Sustainability

Alkane seeks to minimise our environmental footprint at all our mining and exploration sites – for the total lifetime of those sites. We work hard to protect the wide variety of native species that live in our mining areas, and we design and adapt our operations to best meet these needs.

Our aim is to leave our mining sites as stable functioning ecosystems despite the inevitable change in land form. Before any soil is turned, we create biodiversity offsets (for the restoration and planting of new native habitats for animal species) and carefully plan progressive rehabilitation, monitoring and management actions. Once the mining process is over, mine infrastructure is removed and the final landform is rehabilitated to be left in a long-term stable condition.

Alkane seeks to minimise the impact of our activities at all times and is committed to keeping our staff and all members of the community safe and minimising our impact on the environment.

To achieve this, we ensure we meet or exceed the requirements of all laws in relation to safe environmental practices and occupational health and safety. These measures and actions are all documented within the Environment Management System (EMS) and supporting Management Plans (EMPs) and Mine Operation Plan (MOP) for each project we undertake.

Peak Hill Gold Mine (1996 to 2005)

Alkane has left the mining leases at Peak Hill in a safer and improved environmental condition than pre-1996. While the landform has changed significantly due to the five open cut voids from mining, the site is now safely fenced and managed for tourism (Open Cut Experience) and biodiversity values. There has been an increase in biodiversity across the mining lease, which has been driven by stable final landforms, rehabilitation plantings, weed control and pest animal control. (For more information visit Rehabilitation of Peak Hill Gold Mine).

Tomingley Gold Operations (2014 to current)

Progressive rehabilitation has commenced at Alkane’s Tomingley Gold Operations (TGO) and will continue for the life of the mine (until about 2022).The primary aim of initial works is to stabilise the outside walls of the ‘waste rock emplacements’ (repositories of waste rock extracted from the pits) and sowing pasture vegetation consistent with the Tomingley area.

Full details of all rehabilitation commitments can be found in the TGO Mine Operations Plans (MOP), available on the Alkane website.

As with every mine in NSW, the NSW Division of Resources & Energy (DRE) requires an environmental bond overmining leases, calculated to allow for rehabilitation of the disturbance footprint of the mine. The bond contains sufficient money to cover the complete rehabilitation of the mining lease. Approval to commence mining operations on a mining lease will not be granted without DRE agreement on the amount of the environmental bond.

Alkane is responsible for all site rehabilitation at all its mining sites. Rehabilitation is conducted to the standard detailed in the Mining Operations Plan (for each mining lease) approved by DRE before the commencement of mining.

The establishment and protection of biodiversity offset areas are required by NSW law for mining developments and incorporated in the conditions for development consent.

Tomingley Gold Operations: TGO has 127Ha of biodiversity offset in in place, with these areas secured under a Property Vegetation Management Plan (PVP).Amelioration planting has been carried out to improve biodiversity across these areas where the previous use was cropping and grazing.

Peak Hill: In addition to general site rehabilitation post-mining, Alkane established several hectares of biodiversity offset areas at the start of operations.

Town water supplies are allocated water preferentially over other users, even to holders of high-security water licences. Whilst high-security water licences generally have a full allocation, in the event of extended drought or other extraordinary circumstances, the allocation available to high-security water licence holders may be reduced while supplies are maintained to town water supplies.Allocations to general security water licences will vary depending on the water available in Burrendong Dam. Water accounts are reset on 1 July each year.

Water is a finite resource. There is no ‘new’ water available to mining companies. Mining has to compete with other industries and water uses for access to water on the open market. Water has been made by government into a tradable asset.Water sharing plans administered by NSW Office of Water are monitored to ensure that water extraction levels do not tip towards unsustainability. If aquifers and rivers do not get recharged there is presently an ability to reduce all allocations to ensure aquifers are not damaged by over-extraction.