to start now.

SOCIETY

MATTERS

Prior to the r e cent joint specialist's meeting in Brisbane a Council meeting was held, at tende d by representatives o f all divisions and specialist groups.

Among th e matte rs dealt with by Council were revise d rules, central office accom·· modation, computerization o f membership r ecords, Australian Geology Convention 1975, capitation fees, publication s, I.G.C., act ivities of civisions, specialist groups and committees, geological monuments, and numerous other items.

The revised Rules draft p re pared ty former Federal secretary Mike Rickard, was a tribute t o his interest in Society affairs.

The rules have been rearranged into a more logical form dealing with membersh ip matters, Organization and Ac tivities in order and there are bot h major additions and deletions.

The draft ha s now been referred back to-Divisions 3

Interested members should and Groups for their comments. contact ~ouncillors or local secretaries for cocies of the draft and pass on significant comnents to Dr. M~ J . ~ickard , Dept. of Geology, A. N.U ., Dox 4, P .O., Canberra , A.C.T . 2601.

The rules wi ll be out into final form or ior to nresen tation at the General Meeiing of the Society ln Adelai~e next May. The Society is hoping to mcve its Central office accommodation in Sydney in the near future, as the site is sub-standard The long - term idea is to set up office in the in many ways.

Science Centre, no~ being created to replace the p resent Science House, but the Centre building will not be fully renovated beHe hope to conclude arrangements shortly for a fore 1977. suitable office for the interim period.

Also on the cards is computerization of Central Office procedures, but we are looking rather critically at the costs said to be involved.

Council approved the planning carried out by the South Australian Division for the first Australian Geology Convention The keywhich is scheduled for May 12 - 16, 1975 in Adelaide. note symposium is to be ~roterozoic rocks and fossils of Australia' .

The Society, through divisions, has been involved in a number of submissions to the enquiry on the National Estate, and it is encouraging to see that the final report takes As a follow up on these geological matters into account. matters Council decided to co - ordinate the various unofficial of geological preservation the divisional sub-committees for Dr. Colin !3ranch monuments by creating a Federal Committee. of South Australia was named as convener.

Capitation fees to Divisions were again increased following representation by the Tasmanian delegate.

Hon. Editor, Kenneth Townley, pointed out that papers offered for publication in the Journal arrived in several rushes, following Tertiary institution vacation periods, making Ten of 55 papers offered were for an irregular work load. rejected mainly on the basis of being of purely local interest, Average time from receiving though some \vere too su~-:erf icial.

Some delays have to sending to press was about three months. to potential referees, who sent being resulted from manuscripts The Editor requests Instituproved to be on leave overseas.

Such lists will tions to send him lists of people on leave. help greatly to reduce delays.

The Joint Specialists Groups meeting held in Bri sbane in July was a great succ ess and attracted a total registration of Brian 1-Ia\•1kins, Chairman of the Orgar1izing Committee, 330. was overwhelmed by the usual last-minute enro lment , which forced him to make a hurried reorint of the Meetina Abstracts.

The Comnittee is to be commended in coping with th~ situation but some consideration by members who could enrol much earlier is surely warranted.

Members are reminded of the Special Publications of t:ie Society which are available for purchase, with special prices Snecial Publication No. 4 - Mes ozoic and for members.

Cainozoic Essays.in Honour of Isabel Cookson ($ 8-5 0) is one of the latest.

AUSTRALIA ANr DEEP SEA DRILLING Since the middle of 1973, the Sedimentology Specialist Group Committee, and individual Specialist Group membe rs, have been promoting Australian financial involvement in the Inter national Program of Ocean Drilling (IPOD), which will succeed the Deep Sea Drilling Program (DSDP) in mid - 1975.

The sum involved would be betwee n US$250,00 and US$1 million a year.

In Septembe r 1973, after an approach to the Minister for Science and the Minister for Minerals and Energy by the Specialist Group Committee, Dr. P. J. Cook was enable d to attend a JOIDES Planning Committee Meeting in Zuric h , which p rovided valuable information on IPOD. In November the Sedimentology Newsletter carried an editorial advocating an Australian finan cial involvement.

In January 1974, Associate Professor J. J. Veevers initiated the idea of a Challenger Centenary Symposium, to consider DSDP data and prospect.

This meeting will be held in Sydney in August.

Also in January , Dr. K. A. W. Crook, acting for the Special ist Group Committee, suggested to Professor D. Hi l l, G.S.A. President, that the G.S.A. should estab l ish a Deep Sea Dril li ng Committee, to receive an invitation for Australian participation from JOIDES, and then approach the Australian Government.

This was deemed a matter for the Australian Academy of Science, and a submission was put to the February meeting of the Academy Council by the Specialist Group Committee.

This advocated negotiations between the Academy and JOIDES, and the Academy and the Australian Government, through a specially established National Committee on Deep Sea Drilling.

It was warmly endorsed by the G.S.A. Executive in a letter to the Academy.

Late in February, Associate Professor G. H. Packham wrote to the Ministers for Science, and Minerals and Energy, asking if they would be interested in receiving a report on DSDP, IPOD and the prospects for Australian participation upon his return from Scripps in April.

They were interested, and the report was written at the end of April.

Meanwhile, in the Academy, the Specialist Group submission was off to a good start, thanks to prompt staff work by the Academy office.

Members of appr opriate National Committees had their comments back for the Academy Counci l meeting in mid- March.

Then came a set-back.

The Council, which has a soil physicist as its sole geoscientist, felt unable to reach a deciiion, and referred the matter to a special committee, chaired by Professor Ringwood, to report early in June.

Because of the large sums of money involved, and the necessity of forward planning, the Specialist Group Committee was hoping the Australian Government could be approached in February or March.

Also, your dead wombat in Canberra (with an ear to the ground) believed a prompt approach would have been timely.

The delay might have been critical, but for two extraneous events that would have delayed consideration of any proposal.

The May 18 election operated thus here, while in North America recons i deration of the relationships between JOIDES, DSDP and the Na t ional Science Foundation was delaying a formal approach to Australia.

In the event we may have been lucky, and lost no advantage.

But I believe that in future the Geological Society must itself represent the interests of its members to the government.

The Academy Council at its June meeting wholeheartedly endorsed the scientific worth of the DSDP-IPOD. It decided to write to JOIDES suggesting they approach the Australian Department of

5

Science, and to the Department urging Australian participation.

No National Committee on Deep Sea Drilling was established.

Although initiative has hitherto come from within the Sedimentology Specialist Group, IPOD is of potential interest The Specialist Group therefore asked to all geoscientists.

G.S.A. Council in July to take over its concern, by establishing The formation of a broadly based Deep-Sea Drilling Committee. this Committee was approved by Council and it was formally estaPackham.

H. blished under the Chairmanship of G. K.A.W.C.

BOOK REVIEW Stratigraphic Problems of the Later Precambrian and Early Cambrian.

Special Paper No. 1, Centre for

Edit. J.B. Jones and B. McGowran.

Precambrian Research, University of Adelaide.

Price:

1972.

iii+ 70 pp.

$A 2-00 (including postage).

This inaugural Special Paper of the Centre for Precambrian Research, University of Adelaide, is a fitting tribute to Professor Martin F. Glaessner on the occasion of his official retirement.

Professor Dorothy Hill provides

a full account of Glaessner's distinguished career, and a bibliography of his scientific publications.

In addition there are four excellent reviews of aspects of pre - Cambrian and early Cambrian stratigraphy and palaeontology.

Brian Daily presents a

comprehensive, world-wide review of the base of the Cambrian and the first Cambrian faunas, Professor Glaessner contributes an important paper on early metazoan evolution, W. V. Preiss outlines the stromatolite succession of the Proterozoic, and J. A. Cooper appraises certain isotopic age determinations.

To those palaeontologists and stratigraphers interested in the origins and early developmental history of organisms and the problems of defining the base of the Cambrian, this inexpensive volume will be indispensable.

One

minor defect is the poor quality of the two half-tone plates accompanying Daily's paper.

Professor R. W.R. Rutland intimates in the foreword that 'this volume will be the first of a series of Special Papers covering the various projects of the Centre ' .

If this first Special Paper is any guide, the series will

hold very considerable interest for geologists in the years ahead.

B. D. Webby.

6

GRl,DUATE QUALI FICATIONS AND EMPLOYMENT It has become apparent in recent years that the scope of emp l oyment opporIn p articular governtunities for three-year degree graduates is decreasing. ment employers such as the geological surveys and B.M . R. have specif i ed i n print or otherwise a mi nimum requirement of four years training i . e. a honours This trend has now extended into the indusdegree, for a graduate applicant. trial area where more job specifi cations are placing emphasis on honours Although the upgrading in degrees as minimum qualifications for employment . qualifications requirements is in many ways related to surplus manpower result there has been depression, post-boom the following firms ing from closure of over the last decade an overa ll trend towards higher qualifications for conAgain thi s may be due to an increase in the pro ventional geological j obs . portion of job applicants with higher degrees - par ticul arly if we cons idered The point of the matter is that several the influx of overseas g raduates. problems have arisen for geolo gy departments and geo logy undergraduates because of this situation.

1.

Potential geo lo gy undergraduates, put off by job prospects for three year graduates, may foresake the science: (a) if they cannot enrol at an institution offering more than a three year course, or (b) if they see financial or family problems in going beyond thre e years.

2.

Many geology departments in tertiary institutions offer no more than a Due to i nternal administrathree year degree or its equivalent (?) . tive and financial restrictions, any possibility of expanding beyond the present situation is inconceivable.

3.

For all geology departments the question arises as to whether to continue with three- year courses or to re-structure courses so that a Some minimum of four years is req uired before initial graduation. universities have already decided that in the professional area a necessary. is four year course

The pertinent questions from these observations are then: 1.

Is the three year qualification a professional qualification?

2.

Do we al low individual organiza tions and companies to set , in an ad hoe manner, professional qualifications for geologists?

One possible way of overcoming these problems is the establi shment of a professional Institution (similar to that being considered by the Geol~gical Society of London) which would determine minimum qualifications and also act as an arbitrator i n cases of discrimination in both the fields of qualificaA professional body such as this can also give authority tions and salaries. to propositions put forward to administrators b y tertiary staff members indicating need for restructurin g of courses or alteration in length of courses.

This brief resume will hopefully raise comments from others who have an interest in job prospects of geology graduates and/or have some thoughts about the establishment of a professional body for geologists.

D. Davidson, Lecturer in Geology W.A. Institute of Technology.

7

EMPLOYMENT POSSIBILITIES In relation to the editorial by Dorothy Hill in the first Newsletter (No. 1), I would like to advis e you that th e re is an ope ning for a limited number of geologists at present in the field of "basic resources development " , includi ng clay and shale , limestone , crushed rocks , ornamental rocks, abra sive and refractory materials and industrial ceramics.

To a large extent it would be rel a ted to development of industries i n country centres.

It wou ld be usually a matter of (a) finding a company developing such basic resources, or (b) forming a partnership or company with the aid of people in industry or others .

During recent months it has been apparent that some finance institutions are showing an interest i n investing in such operations as mentioned earl ier, and the State or Australian Department of Decentralisation will often be a source of information regarding any existing operations and possible backers .

I should stress that geological work as much may only occupy a fraction of the geologist's time (varies wi th time and situation), and I am classified by my employer as a "Staff Geologi st", "Proj ect Off i cer " and " Quality Control Officer" .

This b ri ngs up the points that quality control of the whole operation in this field not only provides more security of e mployment but also makes use of part of the general education acquired to become a geologist .

George Winter , Holbrook, N. S.W.

[On the above matter , L . J. Peet, of 4 Asten Road, City Beach , 6015 , has sent me a copy of the lecture notes he uses i n a course to valuation students at Perth Technical Co ll ege.

They cover both Introductory Geology and the Valuation of Extractive Industri es (mining, quarr ies, sand p its, etc . ).

The valuat ion part includes special characteristics of extractive industries, interest calculations and the legal aspects of compensation when land containing minerals or other extractive substances is resumed by Government.

He will be happy to supply a copy of the notes to anyone who writes to him.]

-WANTED

BACI< ISSUES OF JOURNAL -

To complete his personal set of the Society's Journal, Dr. A. F. Trendal would like to obtain one copy each of the fol l owing issues, which have long been out of print Volume 4 Volume 5 Volume 6

Part 2 Part 1 Part 2

Would anyone interested in offering any of these for sale please get in touch with him as Minera l House, 66 Adelaide Terrace, Perth 6000.

8

THE DIVISIONS

VICTORIAN NEWS The Melbourne region has been yielding many of its geological secrets recently as the result of a massive attack by public authorities.

The Geological Survey of Victoria has been carrying out detailed engineering geology studies of the Melbourne Underground Railway Loop and final reports are now being prepared.

In collaboration with the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of works the Survey is compiling surface and subsurface informa tion about the Dandenong corridor.

The M.M.B.W. has numerous tunnels under construction.

The South Eastern Trunk Sewer tunnel has been excavated between North Kew and Braeside (23 . 5 km) .

The northern 17 . 1 km was driven by boring machine in Silurian mudstone and sandstone incised by six buried channels , two of which passed below the tunnel .

The southern 6.4 km was driven under compressed air in Tertiary and Silurian sediments.

Another tunnel running eastwards from Brighton to Oakleigh (7.7 km) exposed the irregular unconformity between Tertiary and Silurian for a total distance of 0.6 km.

The Tertiary sediments were deposited in a rocky shoreline environment.

The South Eastern Effluent Outfall runs from Carrum to the Bass Strait at Boag Rocks (55 km).

There are five tunnels .

Frankston tunnel (4.4 km) is in Tertiary and Ordovician Strata.

Dromana Tunnel (6.5 km) is mainly in the granite of Arthur's Seat.

There was a possibility that the tunnel would intersect the Selwyn Fault, one of the major faults bounding Port Phillip, but geological evidence is inconclusive.

The remaining tunnels are in cemented and uncemented Pleistocene calcareous dune sands of the Nepean Pen i nsula.

19.2 km of the Thomson- Yarra tunnel for water supply has been completed and a further 10 km is to be constructed .

This tunnel is in the dividing range 66 kms east of melbourne.

Much of the tunnel is at right angles to the structural trend of Silurian and Lower Devonian sediments .

The stratigraphy is Peing studied by the Survey .

Groundwater pollution studies are being carried out by the Survey in the southwest, north and southeast suburbs.

The adjacent bays are also receiving attention.

An investigation of the beach and sea floor sediments of the St. Kilda area was undertaken during 1972 by the Ports & Harbors Division (Public Works) to provide background information for the St. Kilda mobile bed model at present operating at the Marine Models Laboratory, Port Melbourne.

Close sampling to 5.5 m depth on three occasions during 11 months showed that a nearshore mobile zone of sediment movement , where sediment grain-size changes with time , i.e . is weather dependent, is confined to depths of less than about 3.3 m; and offshore of this zone there is no change in grain size with time, indicating that the sediment in depths greater than 3.3 m is essentially out of the influence of wave action.

The offshore sediment is generally coarser than the nearshore and the grainsize increases with increasing depth ; this sedi ment presumably was deposited at lower sea- levels and the nearshore zone contains the more mobile finer particles winnowed from this sediment and transported landwards by wave action.

A study is underway of the sediments and bar formations of the area from Safety Beach to Rye on the Nepean Peninsula.

Beach profiles and beach and offshore samples have been taken and analysis is proceeding.

It is also hoped to investigate the optimum grainsize for beach nourishment in this area by field and laboratory flume studies.

The Divis i on is at present building a sedimentation tube of the pressure transducer type , and a sled with mounted stadia rod for taking nearshore profiles .

The westernport Bay Environment Study Group has called in geologists from 9

state bodies and Universities to investigate groundwater and Quaternary sedimentation and preliminary reports have already been issued.

The C.S . I.R . O. Division of Applied Geomechanics has published an overall terrain evaluation report on Melbourne, one of its series of classifications The 1 : 250 , 000 sheet which accompanies this report for engineering purposes. can be fruitfully compared with the geological sheet of the same area.

Completion of the 1 : 250,000 maps of Victoria is scheduled for mid 1976 when a new 1:1,000,000 sheet will also be issued by the Survey.

Mr. Warren D. Hutchings has been awarded the W. A. Division's inaugural His prize is $50 cash award for the outstanding final year student at WAIT. Awards of $25 and $15 and a medal presented at the Annual General Meeting . for a contribution Budrovich, Joe and Miller Lawrie respectively were made to These were the on palaeontology, and to Kerry Maquire, for a geology project . successful students in the 1973 Science Talent Search .

The S.A . Division of the G.S . A. has been consulting with the Coast Protection Board regarding works being carried out to combat erosion along the Valuable sections of Tertiary metropolitan beaches along St . Vincent Gulf. strata are being affected by these works and the G.S.A . is attempting to minimize the effect on important geological sections .

Following the floods which struck Brisbane early in 1974 , part of Coronation Drive, on the north bank of the Brisbane River immediately to the west of the city failed and because of the essential services and the nature of large- diameter drains and fresh water supplies to the city that lay beneath, As part of the slip failure analysis this stretch of thoroughfare was closed.

Professor G. E . G. Sargent of University of Queensland carried out a side scan sonar inspection of the area of the bank that lay below the surface of the Traverses using a very high resolution side scan sonar system Brisbane River.

The were made which provided detailed pictures of the submarine morphology . work was later extended, in conjunction with the Department of Harbours and A resurvey Marine, to cover much of the course of the river through Brisbane.

The Survey Office, Department of Lands, of the river is planned later in 1974. has recently issued a flood map of Brisbane and suburbs showing the extent of flooding.

46th .l\t-iZAAS CONGRESS - CANBERRA - 20-24 JAl'-IUARY 1975.

The 9rogram for Section 3, Geology, is an interesting one including much on the Environment , and six excursions are planned. i,rite to Dr. ~- A. Eggleton, Geology Department, Australian National University , Canberra, A . C.T . 2600, for details.

10

Dr. J.M. Dickins was awarded the Chresticn ~ica Gondwanaland Medal, the 7th award of 1969-1971, for his outstanding contributions in Permian palaeontology and stratigra p hy and in the palaeogeographi c reconstruction of Gondwanaland, particularly in India and Australia.

Ken Plumb has been awarded the first Harold Raggatt medal .

Ken was awarded the medal for his presentation at the Third B.M.R . Sympo s ium of a paper entitled ' Patterns of mineralization in northern Australia, with emphasis on lead and zinc '.

The Harold Raggatt Award will be presented annually in commemoration of the late Sir Harold Raggatt's contributions to earth sciences in Austra l ia and his association with the founding and deve l opment of the Bureau of Minera l Resources .

A s pecial volume on the Tasman Geosyncline has been Write to Dr. C. G. prepared by the Qu een sland Division .

Mur ray, G.P . O. Box 1820, Brisbane 4000 , enclosing $10.

Remote sensing is pretty much in the geological news these day s and several divisions have featured talks on the ERTS imagery which is now The State Rivers and Water Supply Commission of Victoria has available. used both colour aerial photographs and ERTS imagery to map flooding in Northern Victoria and the N.S . W. Geological Survey has been using ERTS photos A measure of the interest in ~he various to outline major tectonic features. techniques is shown by the formation of a Remote Sensing Associoti.on of Australia.

However it i s interesting to read the provocative talk given by J . G. Wilson to the Victorian Division in May , as set out in the monthly newsletter .

He criticised both universities and government departments for succumbing to In particular , the Infra Red remote sensing the black box imagery syndrome. technique was gimmicky and cost tens of millions of dollars to provide large These maps did not scale monoscopic coloured or black and white photo maps. provide any information which co u ld not be obt ained either from mosaic compila tion photomaps, or stereoscopic b l ack and white photographs .

E.R . T.S. photo maps are handicapped because : (a)

they are monoscopic except for the area of overlap of each succeeding pho t omap ;

(b)

repeat photomaps of the same area have resulted in different This might be due to the image being out interpretations .

The lack of clarity in the photomaps may have of focus . severe repercussions in interpretation.

Geological interpretation of stereoscopic black and white photographs The technological growth and development of has withstood the test of time. remote sensing techniques has not resulted in any improvement of interpretation If money is to be spent on black box gimm ickry , then it should of photomaps . be applied to: (a)

production of stereoscopic pairs of ERTS imagery ;

(b)

construction of improved stereoscopic viewers which would allow the i nterpreter to sit l onger, look longer and s ee better.

11

An informal three-day symposium on the DISTRIBUTION, MINERALOGY AND CRYSTAL CHEMISTRY OF PHOSPHATE MINERALS is proposed for February of 1975 at Monash University.

The following general topics are suggested as guidelines for participants: 1.

The occurrence, distribution and genesis of phosphate minerals in soils, sediments and rocks.

2.

The mineralogy and crystal chemistry of phosphate minerals.

3.

Experimental studies in phosphate systems, and the applications of these studies, for example to igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary petrology and phosphate ore beneficiation.

The joint conveners of the symposium will be Professor B. E. Hobbs and Dr. A. R. Milnes of the Department of Earth Sciences at Monash University.

Those interested should contact: Dr. A. R. Milnes, Department of Earth Sciences, Monash University, CLAYTON. Victoria 3168.

The Tasmanian Division in conjunction with the Institution of Engineers Aust., has produced a very informative symposium publication 'Conservation and Exploration'.

Price is $3-00 post free from Dr. R. Underwood, Geology Section, H.E.C., G.P.O. Box 355D, Hobart, Tasmania, 7001.

It will be reviewed in our next issue.

"Geological Map Interpretation"

by M. J. Rickards.

A comprehensive booklet for classes up to First year University, 54 pages and 50 figures.

Price:

$1.50 ea. including postage. bulk orders of 50 or more $1.00 per copy.

Available from: Department of Geology, Australian National University, Box 4, P .0., CANBERRA. A.C.T. 2600.

12

25TH INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGICAL CONGRESS (WOMEN'S COMMITTEE) 16TH AUGUST to 25TH AUGUST, 1976 .

The Internati onal Geologica l Congress is being held for the first time in Australia from 16th August 1976 to 25th August, 1976 , and the Sydney Universit y will be the Headquar ters of the Ladies ' Committee .

This Committee has been formed to look after the wives of the delegates , a large number of them from overseas, and the Committee is now calling for Volunteer s for:(a) (b) (c) (d)

Registrat ion Tabl e Hostesses in the Hosp itality Room Hostesses on tours Hostesses for luncheons

We realize it is difficult at this stage to commit oneself , however , it would help us if y ou would please fill in the following questionn aire and return it as soon as possible to : Mrs . D. J . McGarry, 37 Waterhous e Avenue, ST. IVES .

N.S.W . 2075 .

Please place a tick beside the function at which you may be able to help (a) (b)

Time

Registrat ion Table Hospital ity Room

16th Mon.

17th 18th Tues . Wed .

19th 20th Thur. Fri .

21st Sat.

22nd Sun.

23rd Mon .

24th 25th Tues. Wed .

9 a . m. l p.m .

12 . 30 p.m . 4 . 30 p . m. (c) (d) (e)

Tours (i) All day . . . (ii) Morning Tour .. . (iii) Afternoon Tour . ..

Luncheons Can you carry on a c onversati on in a foreign language? (i) Yes . .. . . (ii) No . .. . .

If so please state which language or languages

If you have any queries in regard to the above please phone:Dell McGarry (Chairwom an ) Imelda Mosher (Sub-Com mittee of Volunteer s) Wyn Swaine (Sub- Committee of Volunteer s) NAME ... . ... . . . . ....• . . . . .. ... . . . . . ...

ADDRESS PHONE .... . . .. .. . ......... . . ....... . . .

COMPANY AFFILIATI ON ..... . .. . ........ .

44-6863 498-3336 48-4180

THE GEOLOGY OF N.S.W. In Southern New South Wales was born

White and Chappell say this starts

In Palaeozoic time

At hot subduction traps.

A block of crust that Crooky calls

Other say that granite forms

The Tasman Geosyncline .

From sediment collapse'.

It seems that in the distant past

Sand I types did compare

The ocean floor was bent

As a frog to a koala

By Cambrian subduction zones

Until John Cameron analysed

That Scheibner did invent.

Some granites at Bombala.

The middle must curve down, not up;

And this is how the story went

A large sialic dish.

From Bredbo to the tropics

To stop the water running out ,

Until G.H. Packham said

And losing all the flysch'.

"Let ' s fit in Plate Tectonics" .

Stauffer and Rickard drove away

The Earth is made of rigid plates

To Queanbeyan's vice traps.

Or so the story goes.

At last they did come back again

Now and then these plates collide -

With Ordovician nappes.

As everybody knows.

The folds were upside down, they said,

Volcanic arcs are all emplaced

Because of sediment slumping.

In lithospheric tension .

But Selley says that that needs herds Of dinosaurs (whilst jumping). 1

How the plates break up again Doesn't rate a mention!

Three times the earth moved up and down

Serpentinites are now produced

Two shorter times, one long 'un

When the plates collide .

A fourth that no-one will believe

The ocean floor is pulled around

Is now called the Quidongan.

By gravitation glide.

Nasty granites did well up

Cambrian beds were thrust up by

Disturbing all the flysch!

Devonian VerschluckUNG .

The quartz, it helped a kraton make,

But Scheibner's ages seem not right,

Or thats what some would wish.

So his theory's also bung.

Granites Sand I, it seems

Magnetic poles that do not match

Come pelting through the crust.

~From data just released).

S always get up here first

And best of all for Carey's pride

Whilst I is left to rust.

The granites all faced East.

13

"Some continental drift we have"

George Williams, in a novel view

Or so John Griffiths said,

Explains it all quite neatly

"Before that you could drive a car

By cosmic process and the Moon

From Coolac to N.Z. "

Which blows our minds completely.

South East Aussie is made up

And there, alas, our story ends

Of lots of little bits

It's left for lesser lights

Harrington says "Amuse yo urselves

To sort out all the Recent sands and

With jigsaw puzzle fits".

Aboriginal sites.

- R. HILL

1

Selley, R.C. "Ancient Sedimentary Environments"

page 12.

Chapman and Hall, 1972.

[From 'Lithenea' , ANU Students Geo l. Soc.Magazine , Vol.5, No.l (April 1974)]

Letter to the Editor Sir, In West Africa I receive the Journal of the G.S.A. with This letter, therefore, a great delay of si x to eight months. may no longer be "news", as I hope that others have already However, here it is for raised · their voices in the matter. what it is worth, and to whom it may concern.

To generations of Australian and Overseas geo logists and certainly palaeontologists - the name Talbragar has been associated with a world famous Jurassic freshwater fish fauna .

Both in scientific papers and textbooks the term "Talbragar fish - beds - Jurassic" is a firmly established geological locality and household word, whatever the egregious state of "formalisation" of that term may be these days.

Yet, to my consternation, there goes colleague J. A. Dulhunty (J. geol. Soc. Aus., 20, Pt. 3, pp. 319-328), who probably knows that pa rt of N.S.W. better than anybody, and introduces (p. 324) a "Talbragar Formation - Triassic"!

Didn't the watchdogs of the N.S.W. Committee for Stratigraphic Nomenclature realise that the nomenclatorial wipe-out of "Talbragar/Jurassic" is going to create confusion not just I dare say there are enough other locally, but worldwide? local names available which could have been used for naming a Triassic formation.

I sincerely hope that this intruder, "Talbragar/Triassic" it is inadmissible. will soon disappear again; Rudi Brunnschweiler.

Ni amey, Republic of Niger.

14

BOOK REVIEW Geochemical Exp loratio n 1972 conta i ns the 37 pape rs presented at the 4th Internationa l Geochemical Exp lorat i on Symposium held in Londo n in April 1972.

The vol~me is pub lished by t he Institution of E i ning and Metallurgy (London) an d edited by M. J. J ones .

The Organizing Commit t ee , l ed by Professor J. Webb , concentrated on t hre e part icular areas: 1) the p roblems of prospect i ng in a r eas of thick t ransported overburden; 2) new analytica l t echniq ues, pa rticularl y flameless A-A, ion-sensitiv e e l ect rodes , radioisotope XRF, neutron activat~on and fission track techniques, and 3) interpretatio n of geostatistic al data.

Case histo ries are n ot e mphasised.

Although this is a record of the first Internationa l Geochemical conference held outside No rth America , it is heavily biased towards the peculiar problems of prospecting in areas of g lacial overburden in the Northe rn Hemisphere .

Only two papers deal di r ec tly with Australia and the So uth-we st Pacific; a paper by Hausen et al. on Sand Ni analyses of ultrabasic rocks from Canada and Australia with the a im of screening favourable p ros pec ts and a pape r on cluster ana lysis of data from rocks in th e New Eng land area by He sp and Rigby of C.S.I.R.O. However, many of the other pape rs deal with secondary dispersion in transported soils and with pathfinder elements; for example, Au as a pathfinder for p or phy ry copp e r deposits in Puerto Rico .

The role of Hg anomalies related to sulphides is discussed - in pa rticular th e deve lopment of a Zeeman spectrometer for Hg anal ysis in geological wo rk and env ironmental geo che mistry .

A strong correlation is noted by J. C. Robbins between atmospheric Hg l eve ls and Cu-Zn min e ralization in the West Pilbara, for exampl e .

The volume is well illustrated and carefully edited, th e emphasis on statistical treatment of ge ochemical data is particularly we lcome.

It should find a plac e in most geochemical offices and geo logical libraries and the price of £l2 or $30 U.S. is not unreasonable for a volume of 458 page s .

Publisher:

Institution of Mining and Metallurgy, 44 Portland P lace, London, WlN 4BR, U.K. I.A . M.G. CONFERENCE - MARCH, 1974.

Seventy-five delegates attended an internationa l Conference at Wollongong University College over the week-end of the 23rd and 24th March, 1974, on "Computer applications in the Earth Sciences" .

It was the first such Conference to be held in Australia.

The Conference was arranged by the Wollongong University College, jointly with the Internationa l Association of Mathematical Geology and was convened by Professor A. c .

Cook, Head of the Department of Geology at Wollongong University College and Dr. K. R. Johnson of the School of Applied Geology, the University of New South Wales.

The keynote speakers at the Conference were Professor J. W. Harbaugh of Stanford University and Professor D. F. Merriam of Syracuse University.

Anyone 1nterestea in Joining tne Internationa l Association for Mathematical Geology or in joining a specialist group on Mathematical Geology is invited to contact Professor A. C. Cook, Department of Geology, Wollongong University College.

15

25th I NTERNATIONAL GEOLOGICAL CONGRESS I NFO RMATI ON BULLETI N NO. 2

I NTRODUCTION This is the second i n the occasional series of Bullenins on the organization of the 25th International Geological the first havin g been issued in August 1973.

Congress; In the interval, the First Circular for the Congress was issued and there has b een little to report until the response to it could be anal y sed.

Although there was some delay in the distribution of the First Circular in c e rtain p arts of the world, and the closing date for response has been e x tended to 31 August, 1974, there had been sufficient response by the original closing date of 30 April for decisions to be taken at the Organizing Committee 2506 responses* from a meeting held on 15-16 May, 1974.

55% of whom had a total of 70 countries had been received; good chance and 35 % a fair chance of attending.

This Bulletin summarizes the position at the end of that meeting.

THE SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM SYMPOSIA A very large number of symposia have been proposed and organiz e rs have been asked to keep each as short as possible to minimise the already inevitable overlap of sessions with The s ymposia have been arranged according related interests.

For example, to the Congress Section to which each relates. geology (Section 1) are numPrecambrian to symposia related A full list of titles is given in bered 101.1, 101.2 etc.

Table 1.

SECTIONS The number of papers offered up to the end of April is 608, with tectonics, metallogenesis and palaeontology leading Conveners are now being appointed for each Section the field.

They will have considerable responsibilities and sub-Section. rangin g from an appraisal of paper synopses to management of the Section meetings, and pre-selection of papers to be offered for p ublication.

EXCURSIONS Of the 59 excursions offered in the First Circular, only A list of those being about 40 will be offered in the Second.

*The figure is now more than 3000 from 83 countries .

16

r e tained (subj e ct in s ome cas es to re v i ew in Au g ust, 1 9 74) give n in Tab l e 2.

is

TAB LE 1 25th INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGICAL CON GRESS SCHE DULE OF SYMPOSIA

No .

TITLE

SPONSOR(S)

101 . 1

Stratigrap hic subdivision of the Precambri a n (with special reference to the strati graphic significance of Precambrian g laciations)

IUGS Subcommission on Precambrian Stratigraphy

10 1 . 2

Earliest Archaean tectonics and magmatism

Inter-Union Commission on Geodynamics (ICG)

102 . 1

An experimental a pp roach to the g enesis of ore deposits

IUGS Co!TUY\ission on Ex perimental Petrology at High Pressures and Tempe ratures (CEP HPT)

102.2

Geology an d p etrology of the cry stalline domains of the earth's crust

Association for the Geological Study of the Deep Zones of the Earth's Crust (AZOPRO)

102 . 3

Exp erimental petrolog y relate d to extreme metamorphism

CEP HPT and ICG

102.4

Circum Pacific plutonism

International Geological Correlation Programme (IGCP)

102 . 5

Correlation of p rocesses

ICG

103 . 1

Structural characteristics of tectonic zones

Geological Society of Australia, Inc . , Specialist Group on Tectonics and Structural Ge ology (GSA- SGTSG)

103.2

Tectonic aspects of o p hiolites

IUGS Commission on Structural Geology

103 . 3

The structure of Australia and variations in tectonic sty le

GSA-SGTSG

endogenous

17

No.

TITLE

SPmlSOR (S)

103.4

Stress environment and displacements at continental margins

ICG (Working Groups 5 and 6)

103.5

Past distribution of continents

ICG (Work ing Group 10)

104.1

Metallogenesis in the light of the new global tectonics

International Federation of Societies of Economic Geologists (EFSEG)

104.2

Correlation of kaolin genesis and age

The Kaolin Working Group

104.3

Manganese

IAGOD Commission on Manganese Ore Deposits

106.1

Shallow marine elastic sedimentation

106.2

Continental arid climate lithogenesis

International Association of Sedimentologists (IAS) and the Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists (SEPM)

106. 3

Shallow marine and non--marine carbonate sedimentation

106 .4

Physical and chemical aspects of the formation of mobile belt sediments

106.5

The Precambrian/Cambrian boundary problem

IUGS Subcommission on Cambrian Stratigraphy (Precambrian/Cambrian boundary working group)

106.6

The international geochronological time scale

IUGS Subcommission on Stratigraphic Classification

~07.1

Morphology and environment

107 .2

Biogeography and palaeoclimates

International Palaeontological Association (IPA) and Australasian Palaeontological Group (APG)

107.3

Tertiary and Quaternary history of the Inda-Pacific region

18 '

No.

TITLE

SPONSOR(S)

107.4

Trace fossils

Trace Fossil Research Group

108.l

Economic geology of the sea floor

IUGS Commission for Marine Geology (CMB)

108.2

Active plate boundaries of the West Pacific

CMG and ICG

108.3

Circum-antarctic marine geology

CMG, ICG, Scientific Committee for Oceanographic Research (SCOR), Scientific Committee for Antarctic Research (SCAR) International Association of the Physical Sciences of the Oceans (IAPSO), and Engineering Committee on Oceanic Resources (ECOR)

108.4

Synthesis of deep sea drilling results in the Indian Ocean

CMG and ICG

109.l

Recent advances in exploration geophysics

International Conference on Geophysics of the Earth and the Oceans (ICOGEO), with Australian Society of Exploration Geophysicists (ASEG)

110.l

Geochemical Exploration

Association of Exploration Geochemists (AEG)

111.l

To be announced

International Association of Hydrogeologists

114.l

The application of transmission electron microscopy to mineralogy and crystallography

GSA Specialist Group on Geochemistry and Mineralogy

115.l

Origin and development of planetary craters

International Association of Planetology

115.2

Planetary tectonics

115.3

The lunar scientific station

115.4

Geochemistry of Mars

IUGS Commission on Meteorites

19

No.

SPONSOR(S)

TITLE

116.l

Application of data-base management systems to geological problems

IUGS Committee on Storage and Retrieval of Geological Data (COGEODATA)

11&.2

Random processes in geolog y

116.3

Quantitative methods in exploration geology

International Association for Mathematical Geology (IAMG)

116 . 4

'Open' papers on subjects of 116.2 and 3

117.l

Writing, editing and publishing geology

Association of Earth Science Editors (AESE) and Editerra Co ordinating Council

117.2

The growth of geological knowledge in the age of geographical exploration

Comnittee on the History of Geological Sciences (INHIGEO)

TABLE

2

EXCURSIONS TO BE RETAINED IN SECOND CIRCULAR *l *2 *3 4C SA; 6A; 7A; BA; *9 *10 13C 15A; 16A *17

SC 6C 7C BC

lSC

*26 30F.; 31A; 32A: 33A 37A 3BA *39 40A 42A 43A 44C 45C 46A

30C 31C 32C

47C 48A 49A

soc

51A 52A 53C SSA 57C SBC 59C

These excursions were originally planned to run both pre- and post- Congress, but there is not sufficient A final decision demand to run both economically. will be made in 3 months on which of the runs will be cancelled.

The demand for exc ursions 35A and 41C will be reviewed in 3 months to decide whether they should be re-instated.

The feasibility of running excursions 49, 50 and 53 as both pre- and post-Congress runs will be studied.

20

THE SYDNEY COMMITTEE A Sydney Comm i ttee has been established comprising the Sydney-resident members of the Organizing Committee , it s chairman and the Secretar y-General , and a number of co - opted Its function is Mr. G. (Toby) Rose is Chairman. members. to assist the Secretary-General in arranging activities which will take place in Sydney.

A number of sub-committees has been established under the Their activities are outlined below.

Sydney Commi ttee.

Member sh ip of the Commit t ee and it s sub-committee s is given in Appendix A. THE LADtES SUB- COMMITTEE A comprehensive program of a ctivitie s has been arr anged for accompany i ng members, and a hospitality room at the Congress centre will be staffed throughout the Congress (see the loose form enc l osed with this newsletter).

B- EXCURSIONS SUB- COMMITTEE 24 excursion s varying from a half to two days in l ength They cover a wide range of interes ts , have been planned. both geologically and culturally.

CAMPUS SUB- COMMITTEE Already a provisiona l allocation of space has been prepared and arrangemen t s initiated for the provision of services and facilities which wi l l be required at the Congress Centre.

ENTERTAINMENT AND INFORMATION SUB-·COMMITTEE Receptions, concerts , cocktail parties, racegoing, golf , bowls, home hospitality are all being organized, together with information booths, maps, a service directory and signs (other than those on campus).

GEORAMA SUB- COMMITTEE GEORAMA 7 6 is the name of the exhibition planned for the It is planned to hold this at three localities on Congress.

As campus and negotiations for accommodation are in hand. soon as these are satisfactorily completed, layout and design It is hoped to have full details of stands will be decided. ready in time for the Second Circular.

TBE JUNIOR CONGRESS SUB-COMMITTEE This caters for the 8 year old and over children whose 100 NSW school c~ildren parents are attending the Congress. are being sponsored to attend as well, and it is hoped that will also sponsor departments State and Territory education children from their schools.

Intere s ting programs have already been prepared, and it is aimed to provide programs of interest to all age groups covering a good range of topics.

21

~ISCF.LLANEA In spite of some interesting and well-drawn BADGE DESIGN designs having been submitted, none was considered wholly suitable for all the many requirements for a badge, and no All competitors were individually informed prize was given. of the decision.

The use of the Opera House has been OPENING CEREMONY reauested for the Opening Ceremony, but confirmation is not expected until September, 1974, when the 1976 schedules are prepared.

ACCOMMODATION 2,500 hotel rooms and a large number of University College Accommodation rooms have been block-booked for the Congress. will be allocated by QANTAS in response to applications received after the forms have been distributed with the Second Circular.

DEADLINES The following are some of the more important deadlines so far set: 31 August 1974

- revised date for response to First Circular.

13 September 1974

- copy. for Second Circular to SecretaryGeneral.

1 October 1975

- synopses of papers to Secretary-General.

29 February 1976

- abstracts of papers to Secretary-General.

29 February 1976

- last day for reduced rate ($60-00) prepayment of registration fee.

COMMEMORATIVE STAMP In spite of a very determined effort to persuade PMG's Department to follow established precedent and produce a commemorative stamp, the request was finally refused.

INSTITUTIONAL INVITATIONS Oversea invitations have been sent out, and invitations to Australian institutions to be represented at the Congress will be sent out in July, 1974.

FEEDBACK The Organizing Committee would like to be kept informed of any activity - e.g. special publications - planned to coincide with the 25th International Geological Congress.

22

APPENDIX A 25TH INTERi~ATIONAL GEOLOGICAL CONGRESS SYDNEY COMMITTEE AND SUBCOMMITTEE MEMBERS SYDNEY COMMITTEE Mr. G. Rose - Chairman Mr. D. McGarry Prof. G. Philip Mr. A. Renwick Prof. P. Howard Mr. K. Horler Mr. S. Hannaford Dr. G. Taylor Mr. L. Furlong Prof. F. Beavis Mr. J. Elliston Dr. N. Fisher Mrs. Libby Bates, QANTAS representative Mr. w. Foskett, Transport Co-ordinator Mr. M. Lake, Advisor from Premiers Department Mr. W. Langley, Secretary.

LOCAL EXCURSIONS SUBCOMMITTEE

LADIES SUBCOMMITTEE Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Mrs.

Mr. c. Adamson - Chairman Dr. D. Branagan Mr. 0. Shiels Dr. I. Wallace Miss Jeanette Adrian Mr. D. Berkman Mr. H. Geutsche Prof. F. Loughnan

Del McGarry - Chairman Barbara Probert - Vice Chairman June Walpole - Treasurer Carmel Rose - Secretary Peggy Loughnan Mardi Seedsman Rosemary Markham Wyn Swaine Imelda Mosher June Ivanac

CANBERRA CONVENER Mr. E. G. Wilson

CAMPUS SUBCOMMITTEE Prof. G. Philip Mr. E. Atkinson Mr. B. O'Leary Dr. H. Jenkins Mr. w. Chesnut Mr. R. Blackwood Dr. J. Roberts

- Chairman

NEWCASTLE SUBCOMMITTEE Prof. Beryl Nasher Mr. G. Harman Mr. S. McKnight JUNIOR CONGRESS SUBCOMMITTEE

ENTERTAINMENT AND INFORMATION SUBCOMMITTEE Mr. K. Horler - Chairman Dr. J. Pickett Mr. L. Furlong - Deputy Chairman GEORAMA SUBCOMMITTEE Mr. D. Pinkstone - Chairman Mr. R. Lucas

23

Mr. C. McDonald - Chairman Mr. A. Watson Miss Jeanette Mccusker Mr. D. Nicholson Mrs. Joyce Brister Miss P. Bucknell Mr. w. Sykes