Future Uses for Former Mine - bendigo.vic.gov.au · The City of Greater Bendigo (COGB) initiated...

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Future Uses for Former Mine Land in Bendigo

Methodology Report

January 2008

Sinclair Knight Merz ABN 37 001 024 095 590 Orrong Road, Armadale 3143 PO Box 2500 Malvern VIC 3144 Australia Tel: +61 3 9248 3100 Fax: +61 3 9248 3460 Web: www.skmconsulting.com

COPYRIGHT: The concepts and information contained in this document are the property of Sinclair Knight Merz Pty Ltd. Use or copying of this document in whole or in part without the written permission of Sinclair Knight Merz constitutes an infringement of copyright.

LIMITATION: This report has been prepared on behalf of and for the exclusive use of Sinclair Knight Merz Pty Ltd’s Client, and is subject to and issued in connection with the provisions of the agreement between Sinclair Knight Merz and its Client. Sinclair Knight Merz accepts no liability or responsibility whatsoever for or in respect of any use of or reliance upon this report by any third party.

Contents

1. Introduction 2

2. Project Process 3

2.1 Project Overview 3 2.2 Stage 1 - Steering Group Established 3 2.3 Stage 2 - Inception Meeting 4 2.4 Stage 3 - Review Background Documentation 4 2.5 Stage 4 - Prepared Resident and Community Bulletin 4 2.6 Stage 5 - Resident and Community Survey 5 2.7 Stage 6 - Technical Assessments 5 2.8 Stage 7 - Overview Report 5 2.9 Stage 8 - Site Reports 5 2.10 Stage 9 - Public Comment 5 2.11 Stage 10 – Finalise Report and Implementation 6

3. Project Deliverables 7

4. Key Lessons Learned 7

Appendix A Inception Meeting Agenda 9

Appendix B Consultation Strategy 10

Appendix C Project Bulletin 1 12

Appendix D Resident and Community Survey 14

Appendix E Project Bulletin 2 16

The SKM logo is a trade mark of Sinclair Knight Merz Pty Ltd. © Sinclair Knight Merz Pty Ltd, 20062 2

1. Introduction The City of Greater Bendigo (COGB) initiated the Future Uses for Former Mine Land Project to consider future land use options for ten former mine sites on Crown Land

located within the Bendigo urban area. A key aim of the project was to identify the constraints and opportunities of each site and potential future uses for the former mine land to realise maximum community benefit.

This project was undertaken by the COGB in partnership with the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) and the Environmental Protection Authority

(EPA).The Department of Primary Industries (DPI) was also involved through participation on the Steering Group. The Project was funded through Sustainability Victoria’s

Sustainability Fund and by in-kind contributions from the project partners. One of the conditions of the funding for the project from Sustainability Victoria was the requirement to prepare a report summarising the methodology undertaken for the project to provide guidance for other similar projects.

This report summarises the methodology used for the Future Uses for Former Mine Land

Project in Bendigo and is intended to provide guidance to other local governments or agencies that may wish to undertake similar land use studies in order to assess the

feasibility of reclaiming old mining sites in urban areas for more beneficial community uses.


2. Project Process

2.1 Project Overview The Future Uses for Former Mine Land Project assessed the constraints and

opportunities of ten former mine sites located on Crown Land within the Bendigo urban area. It also recommended future land use options in response to site features (including

heritage, ecological) and conditions (including contamination and geotechnical) and the land use and zoning pattern of surrounding areas.

The following section of the report outlines the key stages of the project.

2.2 Stage 1 - Steering Group Established and Appointment of Consultants

The GoGB established a Project Steering Group (PSG) at the start of the project. The role of the PSG was to:

� Scope the project brief

� Seek funding

� Seek tenders

� Interview consultants

� Appoint consultants.

Membership of the PSG comprised:

� Chair / Councillor - City of Greater Bendigo

� Project Manager - City of Greater Bendigo

� Manager of Crown Land Services - Department of Sustainability & Environment N/W Region,

� Regional Services Officer - Environment Protection Authority - North West Region

� Minerals Development Manager – Department of Primary Industries

� Manager of Presentation & Works - City of Greater Bendigo

� Strategic Planner - City of Greater Bendigo

� Senior Statutory Planner (Background in mining and subdivision) - City of Greater

Bendigo

The Brief was approved by the Council and the project partners and sent to 4 selected

Consulting firms who had the expertise to undertake the project. Three submissions were received and after interviewing all the submittors, the PSG appointed Sinclair Knight Merz

(SKM), planning and environmental consultants, to undertake the Future Uses of Former Mine Land Project. The PSG met throughout the project at the following stages:

� Project inception

� Preliminary investigations

� Draft recommendations

� Draft report


� Final Report

The last meeting of the PSG was held in January 2008 to discuss progressing the recommendations and to wrap up the project.

2.3 Stage 2 - Inception Meeting

An inception meeting was held with the PSG and the consultants to confirm contractual issues, the work program, the study methodology, consultation strategy, occupational safety and health issues (specifically regarding site visits) and to exchange background information. The meeting also confirmed the ten (10) sites to be investigated as part of the project and determined the most suitable sites for consideration. Site selection was based on:

� Level of public support

� Level of interest from the development sector / market

� Development costs

� Council’s priorities for the Bendigo region

� Proximity to city centre

� Size of site

� Type of land in surrounding area

A copy of the inception meeting agenda is included in Appendix A of this report.

The consultants in conjunction with the COGB Project Manager prepared a consultation strategy at the inception of the project. The purpose of the consultation strategy was to guide consultation with key stakeholders, the community, Council Officers and the Project Steering Group throughout the life of the project. The strategy outlined the proposed consultation stages, consultation objectives for each stage, consultation methods and nominated either the project team or COGB staff as responsible for various consultation stages.

A copy of the consultation strategy is included in Appendix B.

2.4 Stage 3 - Review Background Documentation

SKM reviewed background documentation provided by the PSG to inform site

assessments. Key reference documents included the Greater Bendigo Planning Scheme, strategic land use studies, open space strategy, structure plans, industrial strategy,

population and household projections, housing strategy, general strategy, flora and fauna information, geotechnical and other site specific data held by DSE.

2.5 Stage 4 - Prepared Project Bulletin Number 1

The consultants in conjunction with the COGB project manager prepared a project bulletin at the commencement of the project to advise the residents and the community about the project and call for registration of interest in the project. The Bulletin outlined the purpose of the project, project partners, membership of the PSG, listed the nominated sites

including a map of the ten sites and current uses of the sites. It also provided details regarding COGB contacts for the project and advised of the availability of a resident and

community survey. A copy of Project Bulletin 1 is included in Appendix C of this report.


The COGB circulated this Bulletin to local residents and the community and made the Bulletin available on Council’s website. Council also issued a media release in conjunction with the release of Bulletin 1.

2.6 Stage 5 - Residents and Community Survey

The consultants in conjunction with the COGB project manager prepared a Residents and Community Survey to obtain information about the current usage of the former mine sites and to understand how residents and the community value these sites. COGB mailed the survey out to all residences within 150m of each site – about 1500 surveys were posted. The survey was completed for individual sites addressing future development, the features of each site that residents sought to have protected and suggestions for alternative uses.

A copy of the Residents and Community Survey is included in Appendix D of this report.

About 230 surveys were returned and the COGB collated all the information received against each site. The information gained as part of the survey process regarding the history of each site, current land uses and preferred future land uses was used as input into the preparation of the Draft Future Uses for Former Mine Land Report.

2.7 Stage 6 - Technical Assessments

Technical assessments which considered town planning, geotechnical, ecological, and heritage issues of each site were undertaken. Assessments included a desktop review of

mapping information and verification through site inspection. No detailed investigations, including site surveys or testing, were undertaken given the “high level” strategic nature of the project.

2.8 Stage 7 - Overview Report

The consultants prepared an Overview Report which outlined background information

generic to all ten sites. This report included the project aim, nominated sites, study methodology and a summary of recommendations for all ten sites.

2.9 Stage 8 - Site Reports

The consultants prepared detailed site reports for each investigation site. Each site report included descriptions and characteristics of the site opportunities and constraints, assessment of potential end use options, and preferred end use options.

The PSG provided input into the preferred end use options identified for each investigation site.

2.10 Stage 9 - Public Comment

The consultants made a verbal presentation on the Draft Future Uses of Former Mine

Land Report to the Council which subsequently resolved to release the report for public comment. The report was released for public feedback for a six week period, during which it was available for inspection at the City offices and on the COGB website.

A second Project Bulletin was prepared to provide an overview of the report and its findings and to invite feedback on the Draft Future Uses of Former Mine Land Report.


The Bulletin also provided an overview of the next steps proposed for the project. The bulletin was mailed to all those people who had a registered an interest in the study (nearly 300). A copy of Project Bulletin 2 is included in Appendix E of this report.

Council issued a press release at this time advising of the opportunity for public comment and that Project Bulletin No 2 was available.

Following the “public exhibition’ of the draft report only 5 submissions were received and

these raised issues regarding site history, local knowledge, and provided additional information on potential locations of future vent shafts for Bendigo Mining.

2.11 Stage 10 - Finalise Report and Implementation

The project team considered all submissions and made changes to the draft report in response to the feedback received. The Final Report was considered and endorsed by Council at a formal Council meeting on 19th December 2007.

The Final Overview Report contained a summary of proposed implementation of the recommendations. Implementation actions included:

� Seek community comment

� Prioritise development opportunities

� Detailed environmental investigation and development plan

� Commence site remediation works

� Secure approvals

� Invite expressions of interest to purchase and/or develop the land

� Consider / commence transfer of land ownership

� Construction and on-going maintenance

The Overview Report acknowledged these actions may be led by various parties including DSE as the land owner or the COGB and in some cases by private developers, and may take some time to achieve.

The Project Steering Group had its final meeting in mid January 2008 to discuss ways to progress the recommendations. It was agreed that a press release would be developed,

that the Developers Group that meets with the statutory planners would be informed of the report and provided with the website linkage, and that the report would be promoted by all the partner agencies. In addition, a letter advising of the completion of the report and the website linkage would be sent to all those people who registered an interest in the project throughout the course of the study – (nearly 300 people).


3. Project Deliverables A key deliverable for the project was an Overview Report which included background information about the project including:

� Overview of investigation sites

� Project management

� Project approach

� Assessment of identified sites

� Comparative constraints ranking

� Recommendations

� Next steps

A further deliverable was a Site Specific Report for each of the ten sites which were included as attachments to the Overview Report. The Site Specific Reports consisted of a

stand alone report for each site which included the following information:

� Site description and features

� Opportunities and constraints

� End use options

� Appendices comprising:

- Crown Land Status Reports

- Town Planning Assessment

- Geotechnical Assessment

- Ecological Assessment

- Heritage Assessment

- Resident and Community Survey Results

4. Key Lessons Learned

The key lessons learned as part of this project, which would be useful for any future projects of a similar nature are as follows:

� The PSG composition (Council, DSE, EPA and DPI – minerals) ensured access to relevant data and provided a coordinated multi-agency approach to land use planning

and land management.

� Heritage Victoria provided significant amounts of information but data regarding site

contamination and mining history of sites is still somewhat fragmented and there are likely to be significant data gaps.

� The number of maps prepared for each site can add significantly to the cost and the timeframe of the overall project. A substantial budget is required to produce mapping of key issues including flora and fauna, geotechnical, contamination issues. Additional budget would be required to provide GIS maps in a form compatible with GIS so that they can be used for long-term land management.


� The scope of technical assessments needs to be clearly defined to avoid cost over-runs with the project.

� Communication and engagement with residents, the community and community interest groups via press releases, project bulletins and the Residents and Community

Survey was quite extensive but very necessary and contributed to the success of the project. It also minimised the overall amount of submissions received.


Appendix A - Inception Meeting Agenda

STUDY OF DESPOILED MINING LAND IN

BENDIGO

Meeting to Determine Study Sites

10am (until 12 noon), Thursday 29 March, 2007

EDU Board Room

Agenda Attending:

Glenn Kell Sinclair Knight Merz

Craig Clifton Sinclair Knight Merz

Rachel Ducker Sinclair Knight Merz

Jan Boynton City of Greater Bendigo

Paige Byrne City of Greater Bendigo

Adam Melis Department of Sustainability & Environment

Paul Ratajczyk Environment Protection Authority

1. Apologies: Paul Ratajczyk (EPA) - will arrive approx 1 hr late to the meeting.

2. Discussion points: 1. Contractual issues 2. Confirm Work Program 3. Confirm Consultation Plan 4. Present Draft JSEA (Safety Plan) and incorporate any specific Council/DSE/EPA

requirements. 5. Exchange background documentation.

6. Select (and broadly discuss) sites to be investigated through the project. 3. Other Business:

SKM will: 1. Have contract reviewed for discussion 2. Prepare and present revised work program (to incorporate discussion at interview ) 3. Prepare draft JSEA for discussion 4. Prepare GIS base Maps to assist with the selection of sites

It would be appreciated if Council, DSE and EPA could bring copies of relevant background information/documents for the SKM Team.

4. Next Meeting: To be arranged.


APPENDIX B - Consultation Strategy


APPENDIX C - Project Bulletin 1


APPENDIX D - Residents & Community Survey


Appendix E - Project Bulletin 2

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