The McGowan Government is examining legislative solutions to provide assurance to the State’s mining industry following the High Court decision last month on the Forrest & Forrest case.
On August 17, the High Court found the process of granting mining lease applications was flawed.
The Mining Act 1978 requires a mining lease application to be accompanied by either a mining proposal or a mineralisation report.
In this case, both applicants lodged mineralisation reports after the mining lease applications were lodged, but before the applications were considered.
No interested party was disadvantaged by allowing the documents in question to be lodged separately.
This has created uncertainty around existing mining tenements that may have been granted under a similar process since 2006.
The Government is exploring legislative solutions to overcome the uncertainty created by the High Court’s ruling, including the legislation operating retrospectively if it proves necessary.