Industry, science and resources portfolio

Australian Geological Survey Organisation

The Australian Geological Survey Organisation (AGSO) is Australia’s national geoscience research and information agency. It aims to enhance the potential for the Australian community to obtain economic, social and environmental benefits through the application of first-class geoscientific research and information. It helps the government and the community it serves to make appropriate and informed decisions about the exploitation of resources, the management of the environment and the safety and wellbeing of its citizens.

AGSO’s scientific activities fall into three broad areas: geoscience for urban centres, for oceans and coasts, and for regional and rural areas.

Some key priorities for AGSO for 2001-02 are:

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  increased awareness and improved capability of communities to address the risk posed by natural hazards through the provision of risk assessments and decision-support tools for urban areas;
  
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  enhanced community safety and public awareness through the provision of scientific advice on earthquakes and nuclear explosions;
  
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  definition of the outer limit of the extended continental shelf around Australia and its island territories as part of the technical case for Australia’s claim to an extended continental shelf to be submitted to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf by November 2004;
  
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  identification of new offshore oil zones, especially in frontier basins, through pre-competitive geoscience research and mapping;
  
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  application of geoscience to finding solutions for land use and land degradation issues;
  
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  greater understanding of the three dimensional evolution of the Australian landscape; and
  
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  identification of areas of new mineral potential, especially under cover, through pre-competitive geoscience research and mapping.