WHERE IS OUR INDUSTRY AT THE END OF ANOTHER YEAR?

BRUCE MCLURE, CMPA General Manager, reports on where the industry is at; at the end of another year.

IF one quietly reflects on what has occurred within the extractive industries over the last twelve months and tries to list the resolutions of issues, the improvements to regulations and the like impacting on our industry, the answer would be that we end up with a very small list.

I recently attended a Department of Primary Industries (DPI) end of year function where a State Government Minister and senior DPI staff members painted a rosy picture highlighting on the achievements within the Department. There is no doubt that DPI has had some very major and important successes. They have received substantial funding for projects that are going to impact on Victoria in the future. Yet for all the rhetoric, for all of the cheery pats on the back, what is very sobering for the Extractive Industry associations involved with the DPI over the last twelve months is that very little improvement to our industry has occurred.

Admittedly many of the areas that are causing the industry major grief like Native Vegetation, Cultural Heritage Issues, inappropriate uses of materials, are outside the control of DPI. However, many of the areas of concern that DPI do have jurisdiction over are still not resolved aft er another twelve months of meeting, discussions and submissions.

All Extractive Industry stakeholders have been involved with the Mineral Resources Amendment (Sustainable Development) Act 2010 (MRSDA) since 2010. The MRSDA is the opportunity from government and the industry to revisit regulations in place and seek improvements, refinements to the regulations to ensure that they will benefit all Victorians as we move forward in this State.

Despite numerous meetings and submissions, only MRSDA Phase One has been approved by the State Government and Phase Two which has a major impact on the Extractive Industry is still to be finalised. All Industry stakeholders have major concerns with what was being suggested by DPI with respect to some of the changes proposed to the regulations and this was conveyed to government through a number of sources.

The Government to its credit has not agreed to the draft regulation changes proposed by DPI and next year will see an attempt by DPI to address the concerns of industry and get the changes to the regulations back on track. It will be interesting to see what the final outcomes of the MRSDA Phase two will be.

Over the last twelve months we have seen reviews of current regulations, papers outlining proposed new regulations, policy changes or the imposition of another layer of bureaucratic red tape.

The CMPA has made submissions on seven different reviews ranging from a review of the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006, revised Geotechnical Guidelines, proposed DPI Mineral Regulations remake, Future Direction of Native Vegetation in Victoria, review of the Regulation Impact Analysis regime in place, proposed recommended Buff er Distances for Industrial Residual Air Emissions and reform of Victoria’s Environmental Impact Assessment System. There has also been a number of projects that the CMPA has been asked to participate in or provide comment on.

The DSE and DPI Net Volume Licensing project revolving around net water use is an example of this. No one is suggesting that these reviews, reports are not required. As a society we constantly need to update, revisit and change the regulations, the polices that set the course of our State. However what is sometimes forgotten is the time, the effort that the CMPA and other Extractive Industry bodies put into insuring that the respective changes, revisions, updates of other government departments are given proper scrutiny and review by the people who, as is the case for most our members, have to run a family business and try to keep it profitable and a going concern and be able to adhere to all the regulative burden imposed on them.

The CMPA has always maintained that we need regulations in place to control what actually occurs on work sites and to control the planning of future extractive industry sites. However, the CMPA has also consistently made it quite clear that we need balanced regulations that are fair and reasonable for all stakeholders and the general public.

The state government has a stated policy of a 25% reduction in red tape. Yet there is little evidence to show where this policy has filtered down to the various departments working on policy and regulation changes. We all need to consider the state interests but Government and the Bureaucracy need to remember that as the majority of CMPA members are family businesses, those family businesses need certainty, they need simplicity as much as can be provided, they need to be able to make a realistic and profitable return on their investment and probably most important of all, they need to know that their industry has a future.

THE YEAR 2012 IN REVIEW

The CMPA, your association has been very active over the last twelve. Here are some highlights:

• CMPA Annual Dinner at Healesville attracted over 200 attendees

• CMPA Members Day, site visit to Northern Quarries, Blast Management Workshop and General Meeting was attended by over 50 members

• Development of Personal Work Record Book, Shotfirers Book, Magazine Management Safety Checklist and an update to the On Road Truck Pickup and Delivery Checklist Book

• Development of short form Transport Contract for use by CMPA members

• Development of Collect Routine Site Samples for Cert III in Laboratory Skills and Conduct Laboratory Based Acceptance Tests for Construction Materials for the Diploma of Laboratory Technology

• Members Survey for 2012 conducted and results sent out

• Submissions to government include: Productivity Commission – Regulatory Impact Analysis Benchmarking Study, Aboriginal Affairs Victoria – Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 Review, DPI – Draft Geotechnical Guideline, DSE – Future directions for Native Vegetation in Victoria, EDIC – Parliament of Victoria – Inquiry into Greenfields Mineral Exploration and Project Development in Victoria, EPA – Recommended Buffer Distances for Industrial air Emissions and DPCD – Reform of Victoria’s Environmental Impact Assessment System.

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