Robbie Vinnicombe has spent the past 30 years combing the red dirt of outback Queensland searching for a rare bounty.
"This area alone produces 50 per cent of all the opal that's produced annually for this region," Mr Vinnicombe said. Joseph Taranto and his wife, Natasha, own one of the storefronts in the popular tourist town touted as the "boulder opal capital of the world." Two of his mining claims are in the renewal process but there's been no word from the state government on whether it will be permitted.
It sits at the headwaters of one of Queensland's most important inland river catchments, the Lake Eyre Basin.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more: