Lindsay Collins, Australian marine geologist, died at 71

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Lindsay Boyd Collins, born on  February 19, 1944 and died September 2, 2015, he was an Australian marine geologist and sedimentologist, a faculty member in the department of applied geology at Curtin University in Western Australia.

He was interested in studying the continental shelf of Western Australia and coral reefs.

Collins was a prominent scholar, he has completed projects on continental shelf mapping of Australian shelves, microbialites and seagrass banks at Shark Bay, and coral reef studies at the Abrolhos, Ningaloo, Scott Reef, the Rowley Shoals and the Kimberley.

Collins completed his PhD at the University of Western Australia in 1983 on continental shelf sedimentation.

He has worked in petroleum exploration as a specialist sedimentologist, and as a researcher in continental shelf, coral reef and coastal geology, specialising in carbonate sedimentation.

He has been Chief Scientist aboard RV Franklin, a national research vessel, on several occasions.

Collins was formerly Assistant Director of CRC LEME, and Head of Applied Geology for 6 years.

Up until his passing he was a member of the Australia-New Zealand Science Council for the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) and a Project Leader for the WA Marine Science Institution (WAMSI) Kimberley Research Program.

A long association with Shark Bay led to the Curtin Shark Bay Project and the Caring for Our Country Shark Bay Project (Curtin, CSIRO, UWA, WAMSI).

Collins ‘s research interests include continental shelf sedimentology and substrate mapping, coral reefs of the Western Australian continental margin, clastic and carbonate petroleum reservoirs, coastal mapping for management using remote sensing and GIS, sea levels, Tertiary limestone deposition and evolution, stromatolites, and warm and cool water carbonates.

Recent projects have investigated coastal vulnerability at Geraldton Port and in the Mid-West region, the evolution of Stromatolites and Thrombolites in coastal embayments and lakes, growth history of coral reef systems of Australia’s western margin, controlling influences on the variability of reefal and carbonate system and continental shelf, slope and coastal processes and sediments.

Recent research sponsors include the Western Australian Marine Science Institute (WAMSI), Woodside Energy Ltd, Department of Transport (Marine), and Petrobras.

He had a long history at Curtin University, and was involved in teaching, research, and several years as Head of Department.

In the over 40 years with the university, he has taught thousands of undergraduate students, supervised more than 40 honours and postgrad students, produced over 90 peer reviewed papers and reports, and led or co-investigator on at least 20 grants and consultancies worth almost AUD $11 million.