Environmental controls

Environmental regulation

A comprehensive and complex suite of environmental regulations is in place for ERA’s Ranger mine and Jabiluka project. These exist within the Commonwealth and Northern Territory spheres of government and include the involvement of the Northern Land Council as representatives of the local Aboriginal people.

Atomic Energy Act

The Commonwealth Government’s decision to allow the mining and milling of uranium to proceed in the Alligator Rivers Region (what is now largely Kakadu National Park) was made in August 1977. This followed the recommendations of the First and Second Reports of the Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry (the Fox Inquiry) which was established under the provisions of the Commonwealth’s Environmental Protection (Impact of Proposal) Act 1974.

Under section 41 of the Atomic Energy Act 1953 (Cth), the Commonwealth Minister has granted an Authority to ERA to mine and process uranium ore at Ranger on its behalf. The Ranger Environmental Requirements (ERs) are attached to this Authority. In January 2000, a new Section 41 Authority was issued which incorporates revised ERs for Ranger.

The new Ranger ERs set out Primary and Secondary Environmental Objectives, which establish the principles by which the Ranger operation is to be conducted and the standards, which are to be achieved.

The Primary Environmental Objectives relate to environmental protection and rehabilitation. They dictate that present and future activities at Ranger must not impact upon the values, attributes and ecosystem health of the surrounding Kakadu National Park nor the health of the regional community. They also require that the Ranger Mine site be rehabilitated to establish an environment such that it could be incorporated into Kakadu National Park.

The Secondary Environmental Objectives deal with a number of particular aspects of environmental management, which are to be specifically addressed and reported on, including water quality, air quality and hazardous substances, to ensure that the Primary Environmental Objectives are not compromised.

The Environmental Requirements include monitoring and reporting obligations, both on a periodic basis and in response to events, including any mine-related event “which is of or could cause concern to Aboriginals or the broader public.”

No Adverse Environmental Impact on Kakadu National Park

It is a Primary Environmental Objective of the ERs that the operations be conducted in such a way as to maintain the attributes for which Kakadu National Park was inscribed on the World Heritage List and to maintain ecosystem health, public health and biological diversity. That objective has been met.

Aboriginal Land Rights Act

The Northern Land Council (NLC), representing the Traditional Aboriginal Owners of the land, is given specific roles under the Environmental Requirements. In the Agreement between the Commonwealth and the NLC pursuant to section 44 of the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 (Cth), the Commonwealth has committed to ensuring that ERA complies with the Environmental Requirements.

Mining Act (NT)

The Atomic Energy Act does not apply to the Jabiluka Project. Jabiluka is a Mineral Lease granted by the Northern Territory government under the Mining Act 1980 (NT). A separate set of Environmental Requirements exists for Jabiluka and is attached to that Mineral Lease.

Mining Management Act (NT)

The operational approvals for Ranger and Jabiluka are contained in Authorisations issued under the Mining Management Act. The Authorisations reflect the Environmental Requirements and contain additional prescriptive requirements aimed at monitoring and protecting the environment and achieving the Primary Environmental Objectives, and also containing more detailed provisions relating to monitoring and reporting.

These Authorisations are regularly updated to address changing circumstances and ensure the needs of key stakeholders are met on an ongoing basis.