The NSW Government has ruled out considering a significant proportion of the state’s coal regions for proactive release under the Strategic Release Framework for Coal and Petroleum Exploration. In these mapped areas, new coal exploration can continue to occur directly adjacent to an existing coal title, if an exploration licence applicant meets approval requirements. If a coal exploration licence is granted, an operator is not permitted to access the land unless they have an access arrangement with the landholder. The grant of a coal exploration licence is not a guarantee of mining. An operator would still need to obtain development consent under the planning framework.

The Geological Survey of NSW developed a Seamless Geology of UTM Zone 56 during 2014 as part of a project to develop a seamless vector geology dataset of the best available geological mapping data covering the whole of NSW.The overarching aims of the Statewide Seamless Geology Project were to: (i) compile the different original scales, formats and rock unit naming conventions into a consistent, statewide format; (ii) edge-match the geology across existing map sheets; and (iii) interpret the basement geology under cover. The resulting geodatabase comprises a series of layers which include: (i) solid basement geology; (ii) cover rocks (defined as undeformed and unmetamorphosed); (iii) Mesozoic igneous rocks; and (iv) Cenozoic sedimentary and igneous rocks. The project was divided into 3 major stages corresponding to the UTM zones which divide New South Wales. This dataset includes the seamless geology layers from the NSW portion of UTM Zone 56 (ie.east of 150 degrees longitude to the coast).

AEM curtains are a set of cross-sections generated using geophysical inversion to convert AEM data to conductivity (m/S) versus depth below surface (m). These data represent the conductivity of soil and rocks to a depth of about 400 m. A pseudocolour-stretch has been applied to the data. Blue represents low conductivity values and red represents high values. The colours vary due to; (1) natural variations in the electrical properties of soils, rocks, minerals and groundwater, (2) man-made structures, radio-transmissions and lightning strike and (3) AEM system artefacts.

Seismic surveys acquired by NSW and Commonwealth Government Agencies and private companies.

The Geological Survey of NSW developed a Seamless Geology of UTM Zone 56 during2014 as part of a project to develop a seamless vector geology dataset of the best available geological mapping data covering the whole of NSW.The overarching aims of the Statewide Seamless Geology Project were to: (i) compile the different original scales, formats and rock unit naming conventions into a consistent, statewide format; (ii) edge-match the geology across existing map sheets; and (iii) interpret the basement geology under cover. The resulting geodatabase comprises a series of layers which include: (i) solid basement geology; (ii) cover rocks (defined as undeformed and unmetamorphosed); (iii) Mesozoic igneous rocks; and (iv) Cenozoic sedimentary and igneous rocks. The project was divided into 3 major stages corresponding to the UTM zones which divide New South Wales. This dataset includes the seamless geology layers from the NSW portion of UTM Zone 56 (ie.east of 150 degrees longitude to the coast).

This layer shows the boundaries of each airborne gravity survey acquired by the NSW Government. Details on the spacing and age of the gravity data within each project area are in the attributes. The information contained in this publication is based on knowledge and understanding at time of writing (April 2017). Because of advances in knowledge, users are reminded of the need to ensure that information upon which they rely is up to date. The information contained in this publication may not be or may no longer be aligned with government policy nor does the publication indicate or imply government policy.

Core library samples that have been scanned by the NSW Hylogger. The HyLogger system acquires information on rock, ore and alteration minerals in drillcore, chips and pulps that are often difficult or impossible for the human eye to interpret correctly. Reflected light from the samples is broken into hundreds of different wavelengths by several spectrometers, allowing the recognition of unique spectral signatures for each mineral. This technology is also used on cores from petroleum and carbon dioxide (CO2) geosequestration wells to obtain mineralogical data that may complement porosity and permeability studies. X-ray diffraction and X-ray fluorescence instruments are used for rapid characterisation of a wide range of geological materials and for validating HyLogger data. The GSNSW offers a number of HyLogger scanning services to industry and academia. Each service requires a level of investment by the client and offers different periods of confidentiality.

Greyscale image of second vertical derivative (2VD) of total magnetic intensity reduced to the pole (TMI RTP). Darker tones indicate lower values and lighter tones represent higher values. Reduction to the pole filters magnetic anomalies to appear as if the Earth's magnetic field were locally vertical, as at the magnetic pole (assuming all magnetic sources are inductively magnetised). The 2VD filter shows the vertical rate of change in the first vertical derivative (1VD) of the Earth's total magnetic field and enhances boundaries and structural detail of shallow sources further than 1VD. The 2VD filter enhances magnetic textures in the image, however, it also amplifies non-geological noise. Variations in the magnetic field are caused by lithological factors, principally magnetite (and/or pyrrhotite) content. This Statewide image was generated by merging many individual airborne magnetic surveys.

The Competitive Allocation Pathway is designed to maximise the value of a suitable unallocated coal resource through a competitive process. The Department of Regional NSW’s (Regional NSW) Guideline for the Competitive Allocation of Coal (December 2020) sets out when the Competitive Allocation Pathway applies.

A subset of the NSW water bore dataset focused specifically on Cobar.