Assessing potential environmental impacts for a greenfield’s gold mine

Lake Roe Gold Project

The Coolgardie bioregion in Western Australia is a transitional zone between coastal and arid inland regions. Though a sensitive environment, it supports farming and ranching, and also our client’s enterprise—gold mining. Gold was first discovered here in 1892, and the region is still yielding mineable deposits. When Breaker Resources, identified a greenfields gold mining opportunity east of Kalgoorlie, they called on our team to help investigate the possible environmental impact.

Our team looked at the ecological makeup of the area, investigating the flora, vertebrate fauna, aquatic ecology, subterranean fauna, and conducting soil assessments. We also focused on the hydrogeological aspects of the mine and how mining operations would interact with surface or groundwater. These investigations and assessments informed the environmental approval process and ultimately supported the decision to build an operational gold mine.

With 24 threatened plant species, 8 threatened mammal species and 3 threatened bird species, any mining operation in the Coolgardie bioregion must employ mitigation strategies to reduce impacts. We are proud to provide services that can support economic growth, and job creation, while leaving as small a footprint as possible.