The provisions of the Mining Act 1978 and the Mining Regulations 1981 are administered by the Minister for Mines and Petroleum, Energy, Corrective Services and Industrial Relations, who is supported by the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) to whom the Minister may also delegate roles and functions. As the applications are made to and assessed by the Deprtment, any submissions or comments members of the public wish to make should be forwarded directly to DMIRS.
In accordance with clause 64A of the Regulations, an applicant must serve notice on a local government in the form of Form 21, within 21 days of lodging the application. In accordance with the form, the local authority may lodge an objection and the timeframe for this is 21 days from the date of service of the documentation. This time period does not allow sufficient time for the Shire to undertake any form of consultation process or the ability to consider any submissions from landowners or other members of the Public.
