The NSW Department of Primary Industries - Mineral Resources (DPI-MR) administers an approval process for underground coal mining operations with the potential to cause subsidence. The process requires companies, as a condition of their licence to mine, to assess the subsidence potential of new underground coal mines and extensions to existing mines and to develop Subsidence Management Plans (SMP).
In the case of new mines, subsidence and its impacts must also be addressed as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIS) process as a condition of development consent.
The SMP must include a full land use description and impact assessment, including the physical landforms and environment of the area, addressing among other features all watercourses, wetlands, aquifers, water-related ecosystems, cliff lines, pipelines and other infrastructure, and areas of heritage or archaeological significance. Public consultation processes also apply to the preparation and lodgement of SMPs.