Bravus Mining and Resources’ actions to protect groundwater are set out in the Groundwater Management and Monitoring Plan and Groundwater Dependent Ecosystem Management Plan, both of which were approved by the Australian and Queensland governments following independent review by the CSIRO and Geoscience Australia.

More than 10 years of baseline groundwater data was collected to inform the Groundwater Management and Monitoring Plan and Groundwater Dependent Ecosystem Management Plan prior to the documents being approved.

These best-practice environmental plans are reviewed annually in consultation with regulators and external scientists to ensure they remain fit-for-purpose as our understanding of local groundwater and spring ecosystems advances as the program is delivered.

Our actions to protect groundwater are set out in the Groundwater Management and Monitoring Plan and Groundwater Dependent Ecosystem Management Plan, and both of these plans were approved by the Australian and Queensland governments following independent review by the CSIRO and Geoscience Australia. 

The approval of the groundwater management plans followed more than 18 months of consultation with Federal and State Environmental Departments.

Our best-practice environmental plans are reviewed annually in consultation with regulators and external scientists to ensure they remain fit-for-purpose as our understanding of local groundwater and spring ecosystems advances as Bravus’ groundwater program is delivered.

Prior to environmental and mining licences being approved for the Carmichael mine, extensive baselines studies went into understanding the groundwater environment, the complex interaction between surface water and groundwater and the associated dependent ecosystem. 

We collected data on the: Springs, surface water, geology, groundwater aquifers, farmers, cultural heritage, and ecosystems.

This data has informed our Groundwater Management and Monitoring Plan and our Groundwater Dependent Ecosystem Management Plan, which is available here.

Our groundwater management plans, which informs the way we monitor and report on groundwater, have been prepared on the extensive requirements of our environmental approvals which were granted at both a state and a federal level.

We have a transparent reporting process with regulators and the public. Groundwater monitoring data for the past two years, as well as many of our management plans and detailed studies are available on our website here.

Get your glasses out and start looking at the data we provide to the public. We love numbers!

The Carmichael mine has some of the strictest environmental conditions of any resources project in Australia’s history. As part of those conditions groundwater monitoring is conducted every two months to observe and record water levels and water quality at more than 135 sites around the Carmichael mine.

Bravus’ environmental team and research scientist partners work with neighbouring landholders, Traditional Owners, and regulators to perform the real-time and on-the-ground monitoring required to deliver this comprehensive program.

The information gathered is reported to Bravus Mining and Resources and to regulators and informs a process of checking any actual groundwater drawdown impacts via sensitive early warning triggers.

Bravus Mining and Resources’ groundwatermonitoring activities apply leading science and use best-practice technologies to observe, protect, and increase the understanding of groundwater and supporting spring ecosystems in proximity to the Carmichael mine.

The monitoring program has a unique inbuilt early warning system to allow groundwater experts to examine the cause, and if necessary, take corrective action, at the first signs of minor change in groundwater at any of 135 locations in proximity to the Carmichael mine.

Bravus Mining and Resources looks at any trigger notification in more detail as per the approved scientific process, and those recorded to date have been caused by factors such as seasonal variation in rainfall and landholder use of groundwater for things like irrigation or livestock watering. None have been related to mining activity.

Our monitoring program has unique early warning triggers and impact thresholds to allow groundwater experts to examine the cause, and if necessary, take corrective action, at the first signs of minor change in groundwater level or chemistry at any of the 135 monitoring locations in proximity to the Carmichael mine. 

The early warning system also covers the Doongmabulla Springs Complex which we continue to monitor the health of as part of our responsible operations.  

Our monitoring system and approach to mining ensures that mining operations do not cause water levels in the springs to fall by more than the 20 centimetres after mining occurs, which is one of our regulatory conditions.

If a trigger goes off in any of the bi-monthly sampling we do it starts a defined investigative process with the Department of Environment and Science.

Our monitoring programme is extensive! We have an industry leading groundwater programme which covers a vast distance on and around our mining lease in the vicinity of the Carmichael mine.

Some of the boreholes we monitor are located as close as 200 m to mining activity, while the furthest are more than 35 km from the mine pit.

Our groundwater monitoring program is part of a comprehensive suite of environmental programs that we deliver to investigate, record, and, when necessary, take action to uphold our sustainability commitments.

Due to the complex nature of groundwater aquifers, it is important to have a large number of data points in the sampling network to ensure that we responsibly manage the groundwater in the vicinity of the Carmichael mine.

Bravus Mining and Resources installed new monitoring bores on the mining lease boundary and upgraded river flow gauging stations on the Carmichael River and Belyando River to deliver our monitoring program. 

Our groundwater monitoring programme is informed by more than 120 boreholes and more than 15 surface water locations and applies leading science and use best-practice technologies to observe, protect, and increase the understanding of groundwater and supporting spring ecosystems in proximity to the Carmichael mine.

Naturally occurring variations in groundwater levels and quality are expected in and around the Carmichael mining lease, including the Doongbmaula Springs Complex which is 8km from the mine lease boundary.

Research has proven the individual springs in the Doongmabulla complex experience seasonal wet and dry phases and the health of these ecosystems through these changes is monitored as part of Bravus Mining and Resources’ groundwater program.

Bravus’s monitoring program’s early warning system is designed to pick-up minor changes in trends to ensure that water levels at the Doongmabulla Springs Complex does not drop by more than 20cm, which is one of our regulatory conditions.  

Every two months, experienced hydrogeologists collect and record groundwater data at more than 120 monitoring bores on our mining and pastoral leases and on neighbouring landholders’ properties. Surface water samples are collected from another 15 locations.

The monitoring bores were drilled to specific depths to allow the hydrogeologists to collect information on aquifers in nine different geological layers.

The groundwater and surface water samples collected in the field are sent for analysis at an independent ISO accredited laboratory using a strict chain of custody. 

The information gathered is reported to Bravus Mining and Resources and to regulators and informs a process of checking any actual groundwater drawdown impacts via sensitive early warning triggers.

The more than 120 monitoring boreholes installed for Bravus’ extensive groundwater monitoring program were drilled to specific depths to assist our experienced hydrogeologists to collect and analyse water quality results from the various aquifers in the area around the Carmichael mine.

We collect information on groundwater from the following geological layers:

• Alluvium
• Tertiary Sediments
• Moolayember Formation
• Clematis Sandstone
• Dunda Beds
• Rewan Formation
• Bandanna Formation
• Colinlea Sandstone
• Joe Joe Group

Some of our monitoring boreholes are as deep as 600m below ground level.

The groundwater and surface water samples collected in the field are sent for analysis at an independent ISO accredited laboratory, using a strict chain of custody, within 48 hours of sample collection.

Why is a strict chain of custody important? A chain of custody (COC) tracks the transfer of a sample from collection through to analysis to ensure its integrity, its temperature control and its timelines – this is all to protect the analysis to ensure a sample analysed in a laboratory is representative of the sample taken in the field. 

Laboratory reports developed by the independent accredited laboratory are analysed by expert hydrogeologists and information is shared on our website.

Groundwater and surface water samples are collected in the field by experts and sent for analysis at an independent ISO accredited laboratory using a strict chain of custody.

The independent laboratory tests groundwater and surface water samples for more than 40 different water quality parameters.

The information gathered is reported by experts to Bravus Mining and Resources and to regulators and informs a process of checking any actual groundwater drawdown impacts or changes in water quality via sensitive early warning triggers.

The bi-monthly groundwater sampling at Carmichael generates thousands of data points. A purpose-built computer model helps our groundwater expert analyse this data to track groundwater levels and quality trends over time. 

The data collected from the monitoring informs a process of checking any actual groundwater drawdown impacts via sensitive early warning triggers as defined in our regulatory conditions.

Information gathered from the Carmichael mine groundwater program is reported to Bravus Mining and Resources and to regulators.

Bravus Mining and Resources has provided more than two years of monitoring data and makes this information available to the public on this website.

View the reporting data here.

This data includes monitoring of the Doongmabulla springs complex, which is a grouping of individual groundwater springs that naturally discharge water from the Great Artesian Basin. 

The boundary of the Doongmabulla springs complex is more than eight kilometres from the Carmichael mine boundary and 11 kilometres from any mine activity.

Bravus Mining and Resources undertook extensive scientific studies to inform the approach to mining at the Carmichael mine and ensure there would be no impact on the Doongmabulla springs complex, the species that depend on it, or the cultural heritage significance of the area. 

We continue to monitor the health of this ecosystem as part of our responsible operations.

We have an extensive group of experts, both internally and externally, who help deliver Bravus’s groundwater monitoring program at the Carmichael Mine.

Our team of hydrogeologists, hydrologists and environmental scientists are experts in their fields, with extensive knowledge and experience.  

The duties of this team include:

• Recording on-site water and weather conditions
• Studying the quality ad movement of water underground
• Working with the surrounding farmers
• Collecting samples and data from boreholes bi-monthly
• Maintaining monitoring equipment
• Reviewing laboratory records
• Monitoring trends and future groundwater scenarios

Due to the vast volume of data which Bravus’ groundwater monitoring program generates, there was a need to utilise smart data analysis options.

Our groundwater experts developed a bespoke computer program to review the first level of data which is received from the independent accredited laboratory.   

What do we do with all this data you may ask? We check the water levels and quality against our regulatory compliance conditions every two months, as well as model groundwater scenarios far beyond the life of mine.

This helps guide the way we mine at Carmichael to make sure we continue to comply with our approvals.

Surrounding the mining lease is a complex series of individual groundwater springs. These springs include the Doongmabulla springs complex.

The Doongmabulla springs complex consists of 187 “vents” forming 160 separate wetlands and include the Moses spring group, the Little Moses spring group and the Joshua spring.

These springs are fed by complex groundwater paths which have a key role in the local ecosystem health for flora, fauna and for cultural heritage significance. As part of our compliance conditions we have extensively monitored the springs and continue to do so.

Like all Australian mines, water use is strictly regulated at Carmichael mine and Bravus Mining and Resources is required to monitor, manage, and report on local groundwater and water systems.

Water is a precious resource and Bravus Mining and Resources is committed to its responsible use in the operation of Carmichael mine.

Bravus Mining and Resources invests in the latest modelling techniques with external consultants to model groundwater for many years after the life of mine. Our groundwater models are independently peer reviewed. 

These groundwater models are fundamental to our business and play a role in determining our future mine plan.

Groundwater recharge rates depend on many things – including geological layers, amount of rainfall received in an area, the surrounding river systems, other weather events and use.

Aquifers recharge following rainfall at different rates depending on the depth and the permeability of the rock. Localised flooding or an extraordinary wet season does not mean immediate aquifer recharge as most of the water is lost to runoff (before it can seep into the earth).

As a result of the variables in geology, weather events and use of an aquifer, timelines of groundwater can be very long or very short (one rain event vs 1000s of years).

As part of our ongoing care and commitment to the groundwater in the area of the Carmichael mine we have embarked on a five-year partnership program to assist surrounding land users better manage groundwater.

We work together with surrounding land users to identify, plan and pay for the capping of old Great Artesian Basin (GAB) bores which have been uncontrolled and free flowing.

The GAB capping program requires us to cap 730 megalitres of water each year for the first five years of mining operations.

Water is a precious resource and Bravus Mining and Resources is committed to its sustainable use in the operation of Carmichael mine.

Like all Australian mines, water use is strictly regulated at the Carmichael mine.

We reuse and recycle water over and over again, only taking what we need.  

Water is used at Carmichael in the following ways:

• To wash coal – some of the coal is washed to increase energy efficiency before export.
• For personnel use – in offices, the accommodation village, and workshops.
• For dust suppression – water is sprayed on haul roads and coal stockpiles to minimise dust.
• For vehicle washing – this includes as part of our biosecurity (weed and seed) management