MINES, and just what happens after they are either decommissioned or abandoned, have again raised their ugly heads, this time in the north of the region.
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A silver mine at Texas on the Queensland side of the border has gone bust and large storage ponds on the site containing contaminated water have been just left, without any effort to secure the contents.
By contamination, we’re talking about cyanide and other nasty heavy metals like copper, iron and manganese.
Residents on the NSW side around Bonshaw have real concerns about the ponds, which Queensland government documents have revealed could overflow after as little as 40mm of rain, potentially contaminating the Dumaresq River.
Attention has now turned to just what governments on both sides of the border can – and will – do to ensure this worst-case scenario is avoided.
The Queensland government can use a $2 million bond from the company in question to start a clean-up, but apparently up to five times that amount may be required.
The NSW government has now been asked to get involved, with water minister Niall Blair assuring local MP Adam Marshall that water monitoring will begin.
Mr Blair said they had been assured by their Queensland counterparts that no contamination had occurred at this stage, and his department would now be getting some water quality data “just so we can always keep an eye on it and measure it”.
It’s easy to see why residents are far from assured the situation is in hand.
A clean-up must begin immediately and “keeping an eye” on things is not good enough, considering how quickly and easily contamination could occur.
And it also raises the issue of conditions placed on mines prior to and during their operation – on both sides of the border.
Why were these open ponds considered good enough in the first place?
And why was the bond so comparatively small when measured against the enormity of what could potentially go wrong? Like, the company could go broke and walk away.
Concerns about just how mines and gas projects are allowed to operate – and how governments can ensure local communities and environments are protected in the process – are high around the nation.
It’s this kind of example that just adds fuel to that fire.