Resources Online Updates and FAQs

If your application includes activities on more than one tenement, you should specify the correct tenement ID for each activity in the tenement_I field of the shapefile’s .dbf (attribute data) table.

Follow these tips to help ensure your shapefile uploads successfully and is processed correctly by SEALS:

1. Start with the relevant sample shapefiles to create your own version in your GIS system. These include the correct field structure and formatting for the attribute data.
2. Refer to the Spatial Upload Format Guide to check the required table structures and field formats, including:
   1. Field names
   2. Data types (e.g. text, number, decimal)
   3. Value constraints and formatting rules
3. Before exporting your shapefile, make sure:
   1. All mandatory fields are included and completed
   2. The attribute table follows the required structure
   3. Field formats are consistent and accurate

Using the correct format from the start helps prevent upload errors and avoids the need to edit the attribute data in SEALS.

Start by downloading the relevant sample shapefile, which already includes the tenement_I field in the attribute table.

In your GIS software:

1. Open the sample shapefile and add your proposed activities.
2. For each activity, update the value in the tenement_I field with the correct tenement ID (e.g. E 45/1001).
3. Ensure each ID corresponds to a valid, live tenement.

This ensures each activity is correctly linked to a tenement and prevents the system from automatically splitting values across tenements based on the area of overlap.

If a single activity polygon spans multiple tenements, SEALS will prorate numeric values (e.g., hole count) based on how much the polygon overlaps each tenement.

For example:

A polygon representing 100 drill holes overlaps:

• 20% of E 45/1001
• 80% of E 45/1002

SEALS will automatically allocate:

• 20 holes to E 45/1001
• 80 holes to E 45/1002

Prefer to control this yourself?

• Split the polygon into two separate activities, each aligned within the boundaries of the relevant tenement.
• Then, use the tenement_I field in the .dbf (attribute data) component of the shapefile to assign the correct tenement and define your own values (e.g. 60 holes on one tenement, and 40 on the other).

06 June - New features to support spatial uploads now available

The Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety has introduced new features and guidance to make spatial data uploads easier and more accurate for proponents using the spatial system (SEALS) in Resources Online.

Ability to Assign Activities to Specific Tenements

You can now directly assign each activity to a specific tenement using the tenement_I field in your shapefile’s attribute table.

This provides more control over how activities are linked to tenements and helps avoid the need to submit multiple Programme of Work (PoW) applications when activities span multiple tenements.

Updated Sample Files and Format Guide Available

To support this functionality, we’ve published:

• New sample Shapefiles (ESRI ArcGIS) and TAB Files (MapInfo).
• An updated Spatial Upload Format Guide

These resources are available collectively on the WA Government Apply for a Programme of Work page and in the Help tab in the Resources Online Portal.

Coming Soon: Ability to Prioritise Tenement Assignment

In a future release, you’ll be able to define a priority order for tenement assignment where a polygon spans multiple tenements. This will give you more control without needing to split activities within tenement boundaries.