Mine Hydrogeologist

Western Australia | Hope Downs | Ref: PER000PO

• FIFO 9/5 Roster
• Technically challenging role
• Supportive and dynamic team environment

Rio Tinto is a leading international mining group headquartered in the UK. Rio Tinto's business is finding, mining, and processing mineral resources. Major products are aluminium, copper, diamonds, energy (coal and uranium), gold, industrial minerals (borax, titanium dioxide, salt, talc) and iron ore. Activities span the world but are strongly represented in Australia and North America with significant businesses in South America, Asia, Europe and southern Africa.

Rio Tinto Iron Ore provides unrivalled flexibility by operating and maintaining the diverse assets owned by Hamersley Iron and Robe River in the northwest of Western Australia. We will offer you commitment to a safe, injury free working environment, a highly competitive salary package, and the opportunity to experience a unique lifestyle whilst developing your career. With combined operations comprising three shipping terminals, eleven mines and the largest heavy freight railway in Australia, the Pilbara operations produce more than 150 million tonnes of iron ore annually and are growing towards an annual production rate of 220 million tonnes.

The Hope Downs Technical Services department are currently seeking a qualified Hydrogeologist to join their team. Reporting directly to the Superintendent Technical Services - Hope Downs, the successful candidate will be responsible for daily mine dewatering and water supply projects, including drilling rig supervision, logging, groundwater monitoring and analysis, as well as liaison with mine planning, mine operations and other departments. The role will also help provide direction to 1 Technical Officer on site.

The successful candidate will also be tasked with building an understanding of the environmental impact of Welli Wolli Creek caused by the significant dewatering efforts at Hope Downs. As a culturally sensitive site, management of Welli Wolli Creek will also rely heavily on the successful candidate's strong interpersonal and influencing skills.

Key accountabilities:

Planning of dewatering and water supply requirements to support the mine planning

• Analyses and interprets groundwater data (groundwater monitoring, bore drilling, aquifer testing).
• Liaises with mine geotechnical engineers to ensure depressurisation targets are adequate.
• Scoping investigations and designing dewatering systems, determining requirements for drilling, monitoring and other field work.
• Training and mentoring of Technical Assistants within the team.
• Participate in budget planning process / provide input into the preparation of future CAPEX and OPEX budgets
• Liaise with Specialist Environment - Welli Wolli Creek, Government Approvals, Environmental Approvals, project engineering and mine planning.
• Periodic analyses to follow groundwater behaviour in the Welli Wolli area (for example water levels, geophysics etc.).
• Promote, develop and maintain a proactive safety culture by leading risk assessments and JHA's for new tasks or projects.

To be considered for this exciting opportunity, you will hold a relevant tertiary degree and have demonstrable experience in a similar role. Prior experience with hydrogeological data collection/interpretation, modelling and reporting, and water resource assessment is a must, as is previous experience with groundwater bore design, mine dewatering and depressurisation.

We are also seeking applicants with excellent written and verbal communications skills, good project management skills and a strong safety and continuous improvement focus. Familiarity with WA government approvals processes and previous exposure to Vulcan or similar mining and 3D geological software will be highly regarded. In return the successful candidate will be rewarded with an opportunity to build upon their existing technical and leadership skills and a competitive package associated with a 9/5 FIFO roster.

To apply for this role, please copy and paste the following URL into your Internet Browser: https://riotinto.taleo.net/careersection/4/jobdetail.ftl?lang=en&job=PER000P0

To be considered for this unique opportunity, please submit your CV by Wednesday 24 February 2010.

Apply and see more careers online @ www.riotinto.com/careers