Keynote Speech - Near-Surface Geophysics and Australia’s Challenge

The definition of “near-surface” in geophysics has not reached a consensus. There are two classes of geophysicists who work on the “near-surface” problems: one interested in physical properties of near surface material and the other trying to understand near surface to improve deeper image. The former is typically for engineering and environmental applications and the latter is for resource exploration.

Engineering geophysics is slowly penetrating to geotechnical community in Australia but many engineers are not aware of its effectiveness and geophysical techniques are not utilised to their full potential. Geophysics is only a minor part of geotechnical engineering curriculum. In the field of environmental geophysics, airborne electromagnetic surveys are used to address Australia’s salinity problem.

Declining discovery rate of minerals in Australia prompted a new initiative to collaborate the governments, research organisations, academia and industry. Geophysics is expected to be a major contributor in mapping out the thickness and properties of the cover material in the area as large as Europe. We are facing a big challenge in providing accurate information over a large area in a timely manner.

While the challenges are within Australia, the issues addressed here are universal, and the result achieved may be useful globally.