Miners will be compelled to pay to clean up old mine sites

The bill will create a financial provisioning scheme that will require low-risk resource companies to pay into a pool of funds so rehabilitation can be done by the state if a company did not meet its environmental obligations.

Higher-risk projects will be required to continue to provide surety for the full amount of their rehabilitation liability.

The reforms will also ensure mining companies plan for rehabilitation over the life of the mine, with "progressive rehabilitation and closure plans" to be required for both current and future operators.

Treasurer Jackie Trad said the reforms would ensure the state did not leave a legacy of abandoned mines for future generations.

"These groundbreaking reforms strike the right balance for the environment and the resource sector while ensuring resource companies, not Queensland taxpayers, foot the bill for the rehabilitation of failed mines or stranded assets," she said.

"Our reforms will ensure we continue to see a thriving resource sector in Queensland while allowing for the expansion of mine rehabilitation, and the many jobs that come with it."

In Queensland, priority abandoned mine sites, like Mount Morgan, would fill an area the equivalent of 10,000 Suncorp Stadium football fields.

Ms Trad said the government would not retrospectively amend approvals given under previous policy frameworks, with existing approvals to be translated into new progressive rehabilitation and closure plans.

Existing mines with already approved "non-use management areas", which can include pit voids and waste rock, will not have those approvals changed.

In the future, non-use management areas will only be approved in very restricted circumstances, where it is found to be in the public interest, as per an independent evaluation.

Resources Minister Anthony Lynham said as a result of the old framework, the state was now responsible for maintaining about 120 abandoned or legacy mines.

"For the first time, the industry will have a role in assisting us to maintain these sites through their contributions," he said.

Dr Lynham said the new financial provisioning scheme would create a pool of funds the state could call on for rehabilitation if a mining company failed to clean up their site.

"This approach differs from the current arrangement that sees funding put aside on a site-by-site basis," he said.

"By pooling funds, we spread the risk and increase the flexibility to apply funds where they are needed most.

"This better protects Queensland from liability, whilst keeping the costs for industry down."

LNP natural resources spokesman Dale Last said the "spirit of the bill" was supported by the opposition.

"If miners are not doing the right thing by the environment, if they are not undertaking rehabilitation which meets standards set by both government and the broader community, then they should be made to pay," he said.

"There's no place in Queensland for environmental vandals.

"However this needs to be balanced with an appreciation for our mining sector and the jobs and economic prosperity they provide to the state."

Mr Last was critical of "39 pages of amendments" which were made to the bill after it was scrutinised by a parliamentary committee.

Greens MP Michael Berkman moved amendments, including one to ensure existing coal mines could not leave behind a toxic void, but they failed.

"If you make a mess, you clean it up, simple concept - even most kids understand that," he said.

"They would also close Labor’s outrageous loophole which could give almost any existing mine automatic approval for a toxic final void."

However, Ms Trad said she was offended by the suggestion there was a "loophole".

"We made very clear when we released our rehabilitation policy last year, in September 2017, that we do not expect that these laws will be retrospective," she said.

"To come in here and say that we have bowed to the pressure of the resources industry is just about a platform for the Greens political party to keep belting up on Labor."

Queensland Resources Council chief executive Ian Macfarlane said the laws would ensure miners could continue to create jobs and revenue while also meeting high environmental standards.

"The new scheme means taxpayers won’t have to foot the bill in the unlikely scenario where a company fails to meet its rehabilitation commitments," he said.

"Resources companies will all contribute to the fund, and over time it will increase the amount available for rehabilitation commitments by about $2 billion.

"If the laws were applied retrospectively to existing mines, this would have had devastating consequences for existing jobs and future investment."

The state government and the mining sector held daily meetings last week over Labor's proposed amendments, amid concerns the bill could affect existing mines, with the Queensland Resources Council warning jobs were on the line.

The mining industry was concerned the legislation could be retrospective and also took issue with the public interest evaluation.