Idemitsu Australia’s Ensham Mine’s extensive rehabilitation program has achieved a major Queensland milestone transforming a record amount of land used for open cut mining back to natural and productive land.
Idemitsu Australia commenced operations in 1993 using dragline strip mining methods and during the life of the mine, the company has been progressively rehabilitating previously mined out areas.
Over this time, Ensham has achieved certification of the largest area of open cut coal mining rehabilitation ever in Queensland, with a total of 663 ha of progressive rehabilitation being certified by Queensland’s Department of Environment and Science (DES).
Idemitsu Australia is very proud of Ensham Mine’s significant achievement of the largest certified area of progressive rehabilitation in an open cut mine in Queensland.
In September 2018, Ensham’s first major area of rehabilitation, being used for cattle grazing, was certified as having satisfied the completion criteria. This 97.2 ha area of rehabilitation, shaded blue on the map below, was completed in 2007 and 2009.
Following the certification of the initial area, other areas with well-established rehabilitation were identified by Ensham management team and a plan was put in place to apply for certification. This involved monitoring rehabilitation areas and demonstrating achievement of completion criteria.
In November 2021, an area covering a further 565.63 ha of rehabilitation was certified by the Queensland DES as having satisfied the completion criteria. The age of the certified rehabilitation ranged from completed in 2003, to the most recent in 2017, shaded green in the map below.
The next stage of progressive rehabilitation planning are areas requiring additional monitoring and weed control which are currently being undertaken to permit the certification process of these areas.
Ensham is extremely pleased with its progressive rehabilitation achievements to date, including having utilised the rehabilitated land areas for long term cattle grazing.
This demonstrates Ensham’s rehabilitation is of a high standard, returning the land to at least equivalent or better than pre mining condition, for the future benefit of the region.
