❓ A WA parliamentary question scrutinises the operations of a sandstone quarry near Donnybrook, focusing on land leasing, royalties, environmental impact, heritage considerations, and compliance with regulations. The answer reveals details about lease costs, royalty status, and regulatory actions.
AnsweredQoN 5956Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the sandstone quarry situated on Irishtown Road near Donnybrook, particularly Mining Lease 70/1217, and I ask —
(1) Is it correct that Cosmic Resources Pty Ltd leased five hectares of Crown land for $72.60 in 2009?
(2) If yes to (1), who was responsible for this decision and how was it made?
(3) Under Mining Lease 70/1217 currently —
(a) how many hectares of Crown land are leased;
(b) what price is the land leased for;
(c) what royalties does the Government receive; and
(d) what further or other benefits does the Government receive?
(4) What guidelines, conditions or further or other legal requirements applied to the quarrying operations under Mining Lease 70/1217 at commencement in 2008?
(5) When and how have those requirements been varied subsequently?
(6) What, if any, consultation occurred with the residents of Donnybrook prior to any such variation and how did this influence the outcome?
(7) Given the historic value of the site as the former government quarry from which stone was extracted for use in public buildings, what input has the Minister or his department sought or received from the Heritage Council and/or the State Heritage Office, and how has this influenced the guidelines, conditions or further or other legal requirements applicable to the quarrying operations?
(8) What guidelines, conditions or further or other legal requirements currently apply to the quarrying operations under Mining Lease 70/1217?
(9) On how many occasions from 2008 to date has the operator been found to have contravened guidelines, conditions or further or other requirements applicable to the quarrying operations?
(10) Regarding each contravention described in (9) —
(a) what was the requirement that was breached;
(b) what was the date and nature of the contravention;
(c) what action was taken as a result of the contravention;
(d) what was the outcome of that action; and
(e) what was the time taken between the original allegation of the contravention and finalisation of the matter? (please provide full details in respect of all answers)
(11) Currently, how frequently, and by what means is the operator's level of compliance with the requirements identified in (8) checked? (please provide full details)
(1) Is it correct that Cosmic Resources Pty Ltd leased five hectares of Crown land for $72.60 in 2009?
(2) If yes to (1), who was responsible for this decision and how was it made?
(3) Under Mining Lease 70/1217 currently —
(a) how many hectares of Crown land are leased;
(b) what price is the land leased for;
(c) what royalties does the Government receive; and
(d) what further or other benefits does the Government receive?
(4) What guidelines, conditions or further or other legal requirements applied to the quarrying operations under Mining Lease 70/1217 at commencement in 2008?
(5) When and how have those requirements been varied subsequently?
(6) What, if any, consultation occurred with the residents of Donnybrook prior to any such variation and how did this influence the outcome?
(7) Given the historic value of the site as the former government quarry from which stone was extracted for use in public buildings, what input has the Minister or his department sought or received from the Heritage Council and/or the State Heritage Office, and how has this influenced the guidelines, conditions or further or other legal requirements applicable to the quarrying operations?
(8) What guidelines, conditions or further or other legal requirements currently apply to the quarrying operations under Mining Lease 70/1217?
(9) On how many occasions from 2008 to date has the operator been found to have contravened guidelines, conditions or further or other requirements applicable to the quarrying operations?
(10) Regarding each contravention described in (9) —
(a) what was the requirement that was breached;
(b) what was the date and nature of the contravention;
(c) what action was taken as a result of the contravention;
(d) what was the outcome of that action; and
(e) what was the time taken between the original allegation of the contravention and finalisation of the matter? (please provide full details in respect of all answers)
(11) Currently, how frequently, and by what means is the operator's level of compliance with the requirements identified in (8) checked? (please provide full details)
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
23 October 2012
Responded by
Minister for Mines and Petroleum
Response time
42 days
(1) No. Cosmic Resources Pty Ltd acquired ownership of Mining Lease 70/1217 on 24 December 2009 and the mining lease rental paid in 2009 amounted to $510.51.
(2) Not applicable.
(3)
(a) The mining lease covers an area of 38.595 hectares over Crown land being Quarry and Water Reserves 2720 and 21583.
(b) The current mining lease rental is $585.00 per year.
(c) No royalties have been received to date and the Department of Mines and Petroleum is currently taking action to ensure that any unpaid royalties are paid.
(d) Local Government receives rates.
(4) There are numerous conditions, guidelines and legal requirements that apply to the quarrying operations on Mining Lease 70/1217 at the local, state and federal government level. In 2008, the relevant guidelines in relation to environmental management under the Western Australian
Mining Act 1978
and Mining Regulations 1981 were:
"Guidelines for the Preparation of an Annual Environmental Report - April 1996"
and
"Guidelines for Mining Proposals in Western Australia - February 2006".
The relevant guidelines, conditions or other legal requirements in relation to safety management under the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994
that applied in 2008 were Mines Safety and Inspection Regulations 1995, current Codes of Practice (publically available on the Department of Mines and Petroleum website) and current Guidelines (publically available on the Department of Mines and Petroleum website). A Project Management Plan was submitted by Irishtown Sandstone Pty Ltd.
In 2008, Mining Lease 70/1217 was subject to 39 tenement conditions and five endorsements which are publically available through the 'Mineral Titles Online' system available on the Department of Mines and Petroleum (DMP) website.
(5) The 'Mineral Titles Online' system includes details of the date each condition was imposed or modified and can be accessed at
www.dmp.wa.gov.au/3968.aspx
.
(6) In 2009 a Mining Proposal for Donnybrook Sandstone was referred to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA). The EPA assessment process and assessment under part V of the
Environmental Protection Act 1986
(EP Act) both involve a process for public consultation and appeal. In 2009 the Donnybrook proposal received a 'Non Assessed - Public Advice Given - Managed under Part V of the EP Act' level of Assessment from the EPA which had a 21 day timeframe to be appealed.
(7) In a letter dated 28 November 2008, DMP received notification from the Heritage Council that it had received a heritage nomination for this quarry reserve and the adjoining privately owned Lot 52. At that time no new mining proposal had been submitted to DMP. In a letter dated 8 May 2012, the State Heritage Office advised DMP that the Irishtown Sandstone Quarry Group, amongst others, was determined to be unlikely to meet the threshold for entry on the State Register of Heritage Places. Consequently, no new guidelines, conditions or other legal requirements were placed on this quarrying operation.
(8) In addition to the guidelines referenced in (4) above the following relevant guidelines have been introduced since 2008:
"Guidelines for Preparing Mine Closure Plans - June 2011";
"Guidelines for the Preparation of an Annual Environmental Report - May 2010"
The relevant guidelines, conditions or other legal requirements in relation to safety management under the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994
that currently apply are Mines Safety and Inspection Regulations 1995, current Codes of Practice (publically available on the DMP website) and current Guidelines (publically available on the DMP website). A Project Management Plan was submitted by Cosmic Resources Pty Ltd to DMP's Collie office on 22 May 2012 and was approved on 1 June 2012.
In 2011, an additional tenement condition requiring a Mine Closure Plan to be submitted was imposed on M70/1217.
(9) Since 2008 a total of 13 Prohibition and 22 Improvement Notices have been issued at the site under the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994
.
Based on Departmental records, the operator on M70/1217 was found by DMP to have contravened the conditions of the lease twice since 2008.
(10) The detail for the 13 Prohibition Notices related to the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994
are provided [see tabled paper ...].
(a) The recorded breaches relate to tenement conditions 8 and 14 (carrying out mining in accordance with an approved Mining Proposal, and no alteration or expansion of mining activities without the approval of the Director, Environment, DMP) and tenement condition 40 (submission of a Mine Closure Plan by January 2012).
(b) Based on information and meetings held between the operator and Environmental Inspectors in June 2009, DMP considered that the operators did not have authority to carry out mining operations on M70/1217 at this time.
A Mine Closure Plan was not submitted to DMP by the end of January 2012.
(c) In July 2009 the operators were required to cease mining until appropriate authorisation was obtained.
In May 2012 the tenement holders were informed that forfeiture action would commence unless a Mine Closure Plan was submitted within 30 days.
(d) A Mining Proposal for ongoing operations on M70/1217 was submitted to DMP in December 2009 and approved in April 2010.
A Mine Closure Plan was submitted to DMP in June 2012 and is currently under assessment by DMP.
(e) The time taken between the identification of the operations undertaken without approval, and the submission of the Mining Proposal was six months. The time taken for the tenement holder to submit a Mine Closure Plan following identification of the issue was also six months.
(11) Tenement condition 15 on M70/1217 requires an Annual Environmental Report detailing environmental management and mining activities for the prior 12 months and coming 12 months to be submitted to DMP every year in February. This report requires the tenement holder to review all tenement conditions and obligations and report any breaches.
Safety compliance on mine sites can be checked at any time using site inspections, audits and assessment and investigation of reported incidents.
During 2012, M70/1217 has been inspected by Officers from the Environment Division of DMP once and by Inspectors from the Resources Safety Division of DMP three times. The site Annual Environmental Report is reviewed as part of the environmental site inspection. This frequency of checking is likely to continue and will increase if there is evidence of an increased risk of non-compliance.
Since a new operator took over the site in April 2012, DMP has been in regular contact with the operator via phone, email and letter to ensure the risk of non-compliance is reduced.
Notice: This document is created or edited using unregistered or evaluation copy of rtLib valid for testing or development purposes only. To use it for productive or any other purposes please register it. You may purchase the license on
http://www.rtlib.com
(2) Not applicable.
(3)
(a) The mining lease covers an area of 38.595 hectares over Crown land being Quarry and Water Reserves 2720 and 21583.
(b) The current mining lease rental is $585.00 per year.
(c) No royalties have been received to date and the Department of Mines and Petroleum is currently taking action to ensure that any unpaid royalties are paid.
(d) Local Government receives rates.
(4) There are numerous conditions, guidelines and legal requirements that apply to the quarrying operations on Mining Lease 70/1217 at the local, state and federal government level. In 2008, the relevant guidelines in relation to environmental management under the Western Australian
Mining Act 1978
and Mining Regulations 1981 were:
"Guidelines for the Preparation of an Annual Environmental Report - April 1996"
and
"Guidelines for Mining Proposals in Western Australia - February 2006".
The relevant guidelines, conditions or other legal requirements in relation to safety management under the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994
that applied in 2008 were Mines Safety and Inspection Regulations 1995, current Codes of Practice (publically available on the Department of Mines and Petroleum website) and current Guidelines (publically available on the Department of Mines and Petroleum website). A Project Management Plan was submitted by Irishtown Sandstone Pty Ltd.
In 2008, Mining Lease 70/1217 was subject to 39 tenement conditions and five endorsements which are publically available through the 'Mineral Titles Online' system available on the Department of Mines and Petroleum (DMP) website.
(5) The 'Mineral Titles Online' system includes details of the date each condition was imposed or modified and can be accessed at
www.dmp.wa.gov.au/3968.aspx
.
(6) In 2009 a Mining Proposal for Donnybrook Sandstone was referred to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA). The EPA assessment process and assessment under part V of the
Environmental Protection Act 1986
(EP Act) both involve a process for public consultation and appeal. In 2009 the Donnybrook proposal received a 'Non Assessed - Public Advice Given - Managed under Part V of the EP Act' level of Assessment from the EPA which had a 21 day timeframe to be appealed.
(7) In a letter dated 28 November 2008, DMP received notification from the Heritage Council that it had received a heritage nomination for this quarry reserve and the adjoining privately owned Lot 52. At that time no new mining proposal had been submitted to DMP. In a letter dated 8 May 2012, the State Heritage Office advised DMP that the Irishtown Sandstone Quarry Group, amongst others, was determined to be unlikely to meet the threshold for entry on the State Register of Heritage Places. Consequently, no new guidelines, conditions or other legal requirements were placed on this quarrying operation.
(8) In addition to the guidelines referenced in (4) above the following relevant guidelines have been introduced since 2008:
"Guidelines for Preparing Mine Closure Plans - June 2011";
"Guidelines for the Preparation of an Annual Environmental Report - May 2010"
The relevant guidelines, conditions or other legal requirements in relation to safety management under the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994
that currently apply are Mines Safety and Inspection Regulations 1995, current Codes of Practice (publically available on the DMP website) and current Guidelines (publically available on the DMP website). A Project Management Plan was submitted by Cosmic Resources Pty Ltd to DMP's Collie office on 22 May 2012 and was approved on 1 June 2012.
In 2011, an additional tenement condition requiring a Mine Closure Plan to be submitted was imposed on M70/1217.
(9) Since 2008 a total of 13 Prohibition and 22 Improvement Notices have been issued at the site under the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994
.
Based on Departmental records, the operator on M70/1217 was found by DMP to have contravened the conditions of the lease twice since 2008.
(10) The detail for the 13 Prohibition Notices related to the
Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994
are provided [see tabled paper ...].
(a) The recorded breaches relate to tenement conditions 8 and 14 (carrying out mining in accordance with an approved Mining Proposal, and no alteration or expansion of mining activities without the approval of the Director, Environment, DMP) and tenement condition 40 (submission of a Mine Closure Plan by January 2012).
(b) Based on information and meetings held between the operator and Environmental Inspectors in June 2009, DMP considered that the operators did not have authority to carry out mining operations on M70/1217 at this time.
A Mine Closure Plan was not submitted to DMP by the end of January 2012.
(c) In July 2009 the operators were required to cease mining until appropriate authorisation was obtained.
In May 2012 the tenement holders were informed that forfeiture action would commence unless a Mine Closure Plan was submitted within 30 days.
(d) A Mining Proposal for ongoing operations on M70/1217 was submitted to DMP in December 2009 and approved in April 2010.
A Mine Closure Plan was submitted to DMP in June 2012 and is currently under assessment by DMP.
(e) The time taken between the identification of the operations undertaken without approval, and the submission of the Mining Proposal was six months. The time taken for the tenement holder to submit a Mine Closure Plan following identification of the issue was also six months.
(11) Tenement condition 15 on M70/1217 requires an Annual Environmental Report detailing environmental management and mining activities for the prior 12 months and coming 12 months to be submitted to DMP every year in February. This report requires the tenement holder to review all tenement conditions and obligations and report any breaches.
Safety compliance on mine sites can be checked at any time using site inspections, audits and assessment and investigation of reported incidents.
During 2012, M70/1217 has been inspected by Officers from the Environment Division of DMP once and by Inspectors from the Resources Safety Division of DMP three times. The site Annual Environmental Report is reviewed as part of the environmental site inspection. This frequency of checking is likely to continue and will increase if there is evidence of an increased risk of non-compliance.
Since a new operator took over the site in April 2012, DMP has been in regular contact with the operator via phone, email and letter to ensure the risk of non-compliance is reduced.
Notice: This document is created or edited using unregistered or evaluation copy of rtLib valid for testing or development purposes only. To use it for productive or any other purposes please register it. You may purchase the license on
http://www.rtlib.com
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.