Arrival and registration 

Welcome and Introductions 

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Water management in mining has never been more complex or critical. In 2026, mine water planning must extend beyond site boundaries to account for catchment-scale dynamics, cumulative impacts, and regional water pressures.

Regulators, investors, and communities now expect mines to demonstrate holistic water stewardship integrating operational, environmental, and social objectives.

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This session explores integrated mine water balance modelling that links surface water, groundwater, and catchment-scale flows with operational requirements, rehabilitation planning, and post-mining water outcomes.

Attendees will examine contemporary modelling tools, climate scenario integration, and strategies to optimise water allocation, mitigate operational risks, and strengthen regulatory and stakeholder confidence.

Water security is a defining challenge for Australian mining operations, and in 2026 it is central to responsible, sustainable, and ESG-aligned mining.

Mining proponents are now required to demonstrate how water management is embedded across the life of the mine, integrating closure planning, operational resilience, and regional water security.

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This session focuses on strategic approaches to strengthened compliance and monitoring, particularly the protection of groundwater-dependent ecosystems, cultural water assets, and cumulative water impacts.

Mining operations must consider not just site-level water use, but how their activities interact with catchment-scale hydrology, regional water allocation, and broader environmental and community expectations.

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Attendees will also explore critical infrastructure updates, such as the Goldfields pipeline, which ensures reliable water delivery to high-demand, remote mining operations, and examine how these systems underpin operational continuity, closure planning, and social licence.

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The session highlights emerging regulatory trends, including baseline and cumulative impact analysis, adaptive monitoring frameworks, and progressive integration of closure obligations throughout the mine lifecycle.

Case studies and current projects demonstrate how early planning and infrastructure investment reduce operational risk, enhance compliance, and secure long-term environmental and community outcomes.​

Reliable water supply is fundamental to the viability, resilience and sustainability of mining operations- particularly in remote, high‑demand regions such as Western Australia’s Goldfields.

In 2026, significant upgrades to the historic Goldfields and Agricultural Water Supply Scheme (GAWSS), including the Goldfields Pipeline, represent one of the most important water infrastructure investments of the decade. These works not only bolster water security for mining and regional communities but also reflect the evolving expectations of regulators, stakeholders and investors around responsible water stewardship.

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This session explores the drivers, design, implementation and broader implications of these critical infrastructure upgrades.

Delegates will gain insight into the engineering and planning behind the pipeline renewal program, the strategic rationale for increasing capacity and reliability, and how this investment aligns with regulatory frameworks, climate resilience planning, and ESG accountability in mining.

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Through case examples and updates from water authorities and industry, participants will better understand how integrated water infrastructure supports operational continuity, regulatory compliance, long‑term closure planning, and equitable regional outcomes.

The session will also highlight how water security frameworks, multi‑agency collaboration, and modernised infrastructure underpin enduring mining success in an era of climate variability and growing demand.

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Q & A  

Morning tea 

In 2026, water security and sustainable groundwater management are defining priorities for Australia’s mining sector, driven by resource competition, climate variability, and rising regulatory expectations.

This session examines key reforms shaping water strategy, including expanded desalination in arid regions such as the Pilbara, the shift to outcome-based environmental assessments, the Water Online fast-track licensing process, and stronger protections for groundwater-dependent ecosystems. Mining operations must now move beyond site water balances to integrated, catchment-aware approaches addressing cumulative aquifer and ecological impacts.

Delegates will gain practical frameworks to align operations with regulatory change, leverage technology and digital licensing tools, and embed ecosystem-centric planning to deliver compliance, ESG performance, and long-term community confidence.

Predictive modelling is essential for water resilience — from estimating aquifer responses to forecasting changes in rainfall patterns.

This session unpacks the science and application of hydrological, hydrogeological and climate risk models tailored to mining systems.

Attendees will see how models inform engineering and operational decisions, supporting early warning systems, permit compliance, and long term adaptive planning.

What attendees will learn:
• Techniques to integrate climate projections into hydrology and hydrogeology models relevant to mining contexts.
• How modelling informs infrastructure design and operational decision making (e.g., dewatering plans, pit stability, seepage patterns).
• Linking model outputs to risk frameworks that regulators and investors increasingly require.

This presentation focuses on aligning water risk management with ESG frameworks, ensuring disclosure is meaningful, comparable and defensible.

Delegates will walk away with structured approaches to integrate water resilience into sustainability reporting and stakeholder engagement platforms.

What attendees will learn:
• How to define water risk metrics that align with global ESG reporting frameworks.
• Best practices for demonstrating water management credibility through transparent reporting and stewardship commitments.

This session examines the latest operational water management strategies, with a focus on the complexities of handling excess water, contaminated runoff, and Acid Rock Drainage (ARD). Attendees will learn how advanced treatment technologies - including passive and active systems, reactive media, biological augmentation, and integrated water recycling - are being applied to mitigate environmental risks and meet increasingly stringent regulatory discharge criteria.

The presentation will contextualise these technologies within 2026’s regulatory, climate, and ESG landscape, highlighting how water treatment and monitoring integrate into broader lifecycle planning, adaptive management, and closure frameworks.

Real‑world case studies will demonstrate successful deployments of ARD treatment systems, adaptive response protocols during high rainfall events, and tools for effective water quality prediction and performance tracking.

Delegates will walk away with a deeper understanding of technical, operational, and governance aspects of water treatment that minimise environmental impact, support compliance, and contribute to sustainable mine water management practices.

Lunch 

Return from lunch and Q & A and Panel from Water and Climate Resistance 

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The GRI Mining Sector Standard (GRI 14) becomes effective 1 January 2026 and sets new benchmarks for transparent reporting on water, biodiversity, emissions, and climate risks.

This session provides practical guidance on implementing GRI 14 reporting, with case examples from Australian and global mines. Participants will learn how to align technical monitoring, management systems, and ESG reporting to meet regulatory and investor expectations while strengthening environmental stewardship.

What attendees will learn:
• Key requirements of GRI 14 for water, biodiversity, emissions, and climate integration.
• How to link operational monitoring and management systems to ESG reporting frameworks.
• Practical approaches to demonstrate performance credibility and audit readiness.
• Methods for using GRI 14 to strengthen social licence, investor confidence, and regulatory compliance.
 

Mining operations face a growing expectation to reduce residual emissions beyond traditional decarbonisation.

This session examines carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) and carbon dioxide removal (CDR) techniques relevant to mining and mineral processing, including site-based storage, enhanced weathering, and bio-based capture.

Delegates will explore technical feasibility, regulatory considerations, and integration with corporate decarbonisation strategies, aligned with Australia’s national carbon science roadmap.

What delegates will learn:
• Overview of CCUS and CDR technologies applicable to mining operations.
• How to evaluate readiness, feasibility, and integration with decarbonisation pathways.
• Regulatory, technical, and financial considerations for implementing carbon removal solutions.
• Strategies for reporting, assurance, and stakeholder communication on residual emissions.

Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) expectations on the minerals sector are expanding quickly-across investors, customers, regulators and communities-yet the reporting landscape remains disjointed.

Many organisations must navigate overlapping frameworks, voluntary commitments, regulatory regimes and site-based standards, often translating the same underlying evidence into multiple formats.

The result is repeated effort, inconsistent interpretations, higher compliance cost and avoidable exposure to audit, reputation and supply chain risk-felt most acutely by junior and mid-tier operators and their contractors.

This presentation introduces a collaborative, value-chain initiative to simplify how ESG obligations and credentials are identified and managed from global requirements down to local site activity

The initiative brings together participants across exploration, mining, processing, logistics and downstream partners to develop a shared approach to ESG intelligence and governance: mapping requirements, clarifying common data needs, and improving traceability from source evidence to disclosure.

Delegates will learn how a coordinated platform approach can reduce duplication, strengthen assurance readiness, and support more consistent, decision-useful ESG outcomes -while remaining practical for organisations with lean teams.

The session will outline the initiative’s scope, intended users, and pathways for industry participation, with a focus on improving efficiency, transparency and trust across the minerals value chain.

In 2026, mining exporters face a rapidly tightening carbon price environment driven by two converging forces: global Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanisms (CBAMs) and domestic policy reform.

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The European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism is imposing costs on imported commodities based on embedded emissions, directly affecting profitability, competitiveness, and access to premium markets. At the same time, reviews of Australia’s Safeguard Mechanism (SGM) and Australian Carbon Credit Unit (ACCU) market are expected to tighten baselines, strengthen carbon pricing signals, and increase demand for high-integrity offsets.

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This session explores how international carbon border regimes and Australian reforms intersect, shaping investment decisions, operational planning, emissions reporting, and value chain strategy.

Using examples from commodities such as aluminium, iron ore, and base metals, delegates will gain practical insight into compliance requirements, cost modelling, and decarbonisation pathways needed to remain competitive in a higher-carbon-price world.

Panel and Q & A from the audience 

Networking and depart