Director's Welcome - February 2024 - Sustainable Minerals Institute

Dear All,

It is hard to believe that we are already a month and a half into 2024. I hope things are going well so far for all of you.

I am happy to say the Sustainable Minerals Institute (SMI) already has many new highlights to report.

The first big event of the year was the launch of the SMI-designed Flexilab in collaboration with the Future Industries Hub in Mackay. The facility, supported by funding from the Queensland Resources Industry Development Plan, was launched by State Resources Minister Scott Stewart, with Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre (JKMRC) Director Professor Mohsen Yahyaei delivering a compelling speech outlining the expected benefits of the facility for research, training, and regional collaboration. Mohsen and Resources Centre of Excellence Director Steven Boxall have been a formidable team bringing this initiative to fruition.

A week later SMI and the Queensland Department of Resources co-hosted the inaugural Australian Mine Waste Symposium. The event was attended by over 170 attendees, and featured oral presentations, posters and workshops across a range of themes. Early career researchers were also prominent in the program, and their enthusiasm showed this is a topic that evokes real passion in young industry stakeholders. Associate Professor Anita Parbhakar-Fox and Dr Kam Bhowany co-chaired the Symposium and can be justifiably proud of the outcome.

The SMI with its UQ partners has just launched the Leading for High Reliability Centre (LHRC). This is an important step forward after several years of strong collaboration between SMI, the School of Psychology and other UQ groups, as well as work with our industry partners. The LHRC aims to lead the world in the application of high reliability organisations to the challenge of increasing organisational effectiveness in protecting workers, the environment and communities. SMI’s Susan Johnston has been appointed to lead the Centre.

Another important development is the progress we have made in building a world class drone research capability at UQ. Resourcing Decarbonisation program leader Associate Professor Steven Micklethwaite has been working closely with AuScope and the Australian Government to gain funding for a platform that will provide researchers, industry and government with access to sophisticated drones, sensors, and software that can help address challenges across the mining value chain.

I also want to highlight a few SMI activities that have drawn a strong level of positive public response:

Nikky LaBranche and Professor David Cliff from the Minerals Industry Safety and Health Centre published an article in Minerals that outlined a new testing methodology for measuring dust exposure in mining and a broader range or industries
JKMRC’s Associate Professor Liza Forbes work on improved processing for the treatment of pyrite in ores from the Mount Isa deposit, in a project supported by Advance Queensland and Glencore
Professor Daniel Franks delivered a TedX talk as part of TEDxUQ 2023 on “Why We Need Minerals to Save Our World”.

We saw strong growth in SMI’s professional development programs last year and we already have a robust pipeline of courses for 2024 that cover the mining value chain.

As you can see 2024 is looking full and positive for the SMI. We have a good mix of ongoing and new research initiatives, and I look forward to reporting more on these to you over the coming year. In the meantime, all the best for 2024. We would love to hear from you.