Mining and minerals processing account for about 10 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in Australia and make up about half of all goods that are exported. These industries are fairly capital intensive and account for just over 2 per cent of total employment. Australians also benefit from mining through royalties, income tax revenue and returns to shareholders. More importantly, these industries provide the inputs for other industries in Australia, particularly manufacturing in the form of energy and raw materials (ESD Working Group 1991b, pp. 18&endash;19).

The ESD working group on mining defined ecologically sustainable development in relation to the mining sector as:

ensuring that the mineral raw material needs of society are met, without compromising the ability either of future societies to meet their needs, or of the natural environment to sustain indefinitely the quality of environmental services (such as climatic systems), biological diversity and ecological integrity. (p. 73)

The working group argued that, as a result of increased recycling and reuse, the reduced size of end-products and improved production efficiencies, the achievement of improving material well-being does not necessarily mean that each person's use of resources will grow. The goal of sustainable development is therefore 'to make more efficient use of resources to achieve any given output'; and a major aim of the mining industry is to ensure resources are used efficiently, so that 'the developmental and environmental objectives of ESD are at one' (p. 75).

The mining sector is expected to grow at about the same rate as GDP over the next decade (and perhaps more slowly over the years that follow to 2030) to meet the growing demand for resources in Australia and internationally that could be expected to arise from population and economic growth. Mining would remain the largest single contributor to Australia's export earnings. This means that most existing mines will remain in operation, and new mines will be required to meet this demand (p. 69).

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