South Australian Consolidated Acts

MINING ACT 1971 - SECT 9

9—Exempt land

        (1)         Subject to this section—

            (a)         land that is lawfully and genuinely used—

                  (i)         as a yard, garden, cultivated field, plantation, orchard or vineyard;

                  (ii)         as an airfield, railway or tramway;

                  (iii)         as the grounds of a church, chapel, school, hospital or institution; or

            (b)         land that constitutes any parklands or recreation grounds under the control of a council; or

            (ba)         land—

                  (i)         that is dedicated or reserved, pursuant to statute, for the purpose of waterworks; or

                  (ii)         that is vested in the Minister of Public Works for the purpose of waterworks; or

                  (iii)         that is comprised within an easement in favour of the Minister of Public Works; or

            (bb)         land that constitutes a forest reserve under the Forestry Act 1950 ; or

            (c)         any separate parcel of land of less than 2 000 square metres within any city, town or township; or

            (d)         land that is situated—

                  (i)         within 400 metres of a building or structure used as a place of residence (except a building or structure of a class excluded by regulation from the ambit of this paragraph); or

                  (ii)         within 150 metres of—

                        (A)         a building or structure, with a value of $200 or more, used for an industrial or commercial purpose; or

                        (B)         a spring, well, reservoir or dam,

(but not if it is an improvement made for the purposes of mining operations),

shall be exempt from mining operations in pursuance of this Act and, unless the benefit of the exemption is waived under section 9AA, no claim, lease or licence shall authorise prospecting, exploring or mining upon such land (but this section does not prevent the pegging out of a claim upon such land).

        (2)         Where any land is subject to a claim, lease or licence under this Act and that land would, but for this subsection, be land exempt from mining operations in pursuance of this Act by reason only of a fact or circumstance occurring or arising subsequent to the pegging out, or granting, of the claim, lease or licence, that land shall not be exempt from operations in pursuance of this Act.

        (3b)         The following persons shall, for the purposes of this Act, be regarded as having the benefit of an exemption under this section (and, subject to an order of the ERD Court under section 9AA, each person who has the benefit of an exemption must be a party to an agreement to waive the benefit before the land can cease to be exempt land):

            (a)         the owner of the exempt land; and

            (b)         in the case of land that is exempt from mining operations under subsection (1)(d) by reason of its proximity to other land on which a building, structure, spring, well, reservoir or dam is situated—the owner of that other land.

        (4)         This section does not affect any provision of the Pastoral Land Management and Conservation Act 1989 prohibiting or restricting the conduct of mining operations on lands subject to that Act.

        (5)         In this section—

"mining operations" include any operations or activity for which a miscellaneous purposes licence may be granted.