Environment
Talison Lithium is committed to sustainable development and regards the environmental management and rehabilitation of mining sites as among its highest priorities. We continually review and improve our environmental management practices to minimise the impact of mining on the site, surrounding environment, and neighbouring communities.
The Greenbushes Lithium Operation has stringent environmental operating conditions and is externally certified ISO 14001:2014 Environmental Management System requirements. The site is subject to regular independent audits to ensure ongoing compliance and continuous improvement.
Talison Lithium’s key environmental responsibilities at the Greenbushes Lithium Operations include:
Rehabilitation of mined land to re-establish a self-sustaining, native forest ecosystem
Maintaining the quality of local surface water and groundwater resources and minimising downstream impacts.
Minimising the spread of dieback and weeds across all areas of disturbance
Reducing dust and emissions to protect the environment and local communities
Minimising waste generation through the principles of reduce, reuse, and recycle wherever practicable Conducting environmental monitoring and reporting in accordance with the Company’s regulatory obligations.
Protecting and managing conservation-significant fauna and their habitats where practicable from disturbance
Providing and managing offset areas to replace habitat impacted by mining operations
Click here for Talison Lithium Environmental Policy Statement
Approvals
Greenbushes Lithium Mine Expansion EPBC 2018/8206 MS1111
The Greenbushes Lithium Mine Expansion was formally referred to the Commonwealth Department of the Environment and Energy (DotEE) for assessment under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) and the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) under the Environmental Protection Act 1986 (EP Act) to clear 350ha of native vegetation containing suitable habitat for threatened species. In 2019, Talison Lithium was granted approval to clear native vegetation to construct and operate an expansion of the Greenbushes mine in accordance with the conditions specified Ministerial Statement No. 1111 & EPBC 2018/8206.
Annual compliance reports prepared to comply with Condition 14 of the EPBC 2018/8206 approval are provided below:
Talison Lithium provides an annual monitoring report to the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER), which includes an Annual Audit Compliance Report (AACR) that is published on the DWER website. The AACR includes a summary of total production and waste figures, as well as a summary of non-compliances and resultant corrective actions. See below a link to the official document.
Management Plans
Various management plans have been developed to support Ministerial Statement No. 1111 and EPBC 2018/8206:
Conservation Significant Terrestrial Fauna Management Plan
Disease Management Hygiene Plan
Visual Impact and Rehabilitation Plan
Wellington Mills Offset Management Plan
Tonebridge Offset Management Plan
Carlotta Offset Management Plan.pdf
Greenbushes Western Australia EPBC 2013/6904
In 2013, as part of Talison Lithium’s continued operations, approval was sought to expand the Waste Rock Landform resulting in the clearing of 75.7 ha of native vegetation containing suitable habitat for MNES listed in the EPBC Act. To offset the impact to MNES habitat, an agreement was reached between Talison Lithium and a landowner to protect and improve 121.7 ha of suitable habitat via a conservation covenant. An Offset Management Plan has been developed for this habitat and is managed on behalf of Talison Lithium by the Blackwood Basin Group, which is provided in the link below. Offset Management Annual Reports can be found within the EPBC 2013/6904 Annual Compliance Summary Reports below:
WATER MANAGEMENT
The Greenbushes Lithium Operations is located in the Blackwood Valley Catchment. Water for mineral processing is sourced from rainfall and stored in several process water dams and mining voids located on the site. Conservation of water is a high priority and process water is recovered and recycled.
To maintain surface water, key water bodies are regularly measured and reported. Groundwater monitoring bores are located around the process plants and tailings dams to track water quality.
During the mining processes of blasting, crushing and grinding of ore, naturally occurring elements such as lithium minerals are released into the water. Talison has constructed a Water Treatment Facility to remove these elements before re-use (recycling) or discharge.
Species Needs Analysis: Black-Cockatoos in the Southern Jarrah Forest
Talison has undertaken a Species Needs Analysis to support conservation planning for three black-cockatoo species endemic to southwest Western Australia. These species may be impacted by native vegetation clearing associated with the Greenbushes mining operations, located in the Southern Jarrah Forest subregion.
The analysis helps guide the selection of biodiversity offsets to counterbalance potential impacts to the three species of black-cockatoo. More than 267 stakeholders were engaged during the development of the report, with 37 contributing data or information that informed the findings. We thank all those who contributed to this important work.
Click here to view the report.