Prepared for: Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd 653 Bridgman Road Singleton NSW 2330 Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan Integra North Open Cut Final ENSR Australia Pty Ltd (ENSR) 20 January 2009 Document No.:
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Contents 1.0 INTRODUCTION...1 1.1 Background...1 1.2 Existing Environment...1 1.2.1 Landform...1 1.2.2 Geology...1 1.2.3 Soils...1 1.2.4 Vegetation...2 1.3 Planning Context...2 1.4 Aboriginal Consultation...2 2.0 DEVELOPMENT IMPACTS ON ABORIGINAL CULTURAL HERITAGE...5 2.1 Recorded Aboriginal Sites...5 2.2 Development Impacts...7 3.0 MITIGATION OF IMPACTS AND OTHER MANAGEMENT MEASURES...9 3.1 Management Strategy...9 3.2 Consultation Protocol...11 4.0 REFERENCES...13 List of Tables Body Report Table 1: Identified Sites and their Locations (based on HLA 2007)...5 Table 2: Consultation Protocol...11 List of Figures Figure F1: Site Location and Archaeological Sites Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan i January 2009
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1.0 Introduction 1.1 Background Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd (ICO) has project approval (PA 06_0073) under Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act from the Minister for Planning for operation of the Integra North Open Cut Coal Mine (the Mine Site), 12 km north of Singleton in the Hunter Valley, NSW. A comprehensive Aboriginal heritage assessment (HLA, 2007) of the proposed impact zone for the Project was undertaken as part of the Environmental Assessment (EA) prepared to support the application for project approval. This document fulfils the EA commitment to prepare an Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan (AHMP) prior to the commencement of mining operations. This commitment is reflected in Condition 3(37) of PA 06_0073. The Mine Site is located immediately to the north of the former Camberwell North Pit, 12 km north of Singleton. The open cut mine would disturb around 90 hectares, running in an east west orientation from Possum Skin Dam to Stony Creek Road, and the out-of-pit overburden emplacements would disturb around 41 hectares (Figure 1). Other areas of disturbance include associated and ancillary activities typical in a working coal mine, such as offices, facilities, roads and water management structures. Open cut operations will completely remove all topsoil, subsoil and bedrock within the open cut footprint. The volume and mass of the waste rock that will be produced will severely impact natural soil profiles beneath. A series of management measures to mitigate against impacts to Aboriginal sites with the proposed areas of disturbance have been formulated. These are based on the statutory controls affecting the management of archaeological materials. These controls, and the recommendations developed, are outlined in Section 3.0. 1.2 Existing Environment 1.2.1 Landform The Mine Site lies within the broad physiographic area known as the Central lands. The general characteristics of the Central lands are essentially undulating to gently hilly slopes, with slopes rarely exceeding 15%. Alluvial flats extend from the Hunter River and its major tributaries throughout the lands. Bounding the lands are abrupt transitions to steeper country on either side. The Mine Site is located close by the northeastern edge of the Central lands (Storey et al. 1963). 1.2.2 Geology The Hunter Coalfield region comprises Permian sediments overlain in the west by Triassic sediments and overthrust in the east by Carboniferous strata. The geology of the Mine Site is part of the Vane Subgroup consisting of the overlying Bulga Formation with the coal bearing Foybrook Formation beneath. 1.2.3 Soils The Soil Landscapes of the Singleton 1:250,000 Sheet (Kovac and Lawrie, 1991), identifies the Mine Site as consisting of the Sedgefield Soil Landscape. This soil landscape is characteristically associated with undulating low hills north of Singleton. The main soils are yellow Soloths on the upper mid slopes, with yellow Solodic soils on lower slopes and drainage lines. Occasionally black Soloths are also present within seepage zones. Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan 1 January 2009
1.2.4 Vegetation Due to extensive prior clearing operations, the Mine Site now consists of a dense grass cover with variable tree and shrub vegetation. Abundant forest regrowth (trees that have grown back following mass clearance in the recent past) is evident in sections of the Mine Site. Grazing has also resulted in a substantive change in the form of grass cover, with grazing stock preferring the introduced grasses over native grasses. 1.3 Planning Context The Mine was approved under Project Approval (PA 06_0073) issued by the Minister for Planning under Major Project under Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979. Therefore, no Aboriginal heritage impact approvals under Part 6 of the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 are required. This management plan has been prepared in accordance with the commitment made in the EA and as required by Condition 3(37) of PA 06_0073. There are no formal NSW guidelines relating to the development of AHMPs, therefore, the format developed for this AHMP includes aspects of the Victorian standard which apply best practice in current literature. Nevertheless, the Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC) were consulted on 7 July 2008, to provide input and confirm the suitability of the proposed structure. DECC were also consulted upon the preparation of the draft AHMP, following client review and Aboriginal consultation. Final correspondence with DECC was also undertaken seeking sign-off on the final AHMP. 1.4 Aboriginal Consultation The original Aboriginal heritage assessment by HLA in early 2005 included Aboriginal consultation in accordance with the National Parks & Wildlife Act 1974: Part 6 Approvals Interim Community Consultation Requirements for Applicants (ICCRs). The Aboriginal Community Groups that were identified and that were involved in the original Aboriginal heritage assessment (archaeological survey) included: er Wonnarua Tribal Consultancy Pty Ltd. Wanaruah LALC. Wattaka. Wonnarua C.C. Service. Upper Hunter Heritage Consultants. Hunter Valley Cultural Consultants. er Hunter Wannarua Council Inc. Wonnarua Nations Aboriginal Corporation. Wonnarua Custodians. Upper Hunter Wonnarua Council. Ungooroo Aboriginal Corporation. Valley Culture. Yarrawalk Enterprises. Giwirr Consultants. Wonnarua Cultural Heritage. January 2009 2 Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan
For this AHMP, an ongoing Aboriginal consultation approach was adopted. This approach picked up from the previous consultation, conducted in accordance with the DECC ICCRs. Ongoing Aboriginal consultation for this AHMP included: correspondence with previously identified Aboriginal parties listed above to confirm their interest in ongoing consultation regarding the AHMP; briefing letter to each confirmed Aboriginal party explaining the project and setting out an interim draft structure of the AHMP and seeking input into development of the plan; on-site workshop (held on 23 rd July, 2008) at the Mine Site to present the draft AHMP to the Aboriginal Community Groups seeking input and including a brief site inspection in preparation for artefact collection; confirmation with Aboriginal Community Groups post consultation with the Mine for the location of the designated keeping place within the Southern Biodiversity Offset Area (see EA, 2007) for collected artefacts; and distribution of the final draft of the AHMP seeking letter of agreement. Three Aboriginal community groups responded to the invitation for consultation with regards to the AHMP. The Aboriginal community groups and the group representatives that attended the on-site workshop were: Ungooroo Aboriginal Corporation Alan Paget; Wanaruah Local Aboriginal Land Council Suzie Worth; and Yarrawalk Enterprises David French. The on-site workshop was held on the 23 rd July, 2008 at the former Glennies Creek Underground Operations Office with two ENSR representatives (Neville Baker Principal Archaelogist; Medard Boutry Environmental Scientist) and an Integra representative (Aisliin Farnon Open Cut Environmental Officer). Each Aboriginal community group representative was given a copy of the draft AHMP. Each of the identified sites and their proposed management was discussed, followed by a site inspection of the impact areas around Possum Skin Dam (see Figure 1). Section 3.0 provides a description of the proposed management strategies. Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan 3 January 2009
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2.0 Development Impacts on Aboriginal Cultural Heritage 2.1 Recorded Aboriginal Sites Nineteen Aboriginal sites were recorded during the archaeological survey in 2005 (HLA, 2007) (Figure 1). Table 1 provides a summary of the recorded sites in or near the proposed impact area. The archaeological survey involved a systematic survey of the study area, excluding those areas that were considered too heavily impacted, such as the former Camberwell North Pit area, Haul Roads D and E and the CHPP. The study area was split into 24 representative transects that were manageable to record. Overall, the sites discovered were generally isolated finds or low concentration artefact scatters, generally containing less than 10 artefacts. They were all found in disturbed contexts - either natural (colluvium, eroded landscape, deflated) or man made (roads, dams, drainage, remediation). The sites found were all surface scatters in many cases sitting on spoil heaps and therefore moved from their original location. The artefacts themselves are typical of those recorded throughout the Hunter Valley. Table 1: Identified Sites and their Locations (based on HLA 2007) Site AMGE AMGN Located within impact area Description Significance Comment GC1 325771 6406257 Yes Open Site (4 artefacts) GC2 326144 6406272 Yes Open Site (2 artefacts) GC3 326351 6406046 Yes Isolated artefact (1) GC4 326529 6405971 Yes Open Site (8 artefacts) GC5 326791 6406624 Yes Open Site (2 artefacts) GC6 326663 6406705 Yes Open Site (2 artefacts) GC7 326002 6406450 Yes Open Site (2 artefacts) Tuff and red silcrete flakes located some 50 m apart along Transect 1 in highly disturbed context. Tuff core and mudstone flake located 40 m apart and part way up the slope Fine Grained Siliceous (FGS) thick broken flake located on a man made spoil heap Various flakes located within 15 m of each other on a man made spoil heap A silcrete and a tuff flake located on the edge of a dam within an erosion gully FGS and a tuff core found slightly further upslope from GC5 also in disturbed contexts FGS decortification flake and a chalcedony broken microlith located on a heavily eroded slope Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan 5 January 2009
Site AMGE AMGN Located Description Significance Comment within impact area GC8 326285 6406458 Yes Open Site (4 artefacts) GC9 326516 6406866 Yes Isolated artefact (1) GC10 326479 6407072 Yes Isolated artefact (1) GC11 324142 6406617 No Isolated artefact (1) GC12 325029 6406557 Yes Open Site (13 artefacts) GC13 325592 6406470 GC14 325759 6406801 GC15 325878 6406690 GC16 325586 6406693 Yes Yes Yes Yes Open Site (3 artefacts) Open Site (3 artefacts) Isolated artefact (1) Isolated artefact (1) Mudstone and tuff flakes located ~100 m from each other along the northern edge of the main access road Silcrete flake located in an exposed area adjacent to a man-made dam and multiple erosion gullies Primary decertification flake located ~150 metres to the north of GC9 on the rise of a small hillock in the area (on the very edge of the study area) Red decortication flake located outside the study area, directly north of site buildings ~100 m from the northern boundary of the study site Various flakes / flake shatters and a blade located along a 150 m stretch of a heavily disturbed benched area situated along the southwestern edge of Possum Skin Dam Two flakes and a fragmented microlith situated over a wide area on the edge of the access road and drainage gullies to the southeast of Possum Skin Dam Mudstone flakes located about 20 m from each other on the edges of the disturbance southeast of Possum Skin Dam FGS flake located on a north facing slope not far from Possum Skin Dam Mudstone broken flake located on the eastern side of the dam, not far from the northern boundary of the proposed pit January 2009 6 Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan
Site AMGE AMGN Located Description Significance Comment within impact area GC17 325436 6406615 GC18 326235 6405943 GC19 327166 6406112 AHIM S # 37-2- 0803 326910 6406640 Yes Yes No No Open Site (22 artefacts) Isolated artefact (1) Isolated artefact (1) concentration scatter of flakes and flaked pieces located along the edge of the current waterbody within Possum Skin Dam (below high water mark). The site was 200 m long with artefact concentrations, around 30 m, in three areas. Grey tuff flake located on an artifical landform to the south of the study area Mudstone flake located on the artificial berm of a dam Open site Located within designated Biodiversity Offset Area 2.2 Development Impacts All Aboriginal sites within the footprint of the open cut would be destroyed (GC1, GC2, GC7 - GC10, GC12 GC17). Aboriginal sites located within the out-of-pit Waste Rock Emplacement Areas and potential access areas (GC3, GC4, GC6, GC18) and on the margins of Possum Skin Dam (GC12 and GC17) would also likely be highly disturbed. Potential impacts to the identified sites will be mitigated by the proposed management strategies found in Section 3.0. Site GC11 was recorded along Middle Falbrook Road and would not be disturbed. GC19 was recorded on the artificial berm of a dam outside the open cut project area (Figure 1) and as such will not be disturbed. AHIMS #37-2-0803 and GC5 are located in the Southern Biodiversity Offset Area (EA, 2007), outside of the out-of-pit Waste Rock Emplacement Area and as such would not be impacted. Areas to the north of the Mine would not be impacted by the proposed works (refer to Figure 1). It has been recommended that no impacts should be undertaken within this area until an Aboriginal heritage survey is done for the area (HLA, 2007) (see Figure 1). Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan 7 January 2009
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3.0 Mitigation of Impacts and other Management Measures 3.1 Management Strategy Adverse impacts on the identified Aboriginal sites would be mitigated through collection of the artefacts and placement in an appropriate "keeping place". The following timeline would be implemented to ensure appropriate management of the identified Aboriginal sites. Timing* Action Personnel involved Responsible Person 8 weeks before impact Commission archaeologist 7 weeks before impact Confirm site collection arrangements 7 weeks before impact Confirm Aboriginal representatives available 7 weeks before impact Confirm Aboriginal representatives commissioned for work 5 weeks before impact Collect artefacts (1 day fieldwork) storing each in labelled bag 5 weeks before impact Document artefacts in a graphic-rich letter report 3 weeks before impact Store labelled Artefacts in a keeping place on site = place artefacts at designated location within the biodiversity offset area Impact Finalise report to confirm all tasks completed; report to DECC regarding site clearance. ; Mine Environmental Officer See list of Aboriginal groups registered for this AHMP; ; Mine Environmental Officer See list of Aboriginal groups registered for this AHMP; Mine Environmental Officer Aboriginal representatives; Aboriginal representatives; ; Mine Environmental officer * these represent minimum timings, e.g. at least 8 weeks before impact Mine Environmental Officer Mine Environmental Officer The proposed management of the identified Aboriginal sites would involve the collection of the sites which are located within the proposed open cut impact area, out-of-pit waste rock emplacement area and the potential access routes as shown in Figure 1. Accordingly, sites GC1 GC10 and GC12 GC18 will need to be collected. Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan 9 January 2009
Sites GC12 and GC17, located around Possum Skin Dam cover an area of 150 and 200m respectively and as such, these areas will be searched and artefacts collected according to the methodology provided below. AHIMS # 37-2-0803 are located within the Southern Biodiversity Offset Area (EA, 2007) and GC11 and GC19 are located outside the Mine Site Boundary. These sites are not anticipated to be impacted. It is recommended that these sites be left in-situ. The collection of identified artefacts would be conducted with the assistance and supervision of the Aboriginal community groups. The collection process would involve visually searching the area in direct proximity of the recorded GPS coordinates for each site. Each artefact location would be staked with flagging tape. The precise location of artefacts would be recorded using a differential GPS (± 1 m) (DGPS) and artefacts would then be collected and placed in labelled bags. Subsequently, individual artefacts would be photographed, measured and each artefact numbered. Artefacts would be documented in a graphic-rich letter report. Artefacts would subsequently be stored in an appropriate keeping place in collaboration with the Aboriginal community group representatives. The proposed location of the keeping place, as confirmed by the Aboriginal Community representatives, is within the Southern Biodiversity Offset Area as indicated in the Environmental Assessment (EA, 2007) (see Figure 1 for location) and close to Stony Creek Road. This area was deemed suitable as there are no impacts proposed in the location and it is currently heavily vegetated, indicating that further revegetation works and associated potential impacts would not be required in this area. It is proposed that the artefacts be placed on the surface of the soil at an identifiable location near Stony Creek Road and the DGPS coordinates recorded. It was also recommended by the Aboriginal groups that a fence be erected around the keeping place to ensure it is adequately protected from unanticipated activities. The proposed methodology was deemed suitable as it would allow the artefacts to be stored safely in the region of their origin, in addition to being easily re-locatable for possible viewing and educational purposes. It is also recommended that no ground disturbing activities be undertaken in the designated no impact area (Figure 1), to the north and northeast of the Mine Site until an Aboriginal heritage assessment has been undertaken (HLA, 2007). Any further Aboriginal sites identified in the proposed impact areas of the mine during the course of the collection process would also be collected in the same manner to those outlined for the Aboriginal sites to be collected above and also relocated to the keeping place. Aboriginal skeletal remains are highly significant and are protected under State legislation. Should remains be found, work should cease immediately and consultation with the DECC, NSW Police, NSW Coroners Office and the Aboriginal communities should be undertaken immediately to decide on the best course of action. If Aboriginal remains are discovered, these actions should include either 1) the preservation of the remains in situ, or 2) the detailed recording and recovery of the remains by qualified personnel in conjunction with the Aboriginal communities. Negotiations with the Aboriginal community should address the issues of appropriate temporary storage and eventual reburial. January 2009 10 Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan
3.2 Consultation Protocol Aboriginal stakeholders registered through the development of this AHMP include: Ungooroo Aboriginal Corporation; Wanaruah Local Aboriginal Land Council; and Yarrawalk Enterprises. Contact with Aboriginal stakeholders will be in writing (letter or fax) in the first instance, followed up by phone call. A consultation log will be maintained including details of each contact with each Aboriginal group. Aboriginal stakeholder groups will be contacted at the following stages: When arrangements are made for collections of artefacts from recorded Aboriginal sites (see Table 2 for timing); When arrangements are made for the deposition of collected artefacts to the designated keeping place ; When a report is prepared on the artefacts, including submission of a copy of the report to each of the groups; When the mine has completed impact on all sites; and In the unanticipated event that any Aboriginal remains are discovered during the course of topsoil stripping prior to mining. Consultation with the Aboriginal community groups and the timing for the proposed management of the Aboriginal sites would be as follows: Table 2: Consultation Protocol Timing Action Personnel involved Responsible Person 7 weeks before impact Contact Aboriginal group representatives involved in the preparation of this AHMP and confirm their availability for the upcoming salvage works See list of Aboriginal groups registered for this AHMP; ; Mine Environmental Officer 5 weeks before impact Collect artefacts (1 day fieldwork), storing each artefact in labelled bag See list of Aboriginal groups registered for this AHMP; ; Mine Environmental Officer 5 weeks before impact Confirm availability of the Aboriginal group representatives for the storing of the artefacts in keeping place (1/2 day fieldwork) See list of Aboriginal groups registered for this AHMP; ; Mine Environmental Officer 3 weeks before impact Store labelled artefacts in designated keeping place within the Southern Biodiversity Offset Area See list of Aboriginal groups registered for this AHMP; ; Mine Environmental Officer Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan 11 January 2009
Timing Action Personnel involved Responsible Person Impact Finalise report to confirm all tasks are completed and send to Aboriginal community group representatives See list of Aboriginal groups registered for this AHMP; ; Mine Environmental Officer January 2009 12 Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan
4.0 References EA (2007) Environmental Assessment - Glennies Creek Open Cut Coal Mine. Prepared by R.W. Corkery & Co. Pty. Ltd. HLA (2007) Glennies Creek Open Cut Coal Mine Aboriginal Heritage Assessment. Prepared by HLA Envirosciences Pty Ltd for Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd. Lilley, I. (1987) Survey of Glennies Creek mine site (Title Unknown). ANU Archaeological Consultants report to ICO. National Native Title Tribunal (2008) Website: Native Title Search Application (accessed 1/7/08) http://www.nntt.gov.au/applications-and-determinations/search-applications/pages/search.aspx Storey, R., R. W. Galloway, R. H. M. van de Graaff, and A. D. Tweedie (1963) General Report on the Lands of the Hunter Valley: Land research Series No 8: Melbourne, CSIRO Australia. Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan January 2009
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Figures Aboriginal Heritage Management Plan January 2009
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G:\Jobs\S6\S60600_S60699\S60651\S6065101 F1 05 08 2008 TO www.ensr.com.au No impact in this area (not surveyed) GC10 GC9 GC16 GC12 GC14 GC6 GC17 GC7 GC11 GC13 GC15 GC5 Red Text Open cut project site Proposed open cut Out of pit waste rock emplacement boundary Area to be managed for site protection under current plans Archaeological sites in area Approximate location of Keeping Place Archaeological sites to be collected GC8 37-2-0803 Proposed Open Cut Facilities Area GC1 GC2 GC4 GC3 GC19 GC18 Proposed Coal Haul Route D (100m Wide) Proposed Coal Haul Route E (40m Wide) Camberwell CHPP Figure 1 0 400m Site Location and Archaeological Sites Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd Aboriginal Heritage Assessment Proposed Open Cut Mine, Glennies Creek Colliery Hunter Valley NSW
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