This fact sheet explores the environmental issues associated with uranium mining in Australia. What are the potential risks to the environment with uranium mining and how are governments and mining operators currently collaborating to manage these risks? Find out how mining companies seek approvals for mining plants and what is required of them before, during and after the operation.

QER is acknowledged with providing assistance for this resource."Decantation to separate oil and water "After oil and water are extracted from oil shale at the QER New Fuels Development Centre, they settle in measure tanks which are kept warm to help the oil and water to separate into layers. In this way, the water can be decanted off to separate it from the oil. In this lesson you will learn to decant a mixture of oil and water.In this lesson, students will investigate decanting as a means of separating a mixture of oil and water.This lesson has been designed to align with the science Australian Curriculum year 7.

QER is acknowledged with providing assistance for this resource."Dehydration of oil shale"Oil shale is composed of between 17 and 25% water and before the oil can be extracted, this moisture needs to be removed. To extract the water from the oil shale, the shale passes through a drying plant, like an enormous pizza oven, in which hot air is blown over it at 200 degrees Celsius. In this lesson, an experiment is conducted to reproduce this process and determine just how much water a rock can hold.This lesson has been designed to align with the science Australian Curriculum year 8.

QER is acknowledged with providing assistance for this resource."Chemistry of extracting oil from oil shale"Hydrocarbons have been recovered from shale containing an organic material called kerogen for at least 600 years. In northwest Colorado, Ute Indian legends told of warriors who saw lightning ignite certain rock formations, causing them to burn. Cowboys and rangers burned the dark rock in their fires like coal. Its said that a Parachute area rancher and frontiersman named Mike Callihan discovered the phenomenon in spectacular style. Unknowingly building his fireplace of oil shale, upon lighting his first fire he experienced the ultimate in housewarmings, with both fireplace and cabin going up in flames!From such experiences came the knowledge of oil shale. Using content from QERs New Fuels Development Centre and oil shale mine at Yarwun near Gladstone, students will gain an increased understanding of how the oil shale mining process works.In this lesson, students will identify physical changes and chemical reactions in the process of extracting oil from oil shale and articulate the role of heat and catalysts in increasing the rate of chemical reactions.This lesson has been designed to align with the science Australian Curriculum year 10.

QER is acknowledged with providing assistance for this resource."Minimising environmental impacts"A field trip for students to explore for themselves elements of mine site rehabilitation by conducting a site survey, and strategies for the minimisation of greenhouse gas and other emissions, is a great learning opportunity. But for those who cant make it to the QER site in Gladstone, this lesson brings it to your classroom.In this lesson, students will:* Compare rehabilitated sites with undisturbed, native bushland. * Explore methods that are used to reduce greenhouse gas and other emissions at the QER new fuels development centre.This lesson has been designed to align with the science Australian Curriculum year 9.

QER is acknowledged for providing assistance with this resource.Oil shale is composed of between 17 and 25% water and before the oil can be extracted, this moisture needs to be removed. To achieve this, the oil shale passes through a drying plant, like an enormous pizza oven, in which hot air is blown over it at 200 degrees Celsius.In this experiment, students will reproduce this process and determine just how much water a rock can hold.

The Minerals Council of Australia is acknowledged as the provider of this resource.In this learning object, students examine everyday things around a house to find out which metals they contain. For example, the inner part of a microwave oven contains aluminium, copper, iron and manganese. Students will also investigate the properties of each metal to explain why they are suited to particular uses, work out how much of each metal is needed to make a particular product and calculate supplies of resources needed to meet global demand. This learning object is one in a series of three objects.

The Minerals Council of Australia is acknowledged as the provider of this resource.Nearly everything we own is either grown or mined! We often dont stop to think where items such as cars, houses, laptops even toothpaste comes from.This is an activity where students look at everyday objects and examine their origins. They learn about minerals, metals, their properties and uses and start to develop ideas around conservation of materials and recycling.The lesson includes a student worksheet and an information sheet about the mineral derivation of common objects.

The Minerals Council of Australia is acknowledged as the provider of this resource.Many things that people use are made from minerals and metals. In order to have these things the minerals or metals to make them can come from recycled materials or are mined. The recycling of metals provides a small percentage of the materials demanded by consumers. Therefore to provide for this demand particularly in developing countries minerals are mined and processed. Australia has large and accessible deposits of iron ore, gold, copper, silver, lead, zinc and nickel as well as the energy resources - coal and uranium. These provide over 30% of Australias commodity exports. The mining and processing of these minerals occupies 0.05% of Australias land mass.

The Minerals Council of Australia is acknowledged as the provider of this resource.This is a plan for a sequence of lessons in which students survey their school environment and develop a Sustainable School Environmental Management Plan (SSEMP). It contains links to a variety of activities and worksheets to facilitate the process.