L15 - Bacchus Marsh - Maddingley Coal Seam

This information has been developed from this publication:

Sites of Geological and Geomorphological Significance in the Western Region of Melbourne (1986) by Neville Rosengren

Geological heritage sites, including sites of geomorphological interest and volcanic heritage sites, are under regular revision by the Geological Society of Australia, especially in the assessment of significance and values. Reference should be made to the most recent reports. See the Earth Science Heritage (external link) section of the Geological Society of Australia website for details of geological heritage reports, and a bibliography.

Location:	Lerderderg - 745232. Shire of Bacchus Marsh. 3 km south of Bacchus Marsh.	Bacchus Marsh - Maddingley Coal Seam
Access:	South Maddingley Road.
Ownership:	Private land
Site Description:	The Maddingley No. 2 open cut is the only brown coal mine currently operating in the Bacchus Marsh district. It extracts coal from a seam averaging 30 m thick under only 10 m of overburden in an area free from overlying lava flows. The lavas have been eroded by the Parwan Creek, and the mining company has diverted the creek to the east in an artificial channel to allow access to the coal seam. The coal is of lesser grade than the La Trobe valley coal but is suitable as an industrial fuel. The coal is of Early Miocene age, and overlies and is interbedded with the Werribee Formation. The seams are probably laterally continuous with those known sub-surface at Altona. There are abundant plant remains in the coal including woody material and large trees. Part of one large tree trunk was successfully made into paper by a private research laboratory.
Significance:	State. The coal seams are the third largest known in Victoria (after the La Trobe valley area and Anglesea deposits). They are a readily recognisable geological material and provide clear evidence of a terrestrial depositional environment. There is abundant plant material to allow detailed reconstruction of the species composition of the swamp forest communities that gave rise to the coal deposits. This open cut provides a clear section view of the geological relationships of the coal to the overlying sediments.
Management:	Class 2. A section of the open cut (preferably with abundant visible plant material) should be reserved for education purposes, and a safe access and viewing platform provided.
	The economic geology and stratigraphy of the coalified and a detailed reference list is provided in Roberts PS (1984).

Site - L15

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