Coal is a common fuel used worldwide mainly in the production of electricity. It is used for cooling, heating, powering machines, charging mobile phones and even electric cars. It is also used in furnaces to produce metals like steel and can be used in the manufacturing of plastics, explosives, fertilisers, cement, bricks and tiles. Find out more about coal, its uses, how it is mined and processed the coal export industry in this fact sheet.

Copper is a metal which is mined from the earth and used for a number of different purposes. It was formed as a result of volcanic activity which resulted in large masses of molten rock and hot water cooling and then solidifying into copper crystals. This fact sheet provides an overview of copper and its uses, how it is mined and processed and the rehabilitation process post mining.

This PowerPoint provides an overview of coal and its uses. Includes how coal was formed, location of coal deposits in Australia, how coal is mined and how the land is rehabilitated after coal mining. The notes section of the PowerPoint includes background information on the slides.

Science Rocks is a middle school teaching resource which contains a multitude of hands-on and student relevant teaching ideas about rocks, minerals and the work of geoscientists. It contains a wealth of ready to use lessons and resource sheets for students from year 4-9.Some activities include exploring the rock cycle through song and kinaesthetic activities, examining and identifying rocks and crystals, writing a biography of a scientist and even investigating the seven different minerals present in a toothpaste tube.

This PowerPoint examines the formation, properties and uses of the mineral sands mined on North Stradbroke Island. A detailed glossary is provided.

The supply of oil and fuel is critical to transport systems that involve the movement of freight and people by air, rail and road. In Australia, reserves of accessible and inexpensive conventional oil to contribute to this demand are rapidly depleting. This fact sheet looks at the importance of oil shale, how it is mined, what it is used for a brief history.