Glencore: Water management systems and initiatives at Glencore Coal's Clermont Mine In 2021, after years of persistent dry conditions and minimal rainfall, many mining operations and landowners in the Fitzroy Basin were facing the reality of a water shortage. Glencore Coal’s Clermont Mine, situated within the Wolfang Creek catchment and forming part of the Nogoa River catchment, was one of several operations adversely impacted by drought. All of Glencore’s operations have comprehensive water management strategies in place to manage droughts and floods. The strategies ensure that Glencore: Operates in accordance with their environmental authorities Minimises impacts on local waterways and groundwater systems Uses water efficiently Protects mining operations from flooding Plans for and provides sufficient water infrastructure to support mining. In the case of Clermont Mine, prolonged dry conditions posed a threat to the site’s water supply. Clermont Mine has a single open cut pit and one main water storage dam. The site has no external water supply. In 2021 the site initiated their Water Reduction Task Force, bringing together team members from a cross-section of the mining operation. The Task Force commenced monitoring and tracking daily water usage to evaluate the risk of [...]

BHP BMA: Scientists, Traditional Custodians and BHP come together on 'floating lab' for Great Barrier Reef coral spawning With Australian reefs facing ever growing pressures from a range of environmental and human-induced impacts, research to support innovative reef resilience, adaption and restoration is needed now more than ever. In November 2022, marine scientists gathered with Traditional Custodians on Woppaburra sea Country for an ambitious field event during the annual mass coral spawning on the Great Barrier Reef. The expedition, led by the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), advanced understanding of how to help fasttrack reef recovery and trained participants in coral aquaculture techniques to help them manage sea country in the future. Over 40 people were involved in the event at North Keppel Island (also known as Konomie by the Woppaburra people) near Yeppoon. The science team were based on a bespoke floating laboratory - a car barge turned into a science facility. The vessel holds research aquaria systems to support investigations on coral spawning and coral seeding. Land based activities were held at the Konomie Environmental Education Centre. Dr Carly Randall, AIMS ecologist and lead of the Woppaburra Coral Project said the expedition was an exciting [...]

Anglo American & FBA: eDNA trial supports biodiversity assessment in the Fitzroy Anglo American is working with the Fitzroy Basin Association (FBA) to improve the health of the Fitzroy Basin's waterways through trialling a new technology for biodiversity assessments called eDNA sampling. eDNA works by detecting microscopic amounts of DNA which animals leave behind in the water, like skin or faeces. Using this data, scientists can examine the types of animals which interact with the rivers and creeks without actually seeing them. Anglo American water specialist, Tim Kendrick, said the eDNA technology has advantages over some traditional methods of undertaking biodiversity studies. “eDNA is a safer, less intrusive and cost-effective approach to qualitatively determining the biodiversity in our local and regional waterways because we don't need to capture or sight the animals that inhabit an area – we can simply look at the DNA material that the different animals leave behind,” Tim said. “By targeting sampling programs on waterways it allows us to assess a broader area for a wider variety of species as these act as natural ‘funnels’ for DNA material so we can detect the presence of rare or hard-to-find species. eDNA has [...]