Dr Hishmi Jamil Husain

Vision & Context of Closure

Project aims to leave a positive

social, environmental and
economic legacy at eventual
closure.

The closure planning framework can

be applied to all stages of project
development and updated as
additional social, environmental,
mining and economic information Sustainability Garden, Exploration Support Site, India
becomes available.
Project Development
Mine Life Planning Process
Closure Strategy – Process

 Knowledge Base summation –

What do we know?

 Closure Strategy – What will we

do?

 Closure Management Plan – How

will we do it?

 Cost Estimation – How much will

it cost?

Creek (Nala) Flow during After Rains

Closure Planning Process
Closure Strategy – Key Drivers

 Sustainable life of mine

planning;

 Compliance with corporate

requirements;

 Compliance with regulatory

requirements;

 Development of an exit
strategy.
Forest during months of September &
Forest during the months of May & June
October (Monsoons)
(Summers)
Closure Strategy – Sustainability

 Industry-wide acknowledgement of
the need to consider closure options
early in the project development
cycle;

 If we can’t close a mine sustainably,

should we open it?

 The social and environmental

setting of the Project will pose
significant challenges – the
approach to closure will need to
understood early. Work force at Indian Mine Developing Site
Closure Strategy – Corporate aspects

 The Way We Work;

 Closure Standard;

 Communities Standard;

 Environment Standards;

Bheem Kund: Regional Water Resource, India

Closure Strategy – Exit Strategy

 Protection of environment,
health and safety;
 Re-establishment of pre-existing
environment where applicable;
 Fulfilment of obligations to
regulators or local communities;
 Communication with employees
and contractors;
 Communication with
stakeholders;
 Minimal legacy.
Closure Strategy – Ongoing Development

• Establishment of an overall vision for closure with objectives for

each component of the project (eg social, environmental,
employees etc);
• Identification of options and evaluation against the vision to
assess their viability;
• Risk assessment of hazards associated with viable options;
• Definition of the preferred option for closure and assumptions for
further research;
• Definition of objectives and targets to achieve the preferred
option; and
• Description of the communication and consultation process for
the preferred option.
Closure Strategy – Options Analysis
Sustainable Development Aspect
Human Health and Safety

Social
Stakeholder Engagement

Communities

Pollution Prevention
Environment

Shareholder Return

Economic Economic Contribution

Resource Stewardship
Challenges for Closure Monitoring
 No method to record and centralise conversations with stakeholders
 Gaps in the closure risk register
 Disconnect between the closure provision and the annual
rehabilitation schedule
 Lack of knowledge
 Socio-economic management plan need adequately develop for
post-closure impacts
Closure Strategy – Cost Estimation

• Cost estimation cannot be undertaken until the scope of

work is defined;
• Ideally by pre-feasibility closure cost estimates to +/- 30%
should be undertaken.

• Direct closure costs

• Indirect closure costs
• Risk and contingency
• Combined cost estimate
Case study – closure of the Vickery Mine

• Vickery mine, located north west of

Gunnedah, NSW
• Open cut operations commenced in
1991, producing 3.2 million tonnes of
saleable coal
• 29 million tonnes of overburden was
removed
• Coal was mined from multiple seams
from 4 separate pits
• Coal production ceased May 1998
• Around 350 ha of disturbed land had
to be rehabilitated
Vickery Mine Decommissioning & Rehabilitation

Mine Infrastructure

Workshop, Bath House & Offices

Road & Process Facilities

Vickery Mine Decommissioning & Rehabilitation

Tailings Disposal Area

Red Hill Pit

Greenwood Pit
 Closure Objective

• Rehabilitate the land so that the post mining land capability is

maximised and a sustainable future land use can be established
• Considerations:
– Meet all regulatory requirements
– Rehabilitation of the land to similar pre-mining capability classes (i.e. classes
IV and V)
– Pre-mining land use; beef cattle and sheep grazing, cultivation of cereal crops
on better quality soils
– Minimise the volume of final voids
– No active maintenance systems, i.e. site had to be passively self sustaining
Approach to Decommissioning and Rehabilitation

• Systematic approach required to ensure all aspects and impacts were dealt
with
• Site was divided into domains, based on:
– Physical location
– Commonality of environmental issues
– Similarity of processes for decommissioning and rehabilitation

• Different domains at Vickery Mine for planning purposes

• Set of completion criteria was developed for each domain, based on
regulatory requirements
Vickery Mine
Decommissioning &
Rehabilitation
Domains
Design Criteria

• Design was required to be innovative to minimise volume of overburden

materials to provide a cost effective land form:
– 10 degree slopes on outer slope areas of emplacements
– 14 degree slopes on low walls
– 32 degree slopes on high walls
– Maximum height 20m above medium natural RL
– Drainage designed to control run-off and minimise erosion

• Innovative approach to contract management resulted in most high walls

being laid back to 20 degrees, with cost effective outcomes
• Ultimate design required 7 million cubic metres of material to be moved
Consultation
• Full consultation with appropriate government agencies:
– Department of Mineral Resources (approval body for closure plan)
– Department of Land and Water Conservation (revegetation technologies and water management)
– Environmental Protection Authority (pollution control and contamination issues)

• Consultation with local Council who represented the region’s stakeholders

– Council were consulted during development of the rehabilitation and decommissioning plans and
invited to inspect site

• Prior to the commencement of site activities a briefing was provided to each

neighbour and their views sought
• During rehabilitation, a neighbours day was held on site
• Employees – small workforce, 85% found employment elsewhere through a
placement company
Implementation
Shaping High Walls to
20 degrees
Implementation – Red Hill Void
 Water Storage in Void
(Greenwood Pit)

Shaping a Final Drainage Path

Greenwood Pit and Coal Stockpile Area
Greenwood Pit and Coal Stockpile Area
Mine Site Rehabilitation

 Tailings Dams
 Open Pits and Contaminated Lands
 Water Management Systems and
Dams
 Infrastructure
 Buildings and Plant
 Erosion Controls
 Measurement and Monitoring

Rain Water Harvesting at Site, India

 Key Messages
• Mine life planning provides greater focus upon life-of-mine decisions
• Long term focus, closure planning / consultation part of project
approval
• Significant potential environmental risks identified early
• Opportunities to manage technical solutions e.g. groundwater
• Early identification of risks and solutions enables risk minimisation
and significant improvement of closure cost estimates
• Design, development, operation and closure of Kestrel Mine to
optimise post-closure outcomes in terms of social, environmental and
economic aspects
• Ongoing annual review enables outcomes from the mine life planning
process to be part of ‘the way we do business’
Thank you……………..
You can reach to me for further information on

hishmi.husain@gmail.com