The Northern Territory Government has released a Code of Conduct for Mineral Explorers in the Northern Territory, which provides practical guidance to assist mineral explorers to conduct themselves appropriately and with consideration for the landowner, and meet their environmental obligations to maintain a high standard of environmental management and performance.
The code is voluntary and not legally binding. However, adoption of the code may assist explorers to comply with their mining interest (title) and authorisation conditions, and understand and meet land access requirements.
Executive Director of the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) NT Division, Drew Wagner, said the Code is the result of productive collaboration between the Territory Government and the minerals industry to develop a user-friendly reference to guide discussions between mineral explorers and land managers and ensure that parties understand mutual responsibilities to avoid or minimise interference with activities on overlapping mineral and pastoral leases.
“The ability to negotiate mutually-acceptable land access agreements is a critical prerequisite for explorers to be able to discover resources that can lead to new mines, new jobs and greater prosperity for Territorians, particularly in regional and remote locations,” Mr Wagner said.
“Establishment of new environmentally-sustainable mines will help the Northern Territory achieve the ambitious target of a $40 billion economy by 2030 identified in the final report of the Territory Economic Reconstruction Commission in December 2020, which identified mining as one of the key industries to underpin the Territory’s post-pandemic economic recovery.”
Mr Wagner said exploration can be a concern for lease-holders and land-managers, particularly on properties that have been run and managed as family businesses for generations.
“The Territory’s mining industry recognises its responsibility as a temporary custodian of land to contribute to sustainable land-use outcomes, including making land available for pastoral use after rehabilitation and closure of mine sites,” he commented.
“The Code of Conduct seeks to support respectful relationships between land-managers and explorers and builds on government and industry tools to support local communities.”
The Code of Conduct can be downloaded from the Department of Industry and Trade’s website.
