HVO 2009 Annual Environmental Management Report - Final

Coal & Allied – Hunter Valley Operations
Protective management measures such as fencing/barricading sites to avoid disturbance, protective
buffer zones, cultural heritage off-set areas; and
Communicating cultural heritage issues and site awareness to personnel via the Coal & Allied intranet
and tool box training sessions.
The CHMS GIS, CHZP, EMS Environmental Procedure 2.1 Cultural Heritage Management, EMS
Environmental Procedure 13.3 Ground Disturbance Permit and LODB requirements are the key operational
and planning tools utilised to protect and manage Aboriginal cultural heritage at HVO. A GDP permit must be
obtained prior to the commencement of any disturbance of Coal & Allied land outside current mining
operations. All cultural heritage approvals and conditions are assessed and authorised by Rio Tinto Coal
Australia Aboriginal Relations, Brisbane. The GDP permit and Limit of Disturbance Boundary alert personnel
to the general location of cultural heritage sites in the vicinity of operations and provides clarity on the extent
and boundary of approved work areas to personnel conducting ground disturbing activities.
Operational compliance with GDP requirements for the protection of Aboriginal cultural heritage is internally
audited under the CHMS procedures by Rio Tinto Coal Australia Aboriginal Relations and through external
auditing processes associated with the HVO EMS requirements and Rio Tinto Cultural Heritage Management
Standard audit protocols. Staff from Rio Tinto Coal Australia Aboriginal Relations and HVO environmental
personnel, conduct pre and post-construction GDP work area inspections to ensure compliance with GDP
approvals and conditions. In 2009 a total of 43 GDP’s at were assessed at HVO along with regular targeted
work area inspections carried out as part of the routine CHMS risk management procedures.
Where mining or associated activities will significantly affect Aboriginal cultural heritage, an appropriate
consent and / or permit is sought from the DECCW under sections 87/90 of the NPW Act. New major project
developments are assessed under Part 3A of the EP&A Act which makes provision for Rio Tinto Coal
Australia and Aboriginal parties to develop a Cultural Heritage Management Plan.
On 24 March 2009 the Minister for Planning approved the HVO South Coal Project (PA_06_0261). The new
approval encompasses all of the HVO mining development areas south of the Hunter River. HVO South PA
06_0261, Schedule 3, Part 40 requires that the Coal & Allied prepares and implements an ‘Aboriginal
Heritage Management Plan (AHMP)’ to be submitted and approved by the Director-General, DoP, within 12
months of the date of the development approval and that the ‘Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan’ be
prepared in consultation with DECCW and the Aboriginal community. A draft AHMP has been developed in
consultation with DECCW and the CHWG and was submitted to DoP in May 2009 for review and approval.
HVO mining development activities located north of the Hunter River are regulated under DA-450-10-2003
which consolidated a number of previous development consents for mining operations. Cultural heritage
management requirements are outlined in Schedule 4, conditions 37 to 41A of DA-450-10-2003. Condition 40
requires that the provisions of the Cultural Heritage Indigenous Management Agreement (CHIMA), approved
in August 2002 under superseded DA 106-6-99, continue in application for the Carrington Mine area.
During 2009 DECCW granted Aboriginal Heritage Impact Permit (AHIP) s90 consent #1102084 for cultural
salvage of a number of Aboriginal heritage sites associated with the HVO Riverview Pit. DECCW also granted
a variation to AHIP care and control permit #2863 to include cultural artefacts salvaged under AHIP
#1102084. Care and control permit #2863 consolidates authorities for Coal & Allied to take custody of cultural
artefacts salvaged under AHIP consents 1708, 1795, 1870, 2086, 2233, 2488, 2491, 2547, 3147, 2906 and
1102084. The duration of Care and Control permit #2863 was also extended to January 2013, to further
facilitate negotiations between Rio Tinto Coal Australia and the Aboriginal community in the Upper Hunter
Valley in regards to long term custodial arrangements for the Aboriginal cultural material.
AEMR 2009 140