❓ A parliamentary question regarding the operational status and safety compliance of several Norseman gold mines, revealing the temporary closure of the Harlequin Underground Mine due to safety concerns.
AnsweredQoN 6280Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the Norseman Gold Operations including the Harlequin Mine, Bullen Mine, Okay Mine and North Royal Mine, and ask —
(1) Are any of the above mentioned mines still in operation?
(2) If yes to (1), which mines?
(3) For the mines referred to above that are not in operation, were any of them subject to a prohibition notice or prohibition notices by the Department of Mines and petroleum (DMP)?
(4) If yes to (3) —
(a) which mines were closed;
(b) for how long; and
(c) what specifically were the reasons for the closure of these mines?
(5) If yes to (3), will the Minister table all written communications including written directions, improvement notices and prohibition notices regarding these operations, and specifically the concerns for which these mines were closed for the years —
(a) 2008;
(b) 2009;
(c) 2010;
(d) 2011; and
(e) 2012?
(6) If no to (5), why not?
(1) Are any of the above mentioned mines still in operation?
(2) If yes to (1), which mines?
(3) For the mines referred to above that are not in operation, were any of them subject to a prohibition notice or prohibition notices by the Department of Mines and petroleum (DMP)?
(4) If yes to (3) —
(a) which mines were closed;
(b) for how long; and
(c) what specifically were the reasons for the closure of these mines?
(5) If yes to (3), will the Minister table all written communications including written directions, improvement notices and prohibition notices regarding these operations, and specifically the concerns for which these mines were closed for the years —
(a) 2008;
(b) 2009;
(c) 2010;
(d) 2011; and
(e) 2012?
(6) If no to (5), why not?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
13 November 2012
Responded by
Minister for Mines and Petroleum
Response time
27 days
(1) Yes.
(2) The North Royal Open Pit is the only mine producing at the moment.
(3) Yes.
(4)
(a) The Harlequin Underground Mine.
(b) Blasting, loading and hauling operations have been suspended since 13 July 2012.
(c) For the Prohibition Notice issued on 13 July 2012:
· No vehicle capable of transporting injured people as required by Regulation 4.27 of the Mines Safety and Inspection Regulations 1995 (MSIR) was available.
· People trained in mine rescue equipment as required by Regulation 4.33(1)(b) were not available.
For the Prohibition Notice issued on 2 August 2012:
· Underground escape ways at the Harlequin Mine were inaccessible.
(5)-(6) Refer to Parliamentary Question No 6279.
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) The North Royal Open Pit is the only mine producing at the moment.
(3) Yes.
(4)
(a) The Harlequin Underground Mine.
(b) Blasting, loading and hauling operations have been suspended since 13 July 2012.
(c) For the Prohibition Notice issued on 13 July 2012:
· No vehicle capable of transporting injured people as required by Regulation 4.27 of the Mines Safety and Inspection Regulations 1995 (MSIR) was available.
· People trained in mine rescue equipment as required by Regulation 4.33(1)(b) were not available.
For the Prohibition Notice issued on 2 August 2012:
· Underground escape ways at the Harlequin Mine were inaccessible.
(5)-(6) Refer to Parliamentary Question No 6279.
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.