Videos

Where’s Surveyor Generals Corner?

Fred Murray, Oz Minerals, checks the GPS to locate the Surveyor General’s Corner, just off the Gunbarrel Highway. Fred, with another Gateways for Youth board member, Alan Zubrinich, travelled with staff Martin Slattery and Geoff Deans while promoting initiatives being implemented with APY communities.

Geoff and Martin

In the middle of no-where in particular, another idea comes together. Drawn in the sand, the initiative takes shape, discussed further in coming slides. Thanks to Zoob, Fred, Geoff and other Fred.

Surveyors General’s Corner marker

Western Australia – South Australia – Northern Territory Border

A glance at most maps of Australia will tell you something that isn’t quite true. The border that runs along the eastern edge of Western Australia is not actually one continuous straight line.

The survey of the W.A. border was first discussed in 1911, but it wasn’t until 1922 that an agreement was signed between then Prime Minister W.M. Hughes, and Acting Premier for South Australia, Mr. Bice, and the Premier of Western Australia, Sir James Mitchell. The agreement set out the border as being a line determined by the 129th meridian east longitude. However, the agreement required that the boundary be defined by lines running north and south from independently fixed points at Deakin and Argyle. When survey work began on the South Australia – Northern Territory border in 1963, it was quickly realised that the earlier agreement precluded the possibility of these lines meeting exactly.

Precise survey methods confirmed this, and in June 1968, two monuments – approximately 127 metres apart – were erected at the junction of the boundaries. This ceremony was attended by the respective Surveyor Generals, H.Comm from Western Australia, H.A. Bailey from South Australia, and P.J. Wells from the Northern Territory. The monuments common to all three territories was named Surveyor General’s Corner at the suggestion of the Director of National Mapping. One interesting piece of trivia is that fewer people have visited this site than have been to the South Pole.

Sign post article

When the nearest hamburger is 500km away, the nearest Subway is 1500km away and the State capital 1700km away, you need to take a closer interest in any and all sign posts. In this region we saw over 30 camels for every other vehicle we passed, so you are pretty much on your own for most of the time.

Taking to the bush

Leaving the comfort of the vehicles, and taking to the bush, the Gateways Board members inspect the area for camel damage.

Group Shot

Fred Murray, Alan Zubrinich and Geoff Deans discussing the “scheme of things” which make up the vast mine at Prominent Hill. The other person is the site guide, who engaged with us in an entertaining chat on the fine art of divining opals with a piece of fencing wire. A handy skill if you’ve got it!

OZ Minerals Pit

Laden with a 250 tonne payload, the dump truck makes its way from the bottom of the pit. The machine is powered by a 117 litre engine, producing 3,550hp. Each tire is 13 feet tall, weigh 4 tonnes each and cost over $40,000 each. A tonne of liquid coolant works to keep the engine cool.

Oz Minerals Processing Plant

July ’08 sees the giant mecanno set being pieced together to form the Prominent Hill Processing Plant. The plant is to process and deliver some 2.5 million tonnes of copper and 7.4 million ounces of gold.

Leigh Creek workshop

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