PROGRAM: MINING REHABILITATION AND CLOSURE
WABSI-led projects in CRC TiME
Cumulative Regional Impact Assessment:
- Project 1: This focused on collaborative solutions to support mine relinquishment, post-mining land use planning and regional economic development. Project report: Towards a framework for cumulative regional impact assessment
- Project 2: Dynamically transforming environmental assessment through a shared analytics framework: Bowen Basin case study.
WABSI helped secure $30M to help establish CRC TiME
The Western Australian Science Institute (WABSI) played the leading role in securing Commonwealth research funds into Western Australia to help address the global issue of mine closure and to develop new economic opportunities for communities, post-mining.
Working with Western Australia’s mining industry and science researchers, WABSI developed and led the successful bid for a Cooperative Research Centre for Transformations in Mining Economies (CRC TiME) which was the successful recipient of $29.5 million in Commonwealth funding as part of a total 10 year investment of $135 million.
CRC TiME will undertake social, environmental, economic and technical research, work directly with industry and communities and enable Australia to transition to a prosperous and sustainable post-mining future. Read the media release about the announcement.
The challenge of sustainable mine closure
Investment in mining and post-mining projects requires certainty in decisions, in order to make informed decisions about associated risks and costs. The effective relinquishment of mine sites is a critical issue. It is complex, costly and currently hinders confidence and certainty in mining investments.
Successful mine closure and relinquishment is a complex and expensive process; significant costs are associated with making the transition to a sustainable post-mining economy. Liabilities can amount to billions of dollars, in addition to other economic and social costs that are borne by industry, governments and communities.
There are only a few examples of successful mine closure, thus there is considerable uncertainty in closure-related investment, planning and decision making that ultimately impacts on investment in new projects and post-mining ventures.
WABSI’s Mine Closure and Rehabilitation Program is recognised in CRC-Time.