Representatives from each level of government gathered at the site on Friday for the official reopening of the iconic location.

It’s the culmination a two-year, $1.7 million remediation, which consisted of state and federal contributions.

West Tamar mayor Christina Holmdahl said the historical significance of the mine could not be overstated.

“I don’t think anyone can forget the iconic image of Todd Russell and Brant Webb coming out of the mine shaft in 2006,” she said.

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“Since that time, the museum has become an economic driver for this part of Northern Tasmania.

“We have 44,000 visitors here each year, so it’s terribly important that what they come to see is first class.”

It was in the months after the June 2016 floods that museum staff noticed the presence of a sinkhole at the site, prompting the closure of the mine yard to the public.

Unstable clay had caused the shaft wall to collapse between 48 and 71 metres, allowing clay and gravel material to flow into the shaft.

In April 2017, one of the pipes previously used to carry water out of the mine was cut open at the 100 metre level as a way to refill the hole.

The project suffered a setback two months later when it was revealed 7000 tonnes of fill had been lost as a result of flowing into water, which was at a higher level than expected.

The shaft was eventually filled to the 100 metre level, allowing it to support a nine metre concrete plug.

After explosives were used to cut service pipes preventing further filling, cement slurry was poured into the shaft up to the bottom of the blockage, with sand used to fill the shaft to the surface.

Throughout this year, the surface has been reinstated and museum exhibits have been returned to their original place within the yard. 

West Tamar Council general manager Rolph Vos said the nature of the remediation meant there was always going to be challenges.

“It was an extremely complex job to do, because it was done without vision,” he said.

“We couldn’t get cameras to the bottom, which meant a lot of it was completed based on the knowledge of the shaft prior to its collapse.”

Financial assistance for the remediation came from the joint Australian Government-State Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements program, with the federal government contributing $750,000 and the state government providing $375,000.

Liberal senator David Bushby said it was “delightful” for the federal government to be able to pay a role in alleviating the financial burden from the council.

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