The first coal mine to be approved since the Albanese Labor government came to power has been given the go ahead.
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However there are environmental conditions, mostly relating to a potential adverse impact on a vulnerable local snake.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek last month gave the Isaac River coal mine project in central Queensland provisional approval. It is planned to be 28 kilometres east of Moranbah, an active mining precinct next to five other coal mines in Queensland's Bowen basin.
The minister has now announced a decision under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act) that Coking Coal One can develop the mine. Coking Coal One is a wholly owned subsidiary of Bowen Coking Coal, which had been seeking approval for the project.
Once operational, the Isaac River mine is expected to produce about 500,000 tonnes of metallurgical (or coking) coal a year for five years. Coking coal is used for steelmaking.
The conditions attached to the approval include that Coking Coal One must not clear outside the disturbance footprint and the company must avoid and mitigate harm to the Ornamental Snake.
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The small, nocturnal snake is local to the Bowen basin and is officially listed as a vulnerable species.
The approval states that Coking Coal One must not clear more than 25 hectares of Ornamental Snake habitat.
Coking Coal One must also ensure a "fauna spotter catcher" supervises all clearing and construction within the disturbance footprint. The company is also asked to submit a Pest Animal Management Plan and an Offset Area Management Plan to the Environment Department for the minister's approval.
It is also asked to progressively rehabilitate the site with the project expected to operate for five years.
In February, in the first ever refusal of a coal mine in Australia under national environmental law, Ms Plibersek blocked an application from the Clive Palmer-backed Central Queensland Coal Project to build two open-cut mines less than 10 kilometres from the Great Barrier Reef.
At the time, the minister said she blocked the application due to concerns around the potential for increased sediment being released into the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.
The Albanese government is in the process of overhauling the EPBC Act as it regards it as not being "fit for purpose" and outdated.
Karen Barlow
Karen Barlow is ACM's Chief Political Correspondent. Working in the federal press gallery, she investigates and writes about federal politics and government. She has an interest in integrity, leadership and social equity. She has covered two Olympics and been to Antarctica twice. Contact her on karen.barlow@canberratimes.com.au
Karen Barlow is ACM's Chief Political Correspondent. Working in the federal press gallery, she investigates and writes about federal politics and government. She has an interest in integrity, leadership and social equity. She has covered two Olympics and been to Antarctica twice. Contact her on karen.barlow@canberratimes.com.au
