This summer, I undertook my vacation program and industry placement with the Cameby Downs Team in Chinchilla, Western Downs, Queensland. A four-hour drive carried me away from the hustle and bustle of the city into endless stretches of Australian grassland. Every day, I travelled through what locals proudly call “melon country”, greeted to and from work by Chinchilla’s iconic giant watermelon.
Stepping Onto Site: Learning the Operations
My first week focussed on essential inductions and familiarisation across the mine site. I visited the coal handling processing plant (CHPP), tailings storage facilities (TSFs), a culturally protected heritage area featuring petrified wood, the main pit, dump areas, crib rooms and the maintenance workshop.
At the CHPP, I observed how cyclones were used to wash thermal coals for export to international markets. The team carefully balances Run-of-Mine (ROM) feed, ash yield and sulphur content to meet strict coal quality specifications and train schedules. Seeing how operational decisions directly influence product quality and logistics gave me a new appreciation for the integration of engineering, geology and market requirements.
I spent two weeks working alongside the project engineer to help align the automated reporting system with real time truck operations. The objective was to reduce unnecessary manual handling of haul cycle record sheets and improve efficiency.
The Python course I completed through UQ’s Study For Staff program in semester 2, 2024 proved to be invaluable. It enabled me to interpret coding scripts and make practical adjustments. During this period, I also had the opportunity to sit inside a digger and a dump truck, gaining firsthand insight into the day-to-day tasks of operators.
For the majority of my placement, I worked with the Mine Technical Services team. Although the team was lean and constantly managing competing priorities, the collaborative culture stood out. Even when heavy rain and lightning disrupted schedules, the team remained resilient and solution focused.
Through this experience, I learned to:
(1) Correlate coal plies and lithological units using Micromine Geobank, logged photos and geophysical data;
(2) Log geotechnical hazards and failures, and assign appropriate Triggered Action Response Plan (TARP) levels; and
(3) Observe the preparation and execution of a blast event, from drilling and detonator installation, to drone monitoring of blast performance and post-blast site clearance.
Participating in these processes strengthened my understanding of how geological interpretation, safety management and production planning intersect in practice.
Taking samples
Beyond technical services, I supported the environmental team by measuring water quality at tailings dams and monitoring onsite dam water level alongside the surveyor. This highlighted the importance of environmental compliance and responsible resource management in modern mining.
To better understand the mine’s processing flowsheet, two other vacation students, Nazly Lozada Gelves and Alex Grant, and I conducted plant performance sampling. We collected coarse coal, coarse and fine rejects, thickener material and belt-cut ROM samples at 15-minute intervals, taking five samples for each material stream. This hands-on sampling exercise provided valuable exposure to metallurgical accounting and process optimisation.
Life at the mining camp was equally memorable. I formed friendships with colleagues from South America who made my Spanish practice both fun and practical, “Me llamo Lexi, ¿ cómo estás?”
I developed a healthy routine using the onsite gym and the convenience of catered meals. The camp was beautifully maintained, with landscaped gardens often visited by woodland birds such as fairywrens and hooded robins. The local township facilities including Western Downs Cinemas and Chinchilla Aquatic Centre added another dimension to the experience.
Over the Australia Day weekend, I visited Roma and Dalby. Despite an intense heatwave, walking through the Roma disc golf park and seeing the majestic Bottle Tree along with the bottle trees lining Heroes Avenue, was both memorable and meaningful. The avenue stands as a tribute to fallen soldiers who served in World War 1, offering a powerful moment of reflection. I also visited the LifeFlight Roma Visitor Experience Centre, where I explored a rescue “chopper” and tried a helicopter simulator.
Vacation Program Opportunity
I am truly grateful to Yancoal for welcoming me into this vacation program, which was also recognised by UQ’s Graduate School and the ARC Training Centre in Critical Resources for the Future (ARC-CCRF) team. This opportunity allowed me to formally integrate my three-month industry experience into the UQ Industry Placement program, making the experience both professionally valuable and personally enriching.
I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to Nazly and the Yancoal staff: Blake Harris, Kieren Seccombe, Ben Chen, Sarah J. Hill, Jesse Lumsden, Mitch Byrne, Brayden McConnell, Isabelle Vicente, Les Merton, Duncan Thomson, Harsha Medarametla, Toni Ludwig, Michelle Harding, Robert Craike and Joyce for their guidance and support. I am equally thankful for the continuous encouragement from my PhD supervisory team, Anita Parbhakar-Fox, Olivia Mejias Gonzalez, Helen Degeling and Xiaodong Ma, whose support made this journey possible.
This placement not only strengthened my technical skills but also deepened my understanding of teamwork, resilience and the broader social and environmental context of mining. Stepping into “melon country was more than a geographical shift; it was a transformative professional experience!