note last part of art

Mining law to ease title logjam - at last

JOHN PHACEAS


Changes to mining laws aimed at cutting the thousands of mining and exploration title applications caught in the native title logjam finally come into effect on Friday, almost 15 months after enacting legislation was passed by State Parliament.

More than 12000 exploration and mining title applications are caught up in the native title process, including about 7100 applications for mining leases - which are typically considered the best means of securing long-term access to tenements.

The amendments will allow companies to convert mining lease applications to longer-term exploration licences if they are not immediately seeking to start mining operations.

Once converted, so-called reversion licences should be granted within three to four months instead of the years it can take to secure a mining lease, thanks to agreements with most regional land councils to expedite exploration approvals.

Mining leases should also take less time to secure because only bona-fide applications to start mining are likely to remain in the queue.

After two years of talks between industry, government and native title groups, legislation to amend the Mining Act was passed in October 2004. But the legislation was never proclaimed because of last minute changes passed by the Greens and Opposition in the Upper House before last year's State election.

The Opposition then claimed the wording of the legislation would have enabled government departments to amend the Mining Act in future without the approval of Parliament. Revamped legislation was proclaimed late last week and takes effect on Friday.

Association of Mining and Exploration Companies chief executive Justin Walawski yesterday said most AMEC members were relieved that the amendments would finally come into force.

"We'd expect to see a reduction in the (native title) backlog, and that it will be far easier for explorers to maintain their exploration licences without having to convert them to mining leases," he said. "So it's a better use of the process."

But it would take at least six months before there was any meaningful reduction in the backlog.

Mr Walawski said members were less enthusiastic about a big escalation in tenement rents and expenditure requirements that kick in after a lease has been held for three years.

The escalating rents are intended as a disincentive to "landbanking" - where explorers lock up ground for years without any real intention of conducting serious exploration work.

Under the new fees, rents increase by 50 per cent per block after three years, double after six years and rise fourfold after eight years.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Industry and Resources confirmed there had been a rush of new mining lease applications ahead of the changes, with 2050 applications lodged so far this financial year, compared to just 1600 for all of 2004-05 and 625 in 2003-04