The Cape Flattery Silica Sands Project (the Project and the Proposed Action) is a silica sand mining and processing operation located on a greenfield site approximately 42 kilometres (km) northeast of Hope Vale and 200 km north of Cairns, Queensland (refer Attachment 1-Project Description-Rev0-131022, Figure 1, pp. 2). Cape Flattery Silica Pty Ltd (CFS) is the Proponent for the Proposed Action. The mainland portion of the Proposed Action is located on freehold lands designated as Lot 35 on SP232620. The marine portion of the Proposed Action is located within the Port of Cape Flattery, an area administered by Ports North. 

The Proposed Action comprises three key activities:

• Dry mining sand extraction
• Sand purification via an onsite processing plant and transport to a jetty infrastructure facility (JIF)
• Barging of silica sand product via a new jetty and marine offloading facility (MOF), and transhipment to bulk carriers anchored at a designated ‘swing basin’.

The Proposed Action (refer Attachment 1-Project Description-Rev0-131022, Figure 2, pp. 5) involves mining and processing up to 1.8 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of high quality silica sand onsite over a 20 to 25 year life of mine, with 1.35 Mtpa of saleable product to be shipped offsite via a JIF that will be constructed for the Project. All mine infrastructure and mining panels will be located within an indicative Mining Lease Application (MLA) area (required under State approval processes) covering a 616 hectare (ha) area. The JIF area is located outside of but adjacent to the proposed MLA. The overall area of the proposed action is 842.3 ha, disturbance footprint is 313.8 ha and avoidance area is 62.9 ha.

The MLA, JIF, jetty, MOF and swing basin areas comprise the Proposed Action for this referral (refer Attachment 1-Project Description-Rev0-131022, Figure 2, pp. 5).

The mining method would involve sequential excavation of sand dunes using a front end loader feeding a mobile tracked hopper-feeder with a slurry pipeline. Where possible vegetation will be pushed or transported off mining areas and stockpiled for future use in rehabilitation. Development of mining panels will be sequential with back-filling and progressive rehabilitation occurring behind the advancing mine face. A dry mining unit will be progressively relocated as the sand dunes are mined to the base of the viable silica sand, which varies across the breath of the deposit (maximum thickness of 35 metres (m)). Mining and processing will operate as a continuous process for 24 hours per day, 360 days per year.

Mined sand from the face is loaded directly to a mobile feed unit to process coarse and woody debris. Once through the trash screen, sand is fluidised in the sump and pumped via pipelines to the Wet Concentrator Plant (WCP). The rejects from the wet concentration plant will contain low-grade silica sand including heavy minerals, Fe2O3 and aluminium oxide (Al2O3) which occur naturally in the Cape Flattery region and do not pose a risk to the environment. The rejects will be dewatered and pumped, once at a suitable water content, back to the rehabilitation faces that trail the advancing mine face and reshaped to suit the final landform.

Mine waste characterisation of reject samples show very low existing acidity and salinity and there is a negligible risk of acid and metalliferous drainage based on the geochemical classification and leachate chemistry of these samples. Targeted management is not required because potentially hostile rejects are not expected.

On-lease infrastructure will include a Mine Infrastructure Area (MIA) for general mine service facilities, mining panels, stockpile areas, laydown areas, processing plant, worker’s accommodation for up to 80 persons, sediment basin, water storages, sewage treatment plant, conveyors, access tracks and a JIF to service the off-lease project infrastructure. Off-lease Project infrastructure includes a minimum 350 m jetty, a minimum 200 m material offloading facility (MOF), conveyors from the JIF to the jetty hopper, and a swing basin with mooring / anchorage capability.

The MOF will facilitate the delivery of equipment and goods to the Project during both construction and operations. It comprises a steel ramp meeting a series of jack up barges (3). These barges are self-supporting via piles (not attached to the seafloor) and will allow the barges to move up and down as needed, allowing tide and flow underneath. 

Export of product silica sand will be from the product stockpile at the WCP via an enclosed conveyor to the JIF. Sand will be directly loaded onto the conveyor via a front-end loader into an apron feeder. Once on the jetty conveyor (also enclosed), the product will be loaded onto a transhipment vessel via the jetty stacker and transported offshore, where it will be transhipped onto bulk carriers. Shipping operations will occur from the jetty to a ‘swing basin’ where a bulk carrier ship (ocean going vessel (OGV)) would be moored during transfer operations. The swing basin will be located approximately 5 km north-west of the jetty and within the Port of Cape Flattery. A transhipment vessel will be used to transfer product from the shore to the moored OGV. 

The movement of OGVs into and away from the Swing Basin, and their anchorage and movement within the swing basin, is not a component of the Action. These activities are undertaken by parties other than the Proponent and are under the direct control of Maritime Safety Queensland, the individual OGV Captains/Pilots, and for travel with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP), within the requirements of the Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait Vessel Traffic Service.

Mining activities and infrastructure within the disturbance footprint on land have potential to directly impact on threatened and migratory species through the action of vegetation and habitat clearing (refer Attachment 5-CFS-Terrestrial Ecology Report-Rev2-260922, Section 5, pp. 56-63, and Attachment 7-Aquatic Baseline and Impact Assessment_V5-0, Section 5, pp. 67-78). Construction and operation of the jetty, JIF and MOF have potential to directly and indirectly impact on threatened and migratory marine species (refer Attachment 6-Marine Baseline and Impact Assessment_V5-0, Section 5, pp. 80-92).