Dr Ilya Berelov, Biosis Manager of Heritage Services organised the session on Chronology (scientific dating of deposits) where Biosis staff presented findings of their recent investigations.  Kasey Robb and Ilya reported on the preliminary findings from the Browns Creek Midden Community Archaeology Assessment – a pro bono initiative supported by Biosis in conjunction with Guligad, the Office of Aboriginal Affairs Victoria, La Trobe University, the Otway Coastal Care Committee and the Southern Otway Landcare Network . The midden, which is located near Apollo Bay in western Victoria, stretches approximately 300 metres along the coastline and is one of the largest in the state.  The findings so far show that rocky shelf shellfish species and coastal flint resources in that area have been utilised for at least one thousand years. Further analysis is planned for 2014.

Timothy Cavanagh and Martin Lawler presented the results of sediment dating from the Yarra River Pleistocene Terraces at Birrarung Park - conducted as part of a cultural heritage management plan. Combining optical stimulated luminescence dating and expert field observations, it was concluded that the river terraces in that section of the Yarra River predated human occupation of Australia. These results have implications for other cultural heritage assessments and will inform predictive models of Aboriginal occupation in the region.