A guide to leading practice sustainable development in mining

The Business Case for Sustainability in Mineral Exploration
and Feasibility
The conduct of an operator in the pre-development (exploration/feasibility) stage
is critical to maximising future shareholder value. If the operator cannot establish
and maintain the trust of the community and government, the potential value
of a resource is unlikely to be realised. The application of leading practice and
sustainable development principles is key to demonstrating competency and building
trust. Getting this wrong may lead to:
limited access to the resource (less potential profit) .
delays in approvals (greater costs).
refused approvals.
Airborne Contaminants, Noise and Vibration
Introduction
A range of airborne contaminant, noise and vibration issues are associated with
mineral exploration activities as illustrated in Figure 2.1. The transient and often
isolated nature of exploration creates an environment for potential clashes with
local residents, unless operations are carefully monitored and considerable effort is
made to keep the community informed of activities. At this stage of development,
there is usually a limited amount of activity that will generate significant emissions.
Nevertheless, any drilling, excavation and material handling and transport activity
that could potentially impact on neighbours should be conducted with that impact
in mind. It may require the location or timing of various activities to be managed so
that they have minimal impacts, or watering of dusty operations that are close to
sensitive areas.
As design detail progresses, there may be a need to refine emission control
specifications based on improved inputs for modelling. Hence, it is important that the
engagement with air quality consultants continues as required. Baseline monitoring,
if any, will be in progress through this stage.
The following case study provides an example of how exploration activities operated
in a densely populated area of Victoria. For many years a company has struggled
to fully drill out its exploration leases due to the noise restrictions involved with
operating machinery in a built up urban area. The company had experimented
with many forms of noise suppression including, surrounding rigs with shipping
containers, large hay bales, erecting sound walls and even digging large pits for the
drilling rigs to work in. These measures all had some degree of success but were far
from ideal. In 2007 the company purchased an Atlas Copco CS14 drill rig with the
intention of enclosing the unit within a fully noise attenuated containers.
The drilling department identified the need to make the system modular and selfcontained.
Six sea containers were utilized; four on the ground floor and two for the
mast of the rig encapsulate the entire worksite. Everything from drilling fluids, tools,
drill rods, power generation and even the crib room are enclosed within the system.
A GUIDE TO LEADING PRACTICE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN MINING 23