Metalliferous Mineralisation in Northeast Queensland: A Review of the Eighties and a View Towards the Nineties

Following unprecedented high market prices for tin and gold in 1980, significant advances in both mining technology and geological knowledge took place in northeast Queensland. These led to a rapid growth in mining activity. Production of these traditional metals reached levels comparable to those of the heyday of mining activity at the turn of the century.Although tin and tungsten prices have since collapsed, the geological knowledge gained and significant discoveries made during the boom, have created a potential for mine development when prices rise again. For other discoveries which are not workable because of treatment problems, future technological advances are required to raise their potential.