Legislation and regulations

Compliance and enforcement

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    Resources Victoria monitors around 1,100 sites across Victoria to make sure operators are following the state’s laws on mineral, extractives and energy resources.

    To support ongoing compliance, our inspectors:

    • share educational materials, such as guidelines and codes of practice
    • carry out ad-hoc and targeted inspections to check how sites operate
    • investigate concerns raised by community and other stakeholders
    • attend community reference group meetings
    • take enforcement when needed, including:
      • giving directions or improvement notices
      • issuing fines
      • recommending legal action in serious cases.

    Current compliance priorities

    Our compliance program is focused on protecting communities, the environment, infrastructure and public safety.
    We are increasing our onsite presence to better understand how operators are managing their sites and how risks are being addressed.

    We will continue to focus on our current key priorities while increasingly using data to target the highest-risk activities across the industry.

    Industry can expect:

    • increased risk and intelligence-based targeting and inspector presence on sites with frequency determined by risk
    • a comprehensive audit program based on the compliance priorities with follow-up inspections prioritised according to risk
    • increased use of regulatory tools including enforcement infringements for non-compliance and compliance notices to require remedial actions where risks are not appropriately managed
    • compliance action as part of the ‘Use it or lose it’ campaign for exploration and retention licensees not completing their agreed work programs
    • field campaigns to address industry capability and readiness for the transition to the new duty-based model ahead of its commencement in July 2027
    • increased awareness of the responsibilities of recreational prospectors working under a miner’s right.

    Compliance priorities 2026–27

    Site and risk management

    Ensuring the safe and compliant management of sites

    • Risk management plans are representative of site operations and are implemented
    • Avoiding contamination, discharge and spills with corrective action taken when needed
    • Boundaries clearly demonstrated and extraction beyond limits avoided

    Geotechnical stability

    Preserving the safety and stability of the site

    • Batters and slopes designed and built to the approved requirements
    • Monitoring, maintenance and ongoing management of slope stability
    • Waste dumps and stockpiles appropriately designed and managed
    • Slope stability design and controls consider and adopt to long term environmental factors, including groundwater and erosion/surface water

    Dams and tailings storage

    Preventing the spread of harmful material into the environment

    • Tailings storage facilities and dams built to approved requirements
    • Dams and storage facility volume and size monitored and reported
    • Monitoring, maintenance, reporting and management is in accordance with relevant guidelines (such as Dam Safety Emergency Plan requirements)

    Progressive rehabilitation

    Ensuring liability for abandoned or unrehabilitated sites does not fall to the Victorian community

    • Authority holders can demonstrate effective, phased progressive rehabilitation
    • Quarries and mines have sufficient rehabilitation bonds
    • Where relevant, plan for rehabilitation is demonstrative of the scale and scope of the observable operations

    Addressing local community and Traditional Owners concerns

    • Authority holders comply with their legal obligations, and effectively manage potential risks and impacts on community and Traditional Owners, including those arising from dust, vibration and noise
    • Avoiding any impacts to amenity or sensitive receptors arising from blasting
    • Authority holders engage with community and Traditional Owners to address concerns or non-compliance
    Resources Victoria compliance priorities 2026-27 (PDF, 121.7 KB)

    Working with other regulators

    We work with other government agencies to:

    • support better decision-making
    • help industry understand their obligations
    • make sure our decisions are transparent and consistent.

    What operators must do to comply

    Once a site is approved, operators must keep us informed about their activities by:

    • submitting reports on time
    • contacting us if issues arise or they need guidance
    • managing risks effectively
    • following all approved conditions.

    Enforcement

    Our enforcement actions are proportionate to the seriousness of the non-compliance.

    As part of our compliance priorities, we are sharing more information about our enforcement actions publicly online. This includes:

    • remedial notices (section 110)
    • stop work notices (section 110A)
    • fines
    • enforceable undertakings
    • prosecutions
    • other key regulatory decisions.

    Publishing this information helps hold mine and quarry operators accountable and encourages them to do the right thing.

    Enforceable undertakings

    The Minister may consider an enforceable undertaking if there are reasonable grounds to believe an authority holder has breached, or is likely to breach, the Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) Act 1990 or regulations.

    You can view current enforceable undertakings on our enforceable undertakings page.

    Page last updated: 30 Jul 2026