Clash over land use as Mallee mine hearings end

VHM Ltd wants to develop an open-cut mine to extract mineral sands and rare earths from the Cannie Ridge in the southern Mallee of Victoria.

On the final day of public hearings into its mine plans south of Swan Hill, VHM questioned claims the land in question was "prime agricultural land" according to planning laws.

During the last week of hearings held in Swan Hill, upset Cannie Ridge farm families told the inquiry their forebears had selected land at Cannie Ridge generations earlier because of its productive capacity.

They said the Cannie Ridge was home to some of the most fertile cropping country in the southern Mallee.

The Mallee mine hearings began on March 15 and have run across six weeks mostly taken up by VHM's expert evidence on its 4000-page Environmental Effects Statement which forms the basis of these planning panel hearings.

VHM aims to extract the key "big four" rare earths needed for renewable energy technology like wind turbines and electric vehicles.

VHM says it is gearing up to begin construction of the mine later this year once it has the necessary approvals.

The necessary freehold farming land has already been bought from willing sellers for its initial mine which covers about 1500 hectares (3707 acres).

VHM's flagship Goschen project will mean 20-25 years of round-the-clock mining to open cut five million tonnes of mineral sands every year.

The government appointed three-member Inquiry and Advisory Committee has sat for 21 days to hear evidence on the mine plans.

From today (Tuesday), the IAC has 40 days to submit its findings to the government.

After that a positive ministerial assessment for Goschen would allow VHM to apply for its relevant permits and mining licence (already under way), so the company can make its final investment decision.

In its closing submission to the inquiry today, VHM said it had done all the necessary work for the project to proceed.

"... planning, state and national policy supports the temporary use of the project land for the purposes proposed. It does not identify the project land as being of particular significance for its agricultural value," the company said.

"VHM acknowledges the deep, genuine connection of families - and their neighbours and communities - to this land in its agricultural state ...

"In the context of land use planning considerations, those matters are not relevant to the assessment of net community benefit.

"In this respect, the concept of 'community' is broader than local residents and extends to include the communities of the region, and of the state of Victoria, which stand to benefit in various ways should the project proceed."

VHM has suggested the mine project would generate $2 billion and hundreds of jobs across the life of the project.

VHM said "many submitters" had repeatedly described the land as "prime agricultural land".

"While Cannie Ridge is undoubtedly valuable to agriculture in the regional context and the land on it desirable to local farmers, the phrase 'prime agricultural land' is one with no established definition in or relevance to applicable policy," the company said.

The Cannie Ridge had not be shown in any "planning scheme or other policy" as land of particular agricultural significance, whether as "prime agricultural land" or otherwise, VHM said.

"... no policy strategically prioritises agriculture over mining in this location."

VHM's experts had estimated lost yield from the proposed project area would amount to 5640 tonnes of wheat or 2640 tonnes of canola.

The miner plans to rehabilitate the land so it is suitable for agriculture once the mining had finished.