New Acland Coal's grazing trials

A new grazing trial on a rehabilitated open-cut mine area in southern Queensland will test if coal and cattle production can co-exist.While grazing trials have been undertaking in the Bowen Basin, it's the first grazing trial ever conducted at a mine site on the Darling Downs.

There's no question about the profitability of coal mining but can the same be said about grazing cattle on rehabilitated mining land?

The New Hope Corporation owns the New Acland mine, located around 150 kilometres west of Brisbane near the town of Acland.

The mine has operated since 2002 and now produces around four-point-eight million tonnes of coal each year.

The mine's general manager Jim Randell says agriculture, especially grazing is very much the future for this area.He says they've rehabilitated nearly 200 hectares of land and it's really important they do it properly.

"It's the licence to operate and if we can't achieve that then we don't earn the licence to operate.

"We see a long future for the Acland Pastoral Group and while Acland Pastoral is primarily here at the moment at Acland, we see the opportunity for that business to expand to our other mine sites."

In 2006 New Hope established the Acland Pastoral Company, it's a subsidiary focused on the cattle side of the business.

Manager Ben Muirhead says to the naked eye the rehabilitated paddocks aren't very different to surrounding farmland.

"The rehabilitation you would see here looks very similar to an improved pasture type paddock that you'd see driving along ... there's a slightly different gradient due to the start."

He says they'll take a number of measures as the real-time trial follows the growth of 300 head of cattle.

"Weight gain is probably going to be the key driver because that's where you're going to make your money from."

ABC Rural