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Mine Closure

$4.9m in research projects for sustainable mine closure

research projects for sustainable mine closure

The Cooperative Research Centre for Transformations in Mining Economies (CRC TiME) is pleased to announce its initial 22 projects addressing key challenges around optimising ecological, economic, social and technical areas of sustainable mine closure.

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This portfolio of ‘foundational’ projects, valued at $4.9m of cash and in-kind contributions from 74 partners, will build a framework for future mine-closure planning and largely be completed in 2021.

CRC TiME projects are estimated to bring over $2 billion of benefits to the Australian economy over the next ten years, delivering sustained value to regional communities, reducing liabilities for companies, incentivising future investment and creating global opportunities for Australia’s METS companies in the emerging mine-closure market.

CRC TiME’s CEO, Dr Guy Boggs, explained that the foundational portfolio is designed to identify research gaps where innovation is required to deliver solutions that enable relinquishment and positive mine legacies.

“One of the foundational projects is focussed on repurposing the mine area in novel ways to support future economic development with options ranging from water parks to energy projects to agricultural development. Another of the foundational projects is considering the advanced integration of closure planning for mining companies, in order to bring greater certainty for investors and project financing,” Dr Boggs said.

“Our initial investment will directly support Australia’s vision to have the most advanced, innovative and successful resources sector with some of the projects responding to the EPBC Act Review, the National Resources Statement and the Resources 2030 Taskforce Report. Other projects are focussed on developing a dynamic and integrated system for industry, linking state of the art knowledge in different operational closure areas to create efficiency and optimise value.”

CRC TiME is developing a unique network of regional hubs located throughout Australia that will act as focal points for in-situ testing and demonstration of mine closure solutions and data integration through new digital platforms.

Backed with $130m of funding from a broad collaboration of partners, CRC TiME is the world’s first organisation focussed on bringing sustainable solutions to the increasingly pressing issue of socially acceptable mine closure. With thousands of mines abandoned globally, there is an urgent need to bring communities, mining companies, indigenous groups, governments and leading experts together to drive innovation for positive outcomes for all stakeholders. With the support of the Federal Government through the highly competitive CRC funding process, CRC TiME will be instrumental in positioning Australia as a world leader in sustainable mining, closure and post-mining futures.

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