Queensland State Parliament has just passed new laws to compel mining companies to sign up to progressive rehabilitation plans and safeguard taxpayers from hefty clean up bills for failed mines.
The Mineral and Energy Resources (Financial Provisioning) Bill includes new requirements for the planning and delivery of progressive rehabilitation of mined land, as well as a new financial provisioning scheme designed to ensure funding is available to cover rehabilitation costs when resource companies cannot meet their rehabilitation or environmental management obligations.
Deputy Premier and Treasurer, Jackie Trad, told Parliament the reforms give balance for the industry, the environment and the community and would support the expansion of the mine rehabilitation sector, and jobs, in regional Queensland.
“These ground-breaking reforms strike the right balance between a strong and thriving resource sector and world-class environmental standards around rehabilitation,” the Deputy Premier said.
“The resource sector is a great contributor to the Queensland economy, providing jobs for many Queenslanders, however, we have an obligation to ensure their activity is sustainable and benefits Queenslanders in the long term,” she added.
The new laws aim to compel mining companies to progressively rehabilitate mined land, so they do not leave a legacy of abandoned mines for future generations.
“They will ensure mining companies, not Queensland taxpayers, foot the bill for the rehabilitation of failed mines or stranded assets,” Deputy Premier Trad explained.
Environment Minister Leeanne Enoch stated that the Bill lays out the expectation for areas of land to be rehabilitated and the responsibility for resource companies to prepare progressive rehabilitation and closure plans.
“Protecting Queensland’s environment is paramount, and this Bill sets out the expected actions right from the planning stage, through to the requirements once the resource operation has finished,” Ms Enoch said.
“Planning for this closure is clearly best practice and will also ensure rehabilitation is effective and efficient and results in suitable environmental and community outcomes once mining finishes.”
Ms Enoch further said that while mining companies were always expected to undertake rehabilitation activities, the requirement of having progressive rehabilitation and closure plans will result in a more transparent framework for industry, the community and government regulators.
“And importantly, as more rehabilitation is undertaken over the life of Queensland resource operations, these reforms will encourage long-term, regionally-based job opportunities,” she commented.
The new legislation is the first step in the state government’s commitment to implement the findings of the 2017 review of Queensland’s financial assurance framework.
The commencement of the reforms will be staged, with the financial provisioning component commencing in the first half of next year and the new rehabilitation process beginning later in 2019.
