Re Hewson

Mervyn George Hewson made an application for a mining lease under section 245 of the Mineral Resources Act 1989, seeking to mine for opal for a term of 10 years on land near Opalton. The application was lodged on 24 July 2008, and no objections were lodged by the closing date of 5 October 2008. The matter was dealt with by Mr BR O’Connor, Judicial Registrar, who was satisfied that the application complied with the provisions of part 7 of the Act and that a hearing was not necessary. The Registrar considered the criteria specified in section 269(4) of the Act, including compliance with the Act, the mineralisation of the land, the level of development and utilisation of mineral resources, the size and shape of the land, the term sought, the applicant's financial and technical capabilities, the applicant's past performance, the impact on existing exploration permits and mineral development licences, conformity to sound land use management, environmental impacts, prejudice to public rights and interests, and whether there was any good reason for refusal. The Registrar found that the application met all the criteria and recommended to the Honourable the Minister for Mines and Energy that the Mining Lease be granted over the whole of the application area for the purpose and term sought by the applicant.

The Registrar found that the applicant had complied with the requirements of the Act, as evidenced by the Certificate of Application issued by the Registrar on 1 September 2008. The land in question was found to be generally mineralised and suitable for mining opal, with no evidence to suggest that there would not be an acceptable level of development and utilisation of the mineral resource. The size and shape of the lease area were found to be appropriate, and the term sought was deemed suitable for the ongoing mining project. The applicant was found to have or access to the necessary financial and technical resources, and there was no evidence to suggest that the applicant's past performance was not satisfactory. There were no other holders or applicants for exploration tenures who would be affected by the grant, and the proposed activity was found to be an appropriate land use. The Registrar recommended to the Honourable the Minister for Mines and Energy that the Mining Lease be granted over the whole of the application area for the purpose and term sought by the applicant.

The Registrar recommended to the Honourable the Minister for Mines and Energy that Mining Lease No. 95595 be granted over the whole of the application area for a term of 10 years. The Registrar also ordered that a hearing of this application be dispensed with, as the Registrar was satisfied that the provisions of part 7 of the Act had been complied with in respect of the application and that there was sufficient information before the Registrar to properly consider the matter.