Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Nine of Queensland’s largest mining operations are being made to meet strict new environmental standards. Most of the state’s 1,200 mines have had to comply with provisions in the Environmental Protection Act since 2001. But others, including some owned by Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton, were exempt at the time because of the costs of compliance. Climate Change Minister Andrew McNamara says he will introduce laws into Parliament today. "What we want to have here …