From 2 July 2022, large mines (mines which have an Environment Protection Licence from the NSW EPA) will be subject to new standard conditions set out in Schedule 8A of the Mining Regulation 2016.
Soft launch of new online forms
To support the implementation of the new standard conditions for rehabilitation as set out in Schedule 8A of the Mining Regulation 2016, the department has developed a series of online forms for the submission of associated applications and documents.
These forms will be available via the Resources Regulator's Portal and will provide a number of benefits to industry to enable them to meet their obligations as well as lead to more efficient regulatory oversight. Key benefits for industry include:
- improved transparency regarding the status of applications
- minimisation of the re-submission of data that the department has previously received
- automatic generation of rehabilitation key performance indicators and statistics for online submissions of annual rehabilitation reports and forward programs (large mines only) following synchronisation from the Mine Rehabilitation Portal
- the ability to download PDF reports of documents submitted to the department for publishing on company websites.
As the submission of applications and documents via the online portal is new for both industry and the department, the Regulator's approach will be to undertake a soft launch of the online forms. We acknowledge there may be some teething issues that impact on either the submission and/or processing of information. Over the next 6 months our focus will be to continue to engage with mines to ensure we assist industry to meet the new requirements, have active dialogue about our expectations for compliance and address potential transitional issues.
Webinar series - register now
To support the implementation of the new standard conditions for rehabilitation and the soft launch of the new online forms we will be hosting 3 webinars on the 28, 29 and 30 June between 9:00am and 12:30pm. The webinars will:
- provide an overview of the rehabilitation reforms
- provide the legal and operational context for each of the new online forms, including how they are to be completed in sequence
- provide a demonstration of the Mine Rehabilitation Portal.
Register here:
Please note: You only need to attend one of these 3 webinars - the agenda will be duplicated across the events.
What should industry be doing now to prepare?
To get ready for these changes, holders of mining leases should complete the following steps.
Register as a user within the Resources Regulator Portal
You will need to be a registered user within the Resources Regulator Portal to access the various application forms and reports required under Schedule 8A in the Mining Regulation 2016.
If you are not the holder of the mining lease you will require the consent of the relevant holder to register in the portal.
If you have any issues registering in the Resources Regulator Portal, please call 1300 814 609 Press Option 2 > option 5 or email nswresouresregulator@service-now.com
Register your mine and all the mining leases that make up the mine
Once you are set up as a user in the Resources Regulator Portal the first step will be to register your mine and all the mining leases that make up the mine [see Clause 3(1) of Schedule 8A of the Mining Regulation 2016].
The Register mine/multiple leases form is available in the portal to complete this task.
Nominate a contact person
Once you have registered your mine in the portal you will need to complete the Nominate contact person form in the portal. This is to satisfy Clause 19 in Schedule 8A of the Mining Regulation 2016 which requires the holder of a mining lease to nominate a natural person to be the contact person with whom the Secretary can communicate in relation to the mining lease for the purposes of the Mining Act 1992.
The nominated contact person will receive all formal correspondence from the Regulator in relation to the mining lease or mine (e.g. notices, letters, approvals etc). Authorised Representatives (i.e. persons who represent the titleholder when accessing the Portal) will receive correspondence relating to their particular application or submission.
You must also use this form to give written notice to the Secretary of any change in nomination or in the nominated person’s contact details within 28 days after the change occurs.
Confirm your reporting and submission dates
The Amend Reporting/Submission Dates and Extension Request form in the portal will allow you to apply to amend reporting and submission dates associated with Schedule 8A to the Mining Regulation 2016. This includes:
- extending the initial period when documents must be prepared and given to the Secretary - clause 15(8)
- amending the annual reporting period associated with the forward program and the annual rehabilitation report - clause 13(5)
- amending the submission date of the forward program and annual rehabilitation report - clause 15(2)
- amending the submission date of providing updated rehabilitation outcome documents to the Secretary after a development consent is modified - clause 15(4).
Mines may wish to change the annual reporting period and submission dates to align with other jurisdictional reporting periods - such as the Annual Review required by development consent.
Don't forget to upload your spatial disturbance and rehabilitation data
From 2 July 2022, large mines (mines which have an Environment Protection Licence from the NSW EPA) will be subject to new standard conditions set out in Schedule 8A of the Mining Regulation 2016.
To get ready, mines are reminded to upload the required spatial data themes to the Regulator’s Mine Rehabilitation Portal. The Mine Rehabilitation Portal provides access for Titleholders to submit spatial data related to mine rehabilitation to the Resources Regulator. Currently only titleholders who are required to submit data have access to the portal.
We will require an email from the titleholder indicating that you are approved to access the Mine Rehabilitation Portal on behalf of the specific mine to be able to grant you access. Once you submit a registered user application, we will need two business days to complete our validation assessment before granting access.
If you have any issues uploading information into the Mine Rehabilitation Portal, please call 1300 814 609 Press Option 2 > option 5 or email nswresouresregulator@service-now.com
The Mine Rehabilitation Portal is an Australian first and allows mining companies across the state to submit, analyse and report on their rehabilitation activities in a consistent and streamlined way. The portal also assists the Regulator in monitoring and regulating rehabilitation requirements for mining activities.
Guideline: Mine rehabilitation portal provides information on the data preparation and submission requirements.
Further information about the new standard rehabilitation conditions on mining leases is available on our New standard rehabilitation conditions on mining leases webpage.
