Regulator’s report finds NSW mines have ‘robust’ safety controls

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New South Wales mines have received a solid grade from the NSW Resources Regulator as part of its annual high visibility campaign. 

“Overall, most mines had implemented robust safety controls and workers showed a clear understanding of past incidents and outcomes,” the regulator said. 

The campaign assesses the mine operator’s management of the critical controls to prevent material unwanted events (MUE’s) and evaluates the effectiveness of critical controls in the mine operator’s health and safety management system. 

Conducted over 10 days in late June to early July 2025, the campaign targeted key incidents at underground and surface mines across the state as well as assessing the implementation of controls to prevent the reoccurrence of incidents reported over the past 12 months. 

Forty-eight inspectors conducted a mix of announced and unannounced inspections at 144 mine sites engaging with workers and supervisors to carry out assessments. This included:   

  • 22 open cut coal mines 
  • 18 underground coal mines 
  • 22 metalliferous and extractives mines 
  • 17 underground metalliferous mines 
  • 65 small mine sites   

The regulator issued 244 compliance notices to 96 mine sites throughout the campaign, most of which applied to surface and underground metalliferous (METEX) mines.   

The top three principal hazard/control plan topics subject to compliance notices at all mine sites were:  

  • mechanical engineering control plan – 80 compliance notices, with 49 issued to open cut mines and 31 to underground mines. 
  • ground or strata failure principal hazard plan – 22 compliance notice, with 18 issued to open cut mines and four to underground mines.  
  • electrical engineering control plan – 20 compliance notices, with 12 to open cut mines and eight to underground mines. 

The information in the report refers only to WHSA s191 and s195 compliance notices and does not include topics identified in WHS (MPS) Act 2013 – s23 notices of concern. 

The NSW campaign follows a similar run conducted by its Victorian counterpart earlier this year. 

The 2024 campaign resulted in the regulator issuing 194 compliance notices to 106 mine sites. 

The full consolidated report is available from the NSW Resources Regulator website. 

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