mining applications

An interesting article in miningnews today....

Backlog battle: WA Govt vows to tackle mine applications
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Tuesday, 15 July 2008

THE Western Australian Government says more than 14,000 mining tenement applications are waiting to be processed but its aim is to reduce that number to 5000 within two years.

Seeking to soften the backlog blow, WA Resources Minister Francis Logan said the State Government had granted the highest number of mining tenements in 10 years, in the last financial year.

Fresh statistics reveal 4675 mining tenement applications were granted throughout 2007-08, the most in the state since 1993-94, Logan said.

While the commodities boom has prompted a flurry of explorers and miners to dust off their shovels and get digging, the resources industry has criticised the Government for perceived delays in processing mine applications and documentation.

Talking up the decade-high application approvals, Logan said the WA Government was on track to meet its target of reducing the backlog of applications to 5000 by 2010.

The current backlog is around 14,700.

Logan said the backlog of tenement applications peaked at 18,700 in February 2007 with the State Government allocating $3.5 million to help reduce the backlog.

According to the WA Department of Industry and Resources, a record 21,000 mining tenements are in force across the state, covering 58.7 million hectares. Most of this land is taken up by exploration licences