Database for CRC TiME Project 4.3 - Network of Demonstration and Testing Sites

The data file contains a tabulation of mine sites (n=102) in Australia and New Zealand (n=3) that were short-listed based on interviews with mining companies(*) and state government representatives as part of the CRC-TiME Foundation Project 4.3 ‘Network of Demonstration and Testing Sites’, completed in November 2021 by Dr Greg Davis and Dr Elise Bekele. Mining companies have achieved much in rehabilitation, tailings and overburden management, and in transitioning to closure – but transforming mining economies requires a step change in technology and social efforts linked to scaled up demonstration. The project delivered a catalogue of mines based on priority selection criteria (e.g., costs, transport and logistics, mining industry and CRC TiME priority challenges (e.g., acid mine drainage, water management, etc.), operational, environment, and human health risks. The Excel file describes 106 candidate mine sites, in particular their site coordinates, resources (**) and features such as mining type (†) and rehabilitation issues. Some aspects included whether mines were closed or operating (††), whether rehabilitated or not, and whether key issues and challenges associated with mine site closure and transitions were present at sites (e.g., post-closure site ownership, Traditional Ownership links, waste rock landforms, tailings facilities, revegetation efforts, potential acid forming materials). The intention of providing this database is to support decision-making to fit new or existing technologies and approaches to possible candidate sites and issues for further upscaling and demonstration. (*) Mining sites are from Alcoa of Australia, BHP, Energy Australia, Fortescue Metals Group, Hanson Construction Materials, Iluka Resources, MMG Ltd, Newmont, OceanaGold, Oz Minerals, Rio Tinto, Roy Hill and South32. (**) Resources extracted across these sites and listed in order of decreasing abundance in terms of numbers of sites are iron ore (n=27), coal (n=16), gold (n-16), copper (n=12), mineral sands (n=12), zinc (n=9), lead (n=8), silver (n=8), bauxite (n=5), nickel (n=4), sand (n), tin (n=3), uranium (n=3), diamond (n=2), and others (in few numbers). (†) Mine type includes open-cut, underground and strip mining techniques (some sites have both surface and underground mining) (††) Abandoned (n=14), closed (n=25), or operating (n=66) status