Proponent: Castile Resources Pty Ltd
Overview
Castile Resources Pty Ltd proposes to develop the Rover 1 Project approximately 70km south-west of Tennant Creek. The Rover 1 Project is an underground mine on NT Portion 3556 in the Barkly Regional Council Local Government Area. The land tenure is Aboriginal freehold.
Mined ore would be processed on site to produce copper, gold, cobalt and magnetite. The total area of surface disturbance required for the mine is estimated to be approximately 177ha. The footprint would comprise of a decline box cut, waste rock dump, processing plant, paste plant, tailings storage facility, run-of mine pad, and supporting infrastructure including onsite accommodation village.
Water for the mining operation would be supplied from dewatering the underground workings and from a groundwater bore field to be constructed nearby.
The project is forecast to require an average operational workforce of 73 personnel. The operational life of the mine is proposed to be 10 years. Rehabilitation would be undertaken progressively and be completed within 5 years after operations cease.
The project is a 'controlled action' under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Number: 2023/09691). The relevant controlling provision is:
- Listed threatened species and communities (sections 18 and 18A)
Stage 1: Referral
NT EPA notices
- Notice of decision to accept a proponent initiated EIS referral for standard assessment – 26 September 2023 PDF (972.1 KB)
- Notice of decision and statement of reasons - assessment by EIS - 9 January 2024. PDF (477.0 KB)
- Notice of decision on terms of reference - 9 January 2024 PDF (61.1 KB).
Public consultation on the proponent initiated EIS referral
Statutory notice (4 October 2023)
The NT EPA published a statutory notice on 4 October 2023 inviting public comment on the proponent initiated environmental impact statement (EIS) referral for the Castile Resources Pty Ltd Rover 1 Project, including proponent drafted Terms of Reference for the EIS, and a proponent Statement of Reasons for why an EIS is required.
Interested persons were invited to make a submission by 15 November 2023. The NT EPA published the notice in accordance with regulation 52(1) of the Environment Protection Regulations 2020.
Documents
| Referral information | Type |
|---|---|
| Referral Form | PDF 114.8 KB |
| Referral Supporting Information | PDF 2.5 MB |
| Appendix A Pre-Referral Screening Report | PDF 188.3 KB |
| Appendix B Ecological Assessment | PDF 8.6 MB |
| Appendix C Geochemical Characterisation of Waste Rock | PDF 2.4 MB |
| Appendix D Flora and Fauna Assessment | PDF 5.7 MB |
| Appendix E Threatened Species Likelihood of Occurrence Report | PDF 164.3 KB |
| Appendix F EPBC Act Protected Matters Search Tool | PDF 37.4 KB |
| Appendix G Hydrogeology Investigations | PDF 4.3 MB |
| Appendix H Preliminary Groundwater Report | PDF 1.4 MB |
| Appendix I Review of Castile Resources Groundwater Investigation Drilling Program | PDF 668.2 KB |
| Appendix J Archaeological Heritage Assessment | PDF 693.6 KB |
| Appendix K Greenhouse Gas Report | PDF 990.9 KB |
| Proponent Terms of Reference for the EIS – 28 August 2023 | PDF 322.5 KB |
| Proponent Statement of Reasons for why an EIS is required – 28 August 2023 | PDF 202.2 KB |
| Submissions received on the referral | Type | |
|---|---|---|
| Government authority submissions | ||
| 1 | Aboriginal Areas Protection Authority | PDF 507.3 KB |
| 2 | Department of the Attorney-General and Justice - NT WorkSafe | PDF 240.8 KB |
| 3 | Department of the Chief Minister and Cabinet | PDF 519.3 KB |
| 4 | Department of Environment, Parks and Water Security | PDF 937.4 KB |
| 5 | Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade – Mines and Energy | PDF 728.4 KB |
| 6 | Department of Territory Families, Housing and Communities - Heritage | PDF 582.1 KB |
| Public submissions | ||
| 7 | Arid Lands Environment Centre | PDF 549.6 KB |
| 8 | Central Land Council | PDF 874.4 KB |
Terms of reference
| Terms of reference for an environmental impact statement | Type |
|---|---|
| Terms of reference for an EIS - 2 February 2024 | PDF 1009.9 KB |