Mine Free Glenaldale says it’s skeptical of the 12 initial design changes Gippsland Critical Minerals (GCM) have made to the proposed Fingerboards Mineral Sands project.
One community member described these changes as “marketing hype with no substance or scientific basis” and said most of it is misleading information. She also said these changes only addressed 12 of the 49 serious and unacceptable impacts which were highlighted in the Planning Minister Richard Wynne’s report in 2021 following an extensive community consultation process and an Environmental Effects Statement (EES).
“Richard Wynne said that most of these impacts could not be mitigated and the mine should not proceed,” she said.
“A change proposed by the mining company is slowing the mining rate to reduce noise, dust and truck traffic. Instead of mining for 15 years they are extending the mine’s life to 22 years.
This will give the community an extra seven years of exposure to this inhospitable health destroying environment. Dust, noise and truck movements will affect the community 24/7 365 days a year for 22 years.
“In previous information released by Ms Wood, CEO of GCM, she said GCM would only mine 50 hectares at any one time, now the community learns in their recent
release that this figure is now 15 per cent of the project area, this equates to in excess of 150 hectares. This will be a massive eyesore in the landscape.”
A spokesperson for Mine Free Glenaladale questioned GCM’s rehabilitation strategy including a demonstration pit “which is supposed to prove to landholders
that
rehabilitation will be successful”.
“Will GCM mimic the true size of the mine void and fill it three to 12 months after excavation which they are proposing to do when mining is completed?” they questioned.
“In other areas of Victoria where mineral sands mining has occurred at shallower depths and rehabilitation has been completed, slumping of farmland has affected agricultural production and remains a long term problem.
“Are GCM proposing an uncontrolled test pit without any of the safeguards of an EES, including no mitigation measures to prevent ground water contamination or the erosive impacts of disturbing dispersive soils? What “trial” results would inform this uncontrolled mini-mine?
“At this stage GCM does not have the three gigalitres of water which they say they will need.
“During a visit to the area by Chris Webb, Executive Director, Regulatory Operations, Resources Victoria, he was taken aback when it was pointed out to him by community members that GCM did not have the water.
“GCM are planning to obtain water from the Mitchell River and the La Trobe Aquifer both of which are fully allocated at this time. The test bore fields that GCM/Kalbar previously drilled proved the water supply was inadequate. The pumping to determine bore capacity adversely affected other bores in the area.”
Mine Free Glenaladale says using water for dust suppression and large scale revegetation areas has proven not to be cost effective in other mining enterprises.
“In times of drought when water is not available chemical dust suppression is required; these products are highly toxic to aquatic species and can affect human health,” the spokesperson said.
“Chris Webb stated the use of water trucks was not a dust solution.
“A landholder commented that GCM’s long term water security plan which includes drought proofing the horticultural industry from mine dam water was highly improbable as cropping in the Lindenow valley and adjoining hill country covers an area in excess of four and a half thousand acres. He added that many in the valley already had contingencies in place to counteract dry times. Sou
thern Rural Water had previously rejected the idea of a community dam because it was impracticable and logistically and legally infeasible.”
GCM’s plan for a below ground tailings storage dam has many risks associated with it, according to Mine Free Glenaladale.
“Although it might eliminate dam wall collapse it will not prevent highly toxic tailings leaking into the soil and aquifers and consequently into the rivers and Gippsland Lakes,” they said.
“Overflow of these dams during heavy rain events will cause runoff of tailings into nearby water courses. Every tonne of rare earths mined creates 2000 tonnes of toxic waste.”
On-shore processing of heavy mineral concentrate is a priority for GCM and yet processing facilities in both Western Australia and the Northern Territory have not been constructed, according to Mine Free Glenaladale, who say the viability of trucking or shipping heavy metal concentrate to both of these facilities is questionable.
“As we have seen in the development of other mineral sands mines in Victoria mining plans are subject to change. The regulations are such that the community has no rights to address these changes once the mining company has been given the go ahead to mine,” the spokesperson said.
“These mines often leave a toxic legacy for future generations threatening farming, human health and the environment and polluting streams and lakes.
“This proposed mineral sands mine cannot coexist with existing industries in the area because of the location of the project area and the unique complexities of the locality.”
