UN Special Rapporteur – Human Rights in the life cycle of Renewable Energy & Critical Minerals

Submission by The Alliance for Responsible Mining Regulation (ARMRVic Inc.)
Date: 30 April 2025

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Introduction

The Alliance for Responsible Mining Regulation (ARMR) is a coalition of community groups and individuals interested in improving the regulation of mining in the State of Victoria, Australia.

ARMR Vision Statement

ARMR supports financially viable and responsible mining with adequate regulation that is enforced in a timely and effective manner, but will oppose mining proposals that threaten to
destroy productive agricultural land, water resources, or negatively impact environmental and human health or that fail to obtain social licence.

Until such time as it can be proven to ARMR’s satisfaction that the responsible authorities are regulating existing mines effectively ARMR will strongly oppose any new mining proposals in Victoria.

UN Special Rapporteur Report 2023: VI. Conclusions and recommendations (excerpts)

Recommendations 100, 101, 102, 106 107 are especially pertinent to Critical Minerals mining.

Response to questions

1. What are the positive and negative human rights impacts of different sources, scales and stages of renewable energy development, through its life cycle? What are the causes of these impacts? Who is disproportionality affected by negative impacts and why?

ARMR’s focus is on improving the regulation of mines in Victoria and advocating for mining that is conducted in a responsible and environmentally sustainable way. Therefore, our submission focuses on human rights impacts and critical minerals.

The Australian (Commonwealth) Government and the Victorian Government have not implemented any recommendations of the 2023 Special Rapporteur Report.

ARMR finds no evidence that the Victorian Government and its regulatory authorities, e.g. Earth Resources Regulator (ERR) and Environment Protection Authority (EPA), have regard for Human Rights law in their community consultation and decision-making processes.

Rural and regional Australia is disproportionately affected by the impacts of mining critical minerals due to the “critical” importance our governments have put on their role in the
renewables transition. Large-scale wind and solar farms and overhead transmission lines and minerals sands mines are being imposed on agricultural private property with little or no compensation for landowners and few, if any, direct community benefits. Large swathes of agricultural land are being removed from production. Contrary to Mining legislation, rehabilitation of mined land is proving unsuccessful or not done at all meaning it will never be returned to its original agricultural productivity.

The Victorian Government is guilty of various human rights’ abuses:

• The failure to internalise the social and environmental costs of critical minerals mining.
• The failure of our government authorities, the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) and Earth Resources Regulator (ERR) to comply with their statutory obligations to ensure that mines are strictly monitored and regulated both during operations and post-mining rehabilitation and comply with the highest environmental standards.
• The right of all citizens to live in a toxic-free environment.
• The right of all citizens to clean water, air and clean food.
• The right of all citizens to the peaceful enjoyment of their homes.
• The failure to ensure that mining projects have social licence.
• The right of citizens, including their financial capacity, to participate in transparent environmental decision-making that is based on authentic scientific evidence.
• The right and capacity of citizens to appeal decisions to an independent tribunal or court.
• The right of citizens to participate in the development of public policy that benefits them and is free from the influence of powerful pro-mining interests.

Legacy Mines

The economic legacy of closure or abandonment transfers the significant economic and social costs to government and taxpayers. There are over 60,000 abandoned mines in Australia¹, many thousands in Victoria. In almost all cases, rehabilitation works have been unsuccessful, or not done at all, leaving contaminated mine sites across the landscape (as Google Earth reveals). The Victorian Government has had to assume responsibility for at least two abandoned mines, but, to date, rehabilitation works have not been undertaken. The toxic chemicals, the damage to water, soils and the environment all result in human rights’ breaches.What are the positive and negative human rights impacts of the life cycle of critical minerals?

2. What are the causes of these impacts? Who is disproportionality affected by negative impacts and why?

Minerals belong to the Crown. There is no right of veto in Australia to prevent mining companies from exploring and mining on private property. Miners can occupy properties for periods of 20 to 40 years. If landowners deny access, they can be taken to the Victoria Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) at their own cost.

Only landowners whose land is mined can seek compensation through VCAT. But compensation does not compensate for the damage caused. Sometimes the miner will buy properties. However, due to the escalating cost of agricultural land, the compensation is unlikely to enable a landowner to buy a similar farm elsewhere.

Adjacent landowners who also experience the adverse health and environmental impacts receive no compensation at all. Due to the health and environmental impacts, affected landowners often move elsewhere, never to return. As populations decline, sporting clubs and schools, which nurture community solidarity, close and townships wither.

It is extremely unfair that rural citizens provide all the benefits to urban folk but bear all the disbenefits. Their businesses, quality of life, physical and mental health suffer. The injustice incites intense feelings of anger, fear, depression, grief and despair. Suicidal ideation or suicide itself is common.

According to the Australian Government website Taking Stock:

“Suicide rates among farmers in Australia is up to 94%² higher than non-farmers. On average, one farmer dies by suicide every 10 days.”

The forced exile of farming families who have developed a deep attachment to their land over generations is emotionally and psychologically distressing; their democratic and human rights swept away, even though enshrined in law.

Human Rights Legislation State of Victoria, Australia

The Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities 2006 (the Charter)

The Government and its statutory authorities must “consider human rights when making laws and providing services. It enshrines civil, political and cultural rights into Victorian law. Public authorities must observe those rights. New policies and legislation must also take into account human rights, and public authorities – for example, people working for the government – must also observe human rights so that members of the community are not treated unfairly.”

In practice, the Charter is ignored or paid lip service. Importantly, the Mining Act overrides Section 20 that “A person must not be deprived of that person’s property other than in accordance with law” by legalising miners’ rights to private land.

Environment Protection Act 2017 Part 2.3 – Principles of Environment Protection

The Environment Protection Act (Victoria) 2017 lists 23 Principles designed to protect the Environment and Human Rights. Appendix 1 lists the Principles of particular relevance to Critical Minerals’ mining, notably 21 Principle of equity.

In practice, when considering mine approvals and extensions, the EPA completely ignores or pays lip service to these Principles.

NO Social Licence

Lily D’Ambrosio, Minister for Resources, speaking for the Mineral Resources Amendment Bill in 2023 said:

“Social licence for the resources sector is critical [because] Victoria is a relatively small, densely populated state with a diverse economy.”³

There is NO social licence to cause harm to people or the environment.

In 2024, Goschen (Mallee) and Avonbank (Wimmera) mineral sands’ mines were approved despite having no social licence. In November 2021, the Minister for Planning supported the IAC’s⁴ rejection of the Fingerboards (East Gippsland) mineral sands’ mine project because the environmental effects were “unacceptable” on at least 40 issues. With a record 900 objections, this mine has no social licence. Yet, in 2024, ERR renewed Gippsland Critical Minerals’⁵ exploration licence recommencing the whole EES process.

In the same year, Minister D’Ambrosio’s blatant hypocrisy regarding social licence was evidenced when she refused a “waste to energy’ plant in Wollert on the boundary of her electorate, Mill Park, on the grounds it had “no social licence”. The other three mines are all in Nationals Party electorates.

3. Which areas of international law are relevant to the protection of human rights in the life cycle of renewables and critical minerals? Are there barriers to the protection of human rights in international law that would arise in the various stages of these life cycles, as part of a just transition?

Australia is a signatory to key international human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic,


Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). Our governments have no regard for the Obligations of States:

• to refrain from interfering with or curtailing the enjoyment of human rights
• to protect individuals and groups against human rights abuses; and,
• to take positive action to facilitate the enjoyment of basic human rights.

Our National, State and Local Governments’ adherence to International Human Rights law rests solely on their political will to do so.6 Tragically, in the absence of strict penalties for human rights’ breaches, our governments pay scant notice of their international obligations let alone Australian law. With no constitutional Bill of Rights, there is no effective mechanism to counter infringements. Despite the rhetoric, our governments lack commitment or intent to uphold international human rights law or Australian law. UN recommendations that Australia improve its human rights record are routinely ignored.

Human Rights and Critical Minerals

Due to the current global turmoil, the Australian Government’s rush to expand the mining of critical minerals in Australia, facilitated by its Critical Minerals Strategy (CMS) and Future Made in Australia policy, is undisciplined and ill-informed. Contrary to the CMS, rare earths from mineral sands cannot be “mined and processed in ways that make a positive contribution to the lives of local communities, First Nations Peoples and the quality of our natural environment”.⁷ In the fervour to decouple from China’s market predominance, the rights of rural communities and farmers have been abolished.

Agriculture makes a significant (multi-billion dollar annual) contribution to the national and state economy.⁸ Yet, the Victorian Government mistakenly believes that mineral sands rare earths’ mining is an easy get-rich scheme that will deliver it substantial royalties.

To recover the minute quantities of rare earths in Victoria’s fine-grained mineral sands requires removing hundreds of thousands of tonnes of overburden destroying the fertile soils where our cereal and grain crops and vegetables are grown for domestic and global consumption.

The failure to internalise environmental and social costs threatens the health and wellbeing of country people and condemns them, the soils, waterways, groundwater and wildlife to permanent exposure to toxic Chemicals of Concern (CoCs) and radioactive dust. Our environment is recklessly and permanently damaged; our food-growing capacity and global reputation for producing “clean, green” food destroyed.

Our Democratic Rights Under Threat

The rapid and unexplained erosion of Victorians’ democratic rights to participate in open, transparent and genuine public-participation processes in relation to mining approvals is alarming.

The Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) (Extractive Industries) Regulations 2019, due to commence 1 July 2027, which amends the Mineral Resource (Sustainable Development) Mining Act 1990, occurred without any community consultation. Changes were also made to the Victorian Planning Provisions (VPPs) via VC242, transferring the regulation of mineral sands mining to Local Government Councils which have neither the resources or knowledge to regulate these mines, especially radioactive effects. Invest Victoria, an unelected body unaccountable to constituents has new powers to approve mines. All rights to appeal have been removed.

4. Are there good practices or lessons learned in regulating, monitoring and funding renewable energy development, including critical minerals, which can support a just transition and the protection of human rights, as well as the achievement of SDGs 13 and 14?

No.

5. Are there specific examples of rights-based, gender-responsive, age-sensitive, disability-inclusive and risk-informed approaches to renewable energy development, including critical minerals, led by States or business?

No

6. Are there specific barriers in the context of State regulation or business conduct that undermine the protection of human rights in the full life cycle of renewable energy and critical minerals? How can these barriers be addressed?

Yes. The powerful influence of the Minerals Council of Australia who represent the mining corporations, especially via their significant donations to political parties and individual politicians undermines the Human Rights of individual citizens and communities.

To address barriers:

• Immediately reinstate citizens’ democratic rights to natural justice, consultation, procedural fairness, rights to object, to appeal and veto decisions.
• Mandate the “onus of truth” and independent scientific evidence in Environmental Effects assessments and planning permit approvals.
• Mandate that government policy, legislation and the decisions of government ministers, agencies and authorities are based on independent peer-reviewed proven scientific evidence and free of interference from the Minerals Council Australia and other pro-mining lobbyists.
• Reject projects with no genuine social licence.
• Reject exploration and mine licences for companies with poor governance, who lack the capacity to implement projects due to inadequate financial resources and mining experience.
• Ensure our regulators fulfil their legal obligations to ensure mining is environmentally sustainable and economically viable.
• Hold a Royal Commission into mining in Victoria.

7. How can international cooperation on finance, capacity and technology related to the full life cycle of renewable energy and critical minerals contribute to protect human rights and take into account the principle of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, in the light of different national circumstances and in the context of sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty, all in pursuit of the objectives of the Convention and the Paris Agreement?

The UN must impose strong and meaningful penalties on offending governments, including fines and imprisonment for mining companies who destroy the environment and abuse human rights. Mineral sands’ mining is not environmentally sustainable and its contribution to emissions is substantial, so it does not accord with the aims of the Paris Agreement.

¹www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-15/australia-institute-report-raises-concerns-on-mine-rehab/8270558
²www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-emma-mcbride-mp/media/taking-stock-suicide-prevention-tool-for-australias-farmers
³Hansard Legislative Assembly – Proof Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) Amendment Bill 2023, second reading Wednesday 21 June 2023
⁴Inquiry Advisory Committee
⁵Formerly Kalbar P/L
⁶www.hrw.org/world-report/2024/country-chapters/australia
⁷Australia’s Critical Minerals Strategy: Discussion Paper, p4/22
⁸Agriculture Victoria: “In 2021-22, Victoria’s Gross Value of Agricultural Production (GVAP) reached a record $20.2 billion, accounting for 23% of Australia’s total.”