The Adani Carmichael mine would leave more than 3,300 hectares – an area 30 times the size of the Brisbane CBD – in a completely un-rehabilitated state, analysis by the Lock the Gate Alliance reveals today.
“Overall the Carmichael Mine would bequeath an enormous, dangerous legacy for Queensland,” said Rick Humphries from the Lock the Gate Alliance.
“Adani plans to leave a series of very large pit voids and a huge area of waste rock dumps that will severely degrade any future land use. In fact Adani is not even prepared to give assurances that any of these areas will be suitable for grazing after mining.
“The pit voids alone would cover more than 3,300 hectares, including high walls hundreds of metres deep. These large holes would remain in perpetuity and would permanently drain millions of litres of precious groundwater from surrounding aquifers.”
“The waste rock dumps would cover a massive 8300 hectares and contain acid-producing mine waste. Adani has chosen the lowest cost option to cover this waste meaning these dumps would fail over the long term.
“The mine would divert 88km of streams which would not be reinstated, the groundwater issues would not be addressed and the voids and dumps would leave a fundamentally altered and degraded landscape with a diminished economic and ecological value.
“Our analysis shows that rehabilitation plans for the Carmichael coal mine do not even come close to meeting mining industry standards and commitments, here or internationally.
“This is in stark contrast to the Mineral Council of Australia’s public commitment – ‘to ensure that this land is available for subsequent economic activities, conservation or community use’,” he said.1