Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1697644050735.pdf (Australia)
I would like to take to thank you for giving me the opportunity to make this submission to the Senate Inquiry into the rehabilitation of mining and resources projects as it relates to Commonwealth responsibilities.

Over a period of 10 years I have experienced total despair at the failure of rehabilitation measures on my property.
Context: The owner of the mining lease when I purchased the property was Hillgrove Resources and today they are still the lease holder for the Comet Mine which is one-fifth of the property.

My understanding was that the lease was up for renewal or to be handed in.
The advice I got from a geologist, who was the exploration geologist previously working for Hillgrove Gold and Antimony was that the mine could not be mined as the ground was too unstable from the continuous use of explosives with hard-rock mining.

This blasting creates problems with mine acid drainage water.
The local Council, State Government and Federal Government have all failed to rectify in any way the problems of mine acid drainage which is polluting the Macleay River system, run-off entering the system through the adjacent Puddledock Creek.

The mine leaks.

It takes weeks for the water level to fall once it stops flowing from the open shaft.

Once it is below the rim of the shaft you can see the the water level fall through an open shaft.
In the mining lease between the NSW Government and Hillgrove Resources it states that no garbage is to be stored on site.

Hundreds of cubic metres of garbage-impregnated mulch has been spread on the surface over the mining lease.

There has been no Government support; only hurdles put in place to hamper the rehabilitation process.
I have lost my livelihood, my accreditation to supply food, from the agricultural land I bought because of the pollution: the water has been found ‘unfit for cattle consumption’ and the garbage in the mulch adds to the pollution problems on the lease.
I want to comment particularly on Terms of Reference: a. the cost of outstanding rehabilitation obligations of currently operating projects  while the State Government holds a bond for the Mine (ML 755, Comet Vale Mine)  this sum is in no way adequate to cover the full costs of rehabilitation I note that the State Government has reimbursed the mine owners for partial completion of rehabilitation.
However, the work is not up to standard and does not comply to EPA guidelines b. the adequacy of existing regulatory, policy and institutional arrangements to ensure adequate and timely rehabilitation  policies, even conditions on notices under the Mining Act, are ad.hoc and constantly changing.

In my dealings with the NSW Department of Industry and Resources.

Their first notice under Section 240(1)(d) Mining Act 1992 Harm to the Environment informed me of the conditions of clean-up.
The subsequent notice, 8 months later, set out new, dramatically reduced condition Rehabilitation of mining and resources projects as it relates to Commonwealth responsibilitiesSubmission 73 d. the effectiveness of current Australian rehabilitation practices in safeguarding human health and in repairing or avoiding environmental damage     the mine owners refuse to repair fences they cut for truck access, fences which exclude stock from the lease and the polluted water the State Government has ignored the acid mine drainage; the water runs across two properties before it gets to the creek and the river plastic and other garbage from the lease also finds its way into the river system; no Government organisation is prepared to act on this pollution current practices are ineffective f. whether any mining or resources companies have engaged in conduct designed to avoid fulfilling their rehabilitation obligations  the mining company engaged a rehabilitation company to oversee the rehabilitation.
Garbage was imported from Coffs Harbour (2 1/2 hour truck drive at least) to be dumped on the surface of the site and spread.
 No attempt has been made to rectify the problems of polluted water  The mining company has only added to the problems with the rehabilitation process g. The potential social, economic and environmental impacts including on matters of national environmental significance   My attempts to raise these matters with the Federal Minister for Water and Agriculture and the Premier of New South Wales through the local Member of Parliament through the local member, Mr Adam Marshall, have fallen on deaf ears I have already lost my livelihood; others downstream risk the same result from the same polluted water Fish further downstream, in what was once a very popular tourist fishing spot, have been contaminated and recent reports from Kempsey detail a ‘fish kill’ in the river The Macleay River flows through a World Heritage National Park This problem has been reported repeatedly to the Pollution Hotline.
No action has ever been taken in all my attempts.
   j. proposals for reform of rehabilitation of mining and resources projects Please take action to    support the development of strict national mine rehabilitation standards create a Federal Environmental Protection Agency that can enforce legislation that has been put in place for rehabilitation of mines require strict corporate mine rehabilitation liability reporting I would like to invite members of the Senate Inquiry to visit and inspect this mine ‘rehabilitation’ in practice.
Rehabilitation of mining and resources projects as it relates to Commonwealth responsibilitiesSubmission 73 Photos taken June 2015 on my property, 36 kilometres north-east of Armidale.

A gate has been placed over the hole from which toxic water runs freely.

Since the photo the dark matter has washed to the dam.

This photo of the dam was taken at the same time.

The dam is now red, overflowing and leaking.

The dam is not on the lease but on the land I own.

This is one of 4 dams.


A group inspecting the site 2 years ago.

An example of the rubbish in the material that has been made in Coffs Harbour and delivered to the site.

Please note the large amount of plastic and garbage.

Rehabilitation of mining and resources projects as it relates to Commonwealth responsibilitiesSubmission 73