alive and well - Geological Society of Australia
alive and well - Geological Society of Australia
alive and well - Geological Society of Australia
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Newsfrom the Specialist GroupsSpecialist Group inEconomic Geology (SGEG)The Specialist Group in Economic Geology (SGEG) is the largest SpecialistGroup <strong>of</strong> the GSA, with in excess <strong>of</strong> 500 members. However, in recentyears, the SGEG has been relatively inactive compared to other, smallerGSA Specialist Groups. Perhaps this is because the SGEG to some degree‘competes’ with international societies such as the <strong>Society</strong> <strong>of</strong> EconomicGeologists (SEG) <strong>and</strong> the <strong>Society</strong> for Geology Applied to Mineral Deposits(SGA), both <strong>of</strong> which are active in <strong>Australia</strong>. There is also the AustralasianInstitute <strong>of</strong> Geoscientists (AIG), which is arguably the peakrepresentative body for <strong>Australia</strong>n geoscientists in the minerals industry.Nevertheless, the SGEG’s continued large membership base suggests thatthere is a role for the group in the GSA. It is clearly beneficial forthe <strong>Society</strong> to have a voice relevant to the minerals industry, whichemploys so many <strong>of</strong> our current <strong>and</strong> potential members in the broadergeoscientific community.The SGEG annually awards the AB Edwards Medal for the best paper inthe field <strong>of</strong> economic geology published in AJES <strong>of</strong> the previous year.Selection criteria include scientific impact <strong>and</strong> international relevance,discussion <strong>of</strong> novel concepts or ideas <strong>and</strong> the overall quality <strong>of</strong> the presentationin text <strong>and</strong> figures. The winning paper for Volume 57 (2010) isby RR An<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> CRM Butt ‘A guide for mineral exploration throughthe regolith in the Yilgarn Craton, Western <strong>Australia</strong>’. The award for thebest paper in Volume 58 (2011) went to RC Morris <strong>and</strong> M Kneeshaw fortheir article ‘A critical review <strong>of</strong> genesis modelling for the HamersleyBIF-hosted iron ores <strong>of</strong> Western <strong>Australia</strong>’. Both awards were presentedduring the GSA Awards Ceremony at the 34th IGC in Brisbane in thefirst week <strong>of</strong> August <strong>and</strong> citations for both papers are provided in thecolumn ‘From the AJES Hon Editor’s desk’ in this issue <strong>of</strong> TAG.After almost a decade <strong>of</strong> tireless service as Chair <strong>of</strong> the SGEG, FrankBierlein stepped down from the role prior to the 34th IGC. Althoughscheduling issues prevented a general meeting <strong>of</strong> the SGEG during theconference, a h<strong>and</strong>over <strong>of</strong> Executive duties was agreed between Frank<strong>and</strong> me. This will see the Executive Committee <strong>of</strong> the SGEG based atCSIRO in Perth for at least the next two years. I welcome input from allmembers <strong>of</strong> the SGEG on its future direction. With the help <strong>of</strong> RobHough, other colleagues at CSIRO, <strong>and</strong> the vibrant economic geologyresearch <strong>and</strong> minerals industry community in Western <strong>Australia</strong>, I’mconfident that we can reinvigorate the SGEG <strong>and</strong> once againdemonstrate the relevance <strong>of</strong> the GSA to the important field <strong>of</strong> economicgeology.CHRIS YEATSIncoming ChairSpecialist Group in Economic Geology (SGEG)chris.yeats@csiro.auSpecialist Group in Tectonics <strong>and</strong> Structural Geology (SGTSG) 2012post-conference field trip participants. Left to right — Antoinette Stryk,Nicole Cox, Laura Fox, Nasim Karazizaden, Ivan Zibra, David Moore, VinceMor<strong>and</strong>, Thomas Bell, Wolfgang Preiss, Brenton Crawford, Fabio Vergara,David Durney <strong>and</strong> Ross Cayley. Powers Lookout is a spectacular spot onUpper Devonian/Lower Carboniferous fluvial rocks that straddle the tectonicboundary between the Melbourne <strong>and</strong> Tabberabbera Zones in centralVictoria. Image courtesy Ross Cayley.22 |TAG September 2012