State Government introduces new mining warden fee following big rise in objections

A differential fee model for lodging mineral title objections before WA’s mining wardens will take effect from next Monday after a big rise in objections. The State Government on Monday said the number of objections to mineral title applications brought before the mining wardens had significantly increased during the past three years, requiring the appointment of a second Perth mining warden. The Government said a proposed fee of $859 had been the subject of consultation last year by the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety. But having considered responses from stakeholders who made submissions during the consultation period, the Government had decided to implement a differential fee model instead. A general fee of $430 will effectively support partial cost-recovery to fund the second warden and additional administrative staff. Like other courts and tribunals in WA, concession card and pension cardholders will incur a $100 fee. Registered native title bodies corporate and freehold landowners that overlap the application for a mining tenement will have a $0 fee. While lodging an objection before the mining wardens had traditionally been free, there were no other fee-free tribunals or courts of a similar nature in WA. The Government said the differential fee model was decided on following a 12-week public consultation that received more than 300 submissions. Under amendments to the Mining Act 1978 in 2022, the fee will apply to any person objecting against applications for mining tenure, applications for exemption from expenditure, applications for restoration of a tenement following forfeiture, and to the survey of a mining tenement or of land the subject of an application for a mining tenement. Mines and Petroleum Minister David Michael said the Cook Government would continue to support the important principle that any person could object to a mining tenure application in WA. “Importantly, a single objection before the Wardens Court signed by multiple people carries the same weight as multiple objections lodged individually,” he said. “A differential fee model on a partial cost-recovery basis strikes a balance between industry and community concerns and the efficient operation of the Wardens Court.”