Bowen Basin

Locality and Geological Map of The Bowen Basin Coal Basin Central Queensland, 1949. This map from 1949 predates the shift to both modern open-cut coal mining and coal seam gas development in Queensland. Exploring the map in detail shows many of the places where coal had been reported in either outcropping or in water bores or government exploration wells. The significance of the map to coal seam gas industry lies in the combination of coal discovery in water bores. Coal seam gas comes to the surface in water that is stored in coal seams; water bores are put down by pastoralists and farmers to supplement their water supplies. The map shows the gathering of knowledge for exploitation and the competing land-use interests in Queensland. From Powell Duffryn Technical Services, First report on the coal industry of Queensland, Volume 3, Plate 40, Collection of The University of Queensland Library.