Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

A person must not carry on mining operations in a Commonwealth reserve except in accordance with a management plan in operation for the reserve.

for an individual—500 penalty units;

for a body corporate—5,000 penalty units.

Subsection (1) does not apply in relation to the Kakadu National Park or the Antarctic.

Section 387 generally prohibits mining operations in the Kakadu National Park. Sections 19A and 19B of the Antarctic Treaty (Environment Protection) Act 1980 prohibit mining activities in the Antarctic.

The following are mining operations:

operations or activities connected with, or incidental to, the mining or recovery of minerals or the production of material from minerals, including:

prospecting and exploration for minerals; and

milling, refining, treatment and processing of minerals; and

storage and disposal of minerals and materials produced from minerals;

the construction and use of towns, camps, dams, pipelines power lines or other structures for the purposes of operations or activities described in paragraph (a);

the performance of any other work for the purposes of operations or activities described in paragraph (a).

A mineral is a naturally occurring substance or mixture of substances.

Subsection (1) does not apply to mining operations that are covered by an approval in force under subsection 359B(2). For this purpose, mining operations are covered by such an approval if:

a management plan is not in operation for the Commonwealth reserve; and

the mining operations are, or are in the class of mining operations, specified in the approval; and

the mining operations are carried on in accordance with the approval by the person, or a person in the class of persons, specified in the approval in the area specified in the approval.

Subsection (1) does not prevent the doing of anything for the purposes of building or construction, or the supply of water, in a Commonwealth reserve unless the purposes are connected with, or incidental to, mining operations.

This section is subject to:

section 359 (about interests and rights existing before a Commonwealth reserve); and

section 359A (about traditional use of an area in a reserve);