New Mining Laws Could Make It Harder for Communities to Object

A new bill introduced in Queensland, Australia, could make it much harder for everyday people to challenge new mining projects. Resources Minister Dale Last introduced the Mineral Resources Objections Reform Bill on Tuesday. The bill would limit who is allowed to object to a mine and give politicians more power over whether those objections ever reach a court. Supporters say it will cut red tape, but farmers, lawyers, and environmental groups say it will silence communities.

Under the proposed rules, only people who own land directly affected by a mine, or who live within 125 kilometres of it, could formally object. Right now, objections to mining projects are automatically sent to the Land Court, where an independent judge reviews them. The new bill would end that automatic process. Instead, a minister — a government politician — would decide whether an objection ever makes it to court at all.

Barrister and law professor Chris McGrath said the changes would seriously weaken protections for Queensland communities. 'This is another step of this current government in really hacking at the safety net of laws that protect Queenslanders from bad development,' Dr McGrath said. He also warned that the effects of a mine can spread far beyond 125 kilometres, so limiting objections to that distance does not make scientific sense. 'We all benefit from an open process with independent review, and they're really blowing holes in that process,' he added.

The Queensland Resources Council, which represents the mining industry, had its own concerns about the 125km limit — but for different reasons. Chief executive Janette Hewson said 125km is an 'arbitrary number' that does not reflect how different impacts like groundwater pollution or air emissions actually travel. She argued the rules should be based on science and data, using a sliding scale that changes depending on the type of impact. The industry's main goal, she said, is to cut duplicated red tape, not to take away people's rights.

Dr McGrath also raised concerns about community groups losing the right to object. He pointed to the Oakey Coal Action Alliance (OCAA), a group of local residents who fought against the New Acland coal mine expansion on Queensland's Darling Downs for nearly 15 years. He said groups like OCAA helped protect landholders and also shielded them from huge legal costs they could not afford on their own. Without these groups, individual farmers could struggle to stand up to powerful mining companies alone.

David Vonhoff, a dairy farmer who lives just 6 kilometres from the New Acland mine, called the proposed changes 'very disturbing.' He is the president of the OCAA and said the government was listening to the mining industry instead of the people who grow food on the land. He questioned why people further away should be shut out of the process if they have real, legitimate concerns about a project. 'The mining people ... dictate terms to the government and the government's just listening to them and not listening to the people that are producing the food on the land,' he said.

Minister Last defended the bill, saying it would make the objections process more efficient without weakening environmental protections. He argued the current system had left projects like New Acland in legal uncertainty for almost 15 years, which was unfair to investors and workers. He said the bill was designed to stop people from making 'vexatious' — or deliberately troublesome — claims just to delay projects. Ms Hewson added that some objections are made purely for ideological reasons, such as opposing mining because of climate change beliefs, which she said are 'not really relevant' to proper project assessment.

This bill is just one of several recent moves by the Queensland government to speed up approvals for mines and other major projects. In June, the government launched a review of rules around mine rehabilitation and financial safeguards. In August, new laws passed that gave the government power to fast-track projects labelled 'state strategic.' The new mining objections bill will now be debated in Queensland parliament, where its future will be decided.