A review of mine closure planning and practice in Canada and Australia

This paper reviews mine closure practice in Australia and Canada and provides similarities, dissimilarities and common shortcomings of mine closure practice. Closure of mine with appropriate planning is a recent move as a part of sustainable mining practice and both Canada and Australia have developed requirements for mine closure process. By reviewing ten site-specific closure plans against international good practice criteria, this study finds that in general, both the countries share key requirements of mine closure; hence comply with good practice of mine closure planning. However, there are some common shortcomings of existing mining closure planning practice in Canada and Australia. These include inadequate social impact assessment, community consultation, inadequate analysis of alternative options, and the monitoring of post-closure activities. Finally, recommendations were made to improve the closure plans in both countries.