al lands and forests, attracting graziers to the island. Lieutenant Robert Dayman was the first European to sail between Fraser Island and the mainland in 1847.
Logging
Logging on the island began in 1863. Blackbutt trees (Eucalyptus pilularis) and kauri pines (Agathis robusta) on Fraser Island were logged extensively as they provided excellent timber. Logging started in 1863, initiated by American Jack Piggott (known as 'Yankee Jack'). For the first 70 years of logging, bullock drays were used to haul the timber to loading points on the beach. Railway tracks were laid through the forest to facilitate logging, but were later removed. Some of the largest logs were sent to Egypt for the construction of the Suez Canal. The logging industry continued right through until 1991, and ceased following the concerns of the Fraser Island Fitzgerald Inquiry, led by the Honourable Justice Gerald Edward Fitzgerald.
Sand mining
The geological wealth of the island lay in its rich deposits of rutile, ilmenite, zircon and monazite. Sand mining leases were first granted in 1950, and mining continued until 1977. Without public knowledge the Queensland Government granted mining leases to the American mining company Dillingham-Murphyores in the 1960s. In 1971, the Fraser Island Defense Organisation (FIDO) opposed the granting of more leases to the company. Despite more than 1,300 submissions that were made to the local mining warden objecting to new leases, the submission was granted. FIDO took the case to the High Court of Australia which overruled the decision noting that the public interest was not being upheld. Dillingham-Murphyores continued mining. The Whitlam Government established Australia's first environmental impact inquiry which recommended that mining cease. Eventually Malcolm Fraser canceled the company's mineral export license which halted mining on the island. This represented a significant win for the conservation movement in
