Project 4: Soil Quality Monitoring and Beneficial Reuse of CSG Production Water

Project 7: Undertaking dissolution tests on a range of coal types with respect to Environmentally Hazardous Substance classification as per MARPOL Annex V

Project 8: Investigating the potential health implications of coal dust in rainwater

Honey bees: the new canaries for monitoring of mined-land rehabilitation

Geomorphic design and modelling at catchment scale for best mine rehabilitation – The Drayton mine example (New South Wales, Australia)​

Honey bees: the new canaries for monitoring of mined-land rehabilitation. 
By ​Danielle Lloyd-Prichard

Bees provide essential pollination services for almost all terrestrial ecosystems including agricultural crops. They enable flowering plants to set seeds and fruits, therefore maintaining the diversity and functionality of ecosystems. Honey bees are wide-spread pollinators in Australia. They are generalist foragers collecting nectar and pollen from a wide range of flower species within a several kilometre radius from their hive.  Honey bees and their products can be used to sample water, soil, plants and the atmosphere within their foraging area.  Analysis of pollen in honey and propolis offers an efficient method for identifying the floral nectar and pollen sources of bees and the vegetation in a geographical area around the hive. It can also allow for the survey of the presence of species relevant to conservation or control.

This project involved the placement of honey bee and native stingless bee hives on natural bushland and revegetation areas at Glencore’s Ravensworth Open Cut coal mine in the Hunter Valley over the Spring 2015 and Summer 2016 period. Remote hive scale technology allowed for continuous monitoring of the bees’ productivity, and seasonal samples of honey and propolis identified the pollen assemblages of both sites. 

Employing honey bees on mine rehabilitation sites offers an innovative and efficient mechanism for biodiversity monitoring. It is an exciting area for future study and application in Australia with guaranteed sweet rewards.