Bylong Mining

Additions since 15/02/11 are highlighted in yellow

NEWS REPORTS & WHO'S WHO IN THE NEWS - Summary

1. Reports Directly Related To Bylong   [ Earliest | Most Recent ]
2. Reports Related To Mudgee/Hunter Area   [ Earliest | Most Recent ]
3. Other Reports   [ Earliest | Most Recent ]
4. Who's Who - People In The News

1. Reports Directly Related To Bylong

Date	Summary
Earliest
20/05/10	Coal Down Below: How Rich Is His Valley? (Sydney Morning Herald) Once Eddie Obeid bought property in Bylong Valley, the area became popular. Less than a year after the purchase of Cherrydale Park, the NSW Department of Primary Industry - the department responsible for managing the state's mineral deposits - called for expressions of interest to bid for a highly prospective coal exploration licence over the Bylong Valley. After a few hiccups in the tender process, in July 2009 an exploration licence for the Mount Penny region, the area that includes the Obeid farm, was awarded to Cascade Coal.
05/07/10	Kepco Buys Bylong Coal Mine For A$403 Million From Anglo American State-run Korea Electric Power Corp (Kepco) has reached an agreement to buy the Bylong coal mine from Anglo American for A$403 million.Kepco will wholly own the Bylong mine in New South Wales, which has total indicated and inferred resources of 420 million metric tons of low-ash thermal coal used for power generation, extractable via open-cut and underground mines. The company said it plans to start producing at Bylong in 2016, and eventually achieve a coal output of 7.5 million tons a year. Kepco said it will allow Cockatoo Coal to run Bylong and also give the Australian company an option to buy 30% of the mine at an advantageous price in three years.
19/11/10	Bylong Valley To Fight Mines (Mudgee Guardian, p1)Bylong Valley residents are uniting to fight coal mining proposals which they fear will destroy one of Australia’s most fertile and beautiful valleys. The newly formed Bylong Valley Protection Alliance (BVPA) has called for a state and national ban on mining of prime agricultural land such as the Bylong Valley. The Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco) has bought two authorities to explore 10,300 hectares at Bylong from the Anglo American Metallurgical Coal (AAMC) and plans to begin mining in 2016. Mt Penny Coal (Cascade Coal) and the NSW Department of Industry and Investment also hold exploration leases in the Valley.
23/11/10	Future Concerns For Bylong (WIN TV, Orange)Residents of the Bylong Valley, near Mudgee, are up in arms the pristine area could become a giant coal mine. They say the community has been kept in the dark about the plans, they're calling on the state government to make the process transparent. Earlier this year, Anglo American Coal announced the sale of its proposed Bylong mine to Kepco of Korea for $403m. "There's been no community consultation, it makes it, they make it very difficult to find out certain information, if we didn't make inroads ourselves the process wouldn't happen, it needs to be cleaned up," said Jodie Nancarrow from the Bylong Valley Protection Alliance.
25/11/10	Hunter Stud Owner Shuts Gate To Stop Mining Companies Bolting Across His Land (Sydney Morning Herald) IT WAS the cradle of a national plan to regenerate farms and fight salinity, but a Hunter Valley horse stud is now a target for a new coalmine. Peter Andrews developed the practice of "natural sequence farming", which involves building earthworks and planting trees to mimic original landscapes, on his property at Tarwyn Park, near Bylong. [CLARIFICATION: The article gives the impression that Peter and Stuart Andrews have 'locked out' Anglo, which is not quite the case. Instead, the situation is that no access agreement has yet been reached with the miner because of concerns regarding potential aquifer damage (amongst other issues.) Negotiations are continuing (as at 25/11).]
26/11/10	Harvey Norman Goes To Bat For Bylong (Mudgee Guardian) Harvey Norman executive chairman Gerry Harvey has spoken out against the proposed coal mining of the Bylong Valley. Mr Harvey said proposals to mine the valley, including to Peter Andrew’s "Tarwyn Park", home of Natural Sequence Farming, were "sheer lunacy". "Tarwyn Park is a living case study of how we can get it right when it comes to water use and sustainable agriculture. The place should be a bloody shrine, not a hole in the ground," Mr Harvey said. "The irony - and stupidity - of possibly losing a place like Tarwyn Park to mining is simply breathtaking. What the hell are they thinking?"
26/11/10	Miners Should Let Bylong Be Bylong (Sydney Morning Herald, Letters to the Editor) Peter Andrews of Tarwyn Park is a mastermind in ecology. But instead of rewarding him for his ecological achievements, our government rewards him with a "thanks very much, we'll take that for a lump of coal" attitude ("Hunter stud owner shuts the gate to stop mining companies bolting across his land", November 25). How much more prime farming land can we afford to lose to mining? We too have a property in the Bylong Valley and have our backs against the wall in a fight that is only beginning against Kepco and Cockatoo Coal. (Letter by Steff Weaver-Wong, Daughter of Ron and Helen Weaver, owners of "Budden")
27/11/10	Mining Would Be An Act Of Vandalism (Sydney Morning Herald, Letters to the Editor) Stephanie Weaver-Wong (Letters, November 26) is not alone in her concern for the Bylong Valley. A few weeks ago I "discovered" it on a trip from Mudgee to Lake Macquarie. It is one of the most picturesque (and clearly productive) valleys one could hope to see. To allow a mining company to get within cooee of it would be an act of ecological and pastoral vandalism beyond imagination. If the Greens are worth their salt, they should be jumping all over this misguided proposal.(Letter by Brian Dennis, Warners Bay, NSW)
30/11/10	White Energy Signs Option To Acquire Two Significant Coal Deposits In NSW (Click the link to be taken to the full copy of White Energy's announcement to the ASX regarding its option to acquire the Mt Penny and Glendon Brook coal exploration areas from Cascade Coal.)
01/12/10	Flannery And Duncan Set For White Magic (Courier Mail) BRISBANE coal multi-millionaires Brian Flannery and Duncan Travers are out to set up themselves and other shareholders for another financial killing through coal briquetting group White Energy. White has been given 28 days to exclusively examine buying Cascade Coal, controlled by Mr Flannery and Mr Travers, which owns the Mt Penny coal project, a 173.7 million-tonne thermal coal resource in New South Wales and another NSW deposit Glendon Brook, said to contain semi-soft coking coal.
01/12/10	White's Tough Sell (Sydney Morning Herald) CONTROVERSY is rarely far away when large related-party deals are attempted, and a $500million proposal for White Energy to acquire two New South Wales coal development properties controlled by five of the company's directors is no exception. Notably, the initial market response suggests that the opportunity to purchase Cascade Coal hasn't filled shareholders with excitement. White Energy shares closed down 2 per cent on news of the exclusive option, while MF Global Securities told clients that the Cascade proposal "is an expensive and questionable deal", and it urged shareholders to vote the deal down.
03/12/10	Mining Company Signs Option On Mount Penny (Mudgee Guardian) The Bylong Valley Protection Alliance (BVPA) is dismayed that Australian stock exchange (ASX)- listed company White Energy has signed an option to acquire the Mount Penny coal development. Interim BVPA secretary Craig Shaw said the "real shocker" was learning how far plans have advanced. "We now find out they've got 'conceptual development plan approval' for the project and are looking to commence production in 2013," he said. "It's incandescent testimony to just how badly the whole exploration, planning and approvals process in New South Wales sucks that we can be right next door and kept completely in the dark."
03/12/10	Coal Barons Turn $1M Into $500M In A Year (Financial Review) It was just 14 months ago that a group of Sydney businessmen paid $1 million to explore for coal in western NSW. The area was described as "remnant", or leftover. But in a deal struck this week, those leftovers are to be sold by their company. Cascade Coal, to the sharemarket-listed White Energy for $500 million. It provides yet another example of the speed and scale at which fortunes are being created by the mining boom. And this will be the second coal fortune in as many years for Travers Duncan and Brian Flannery, who reaped $1 billion in cash from selling Felix Resources. The pair and Cascade's directors, including Rams Home Loan founder John Kinghorn, will share 72 per cent of the spoils. But their deal, which must be approved by White Energy's independent directors, and shareholders, is not without controversy.
17/12/10	Bylong Alliance Condemns 'Sneaky' Testing (Mudgee Guardian)Mid-Western Regional councillors have supported the Bylong Valley Protection Alliance (BVPA) fight to prevent coal mining in their valley. BVPA member Jodie Nancarrow appealed to councillors at their meeting this week to work openly with the group in its campaign against three potential coal mines in the valley. Ms Nancarrow said that residents were concerned that council had not advised them that it had given approval for seismic testing in the valley. She said council approved the testing by Hansen Bailley on behalf of Anglo Coal in November. Ms Nancarrow described the testing along council road reserves as "sneaky", since the crews used "Roadwork ahead" signs to hide the real nature of their work.
20/12/10	Don't Let Bylong Become Bygone (Newcastle Herald) FARMERS and residents of the Bylong Valley in the Upper Hunter have vowed to fight the proposed Mount Penny coalmine. The Mount Penny proposal hit the headlines earlier this month with confirmation that its exploration licence - bought from the state government for $1 million less than a year ago - was being sold for $500 million.
20/12/10	First Coal, Now Diamonds, Sapphires and Rubies (Mudgee Guardian) The Bylong Valley Protection Alliance (BVPA) has called on the Minister for Planning Tony Kelly, to rule out making any decision on mining the area until after the state election in 2011. The BVPA’s call comes after developments during the last week, including Cascade Coal’s application to the Department of Planning for director general’s requirement, preceding the production of an environmental assessment and application for a mining lease at Mt Penny. Also ringing alarm bells is an application for a licence to explore for diamonds, rubies, sapphires and minerals in an area covering all of the north of Bylong Valley, from the proposed Mt Penny development area through to Murrumbo in the east. BVPA has criticised the "unseemly haste" in both developments and the degree to which the issue of mining prime agricultural land has become "desperately overheated."
24/12/10	Bylong Project Won't Be Rushed, Minister Says (Mudgee Guardian) Minister for Planning Tony Kelly has rejected Bylong Valley residents' claims that a decision on Cascade Coal's application to mine coal at Mount Penny is being "rushed through". in a letter to the editor in today's Mudgee Guardian. Mr Kelly said the application process would continue well into mid-2011 at the earliest, describing the Bylong Valley Protection Alliance claims as "ridiculous and wrong" BVPA interim secretary Craig Shaw said the group welcomed Mr Kelly's assurance but rejected his claims on ABC Radio that the group either did not understand the process or were being misleading.
24/12/10	Mount Penny Claims Simply Wrong (Mudgee Guardian) (Letter to the Editor by Planning Minister, Tony Kelly) I'm disappointed a regional newspaper of the Mudgee Guardian's standard would have failed to confirm the facts before writing a story on Cascade Coal's mining application at Mt Penny (First coal, now diamonds, sapphires and rubies -December 20, 2010). Development applications for mines are some of the most scrutinised in the NSW Planning system. In regards to this specific application, the above process takes us well into mid-2011 at the earliest! (A letter by the BVPA in response to Mr Kelly was published by the Guardian on Friday, 7/1. To read the text of this letter, click here.)
24/12/10	Cascade Offer Proceeds (Sydney Morning Herald) White Energy is to proceed with a $486 million acquisition of Cascade Coal Pty Ltd, the owner of two prospects in NSW. White exercised an option to buy Cascade in a cash and scrip deal granted last month under an exclusivity arrangement. Five White Energy directors each hold a 12.02 per cent stake in Cascade.
31/12/10	Bylong Exploration Lease Transaction Complete (Mudgee Guardian) Cockatoo Coal Limited announced on Christmas Eve the transfer of the Bylong Exploration Lease to their investment partners had been completed. The transaction sees KEPCO (Korea Electric Power Corporation) acquire 100 per cent of Anglo Coal’s Bylong project with a three year call option for 30 per cent interest to Cockatoo. Cockatoo’s Project Manager for the Bylong Project, Stuart Hides, said that Cockatoo is committed to dealing with the Bylong community in an open and transparent manner.
03/01/11	Mount Penny Sale Sign Of Confidence: BVPA (Mudgee Guardian) Confirmation of White Energy’s decision to purchase the Mount Penny exploration licence from Cascade Coal for $500 million indicates approval for the coal mine is a given, according to Bylong Valley Protection Alliance (BVPA) Interim Vice President Stuart Andrews.
14/01/11	Mid-Western Council Backs Bylong Residents (Mudgee Guardian) Mid-Western Regional Council (MWRC) general manager Warwick Bennett and councillors were on the same wavelength as the Bylong Valley Protection Alliance (BVPA) on Wednesday afternoon after discussions about the potential impacts of mining in the Bylong Valley and surrounding area. After visiting Bylong, Mr Bennett said that he would recommend to an extraordinary meeting next week that council call for a moratorium on mining in the Bylong Valley area until the State Government addresses all the cumulative effects on mining.
14/01/11	Waste of rich agricultural land (Newcastle Herald) COALMINES planned for the Bylong Valley in the Upper Hunter would destroy some of the richest agricultural land in Australia, Mid-Western Regional Council mayor Des Kennedy said yesterday. Speaking after two tours of proposed mine areas, Cr Kennedy said he was ”simply shocked“ at the potential impact of the proposed Mount Penny mine and other operations planned for the area.
20/01/11	Bylong Valley farmers not happy with mining moves (ABC News) The battle between mining and agricultural interests is spreading across some of the most valuable agricultural land in NSW. The farmers of the Upper Hunter and the Liverpool Plains have been fighting mining development for the past several years, and now the Bylong Valley is poised to join the fight. Possibly with strong local government support.
21/01/11	Bylong Valley Also Being Explored For Gas (Mudgee Guardian) A Queensland-based company has announced plans to conduct exploratory drilling for coal seam gas near Bylong. Leichhart Resources holds a licence for gas exploration (PEL 468) covering an area of 1736 square kilomentres, stretching from Bylong and Murrumbo in the north to Olinda in the south. The move to explore for coal seam gas comes on top of existing exploration licenses for coal, diamonds, rubies and sapphires.
26/01/11	Packed Audience For Mudgee Screening Of Gasland (Mudgee Guardian) Seventy-six people attended a screening of the documentary Gasland, hosted by the Mid-Western Community Action Network (MWCAN), on Monday evening. Before the screening, Bylong Valley Protection Alliance (BVPA) interim secretary Craig Shaw outlined plans by Leichhart Resources to explore for natural gas in an area covering 1736 square kilometres of the Bylong Valley. MWCAN secretary Rob Binks said viewers were "horrified" by the possibility that the Gasland experience could be repeated in Australia.
26/01/11	Duddy Calls For Mine Moratorium (Mudgee Guardian) Liverpool Plains farmer and agricultural advocate Tim Duddy launched his campaign for the seat of Upper Hunter with a vow to represent the people of the Bylong Valley in their campaign to save the valley from coal miners. Mr Duddy, who is chairman of the Caroona Coal Action Group, said he had spoken to the people of Bylong before the current push to mine the valley for coal became a public issue. "I am fully aware of the issues they are facing and I am calling for a moratorium until a sustainable use strategy is developed for the area," Mr Duddy said.
28/01/11	Australia Day Honours For Peter Andrews (racingandsports.com.au) Peter Andrews, the veteran breeder who stood dual Melbourne Cup winner Rain Lover at stud, has been awarded an Order of Australia Medal in the 2011 Australia Day Honours. Andrews received his OAM for his revolutionary approaches to land care he developed on Tarwyn Park, a very fertile property over underground waterways which was run down when the Andrews took it over 30 years ago.
18/02/2011	Former Governor-General backs Bylong Valley's call (Mudgee Guardian) Former Governer-General Michael Jeffery has supported calls by the Bylong Valley Protection Alliance (BVPA) for a full, independent study of hydrology of the Upper Goulburn River Catchment before any further decisions are taken regarding mining in the area. Major General Jeffery is chairman of the Outcomes Australia, whose Land and Water project is investigating the best interventions for regional and sustainable management of Australia's land and waterways.
Most Recent
25/02/2011	The Bylong and winding road (Added 11/03/11) (Drive) Bylong is not the type of town to be at the top of anyone's "must-visit-before-you-die" list. In fact, there's not really much reason to stop there. It's a tiny hamlet in the middle of nowhere with only a general store to tempt passers-by. According to the local tourist office, the population is less than 10. But Bylong is at the heart of one of NSW's great driving experiences. The Bylong Valley Way links the towns of Ilford and Sandy Hollow, connecting the Castlereagh Highway and Golden Highway to the west of Sydney.
28/02/2011	NSW Coalition to target key coalmine licences (Added 11/03/11) (Australian Financial Review) Two controversial coalmines will be targeted by the NSW Coalition as part of a review in to all exploration licences across the state, if the opposition wins the election next month. The Australian Financial Review has been told the proposed audit will focus on the Doyles Creek mine, owned by the listed NuCoal, and the Mount Penny mine, which is being acquired by the listed White Energy. The opposition spokesman for primary industries and energy, Duncan Gay, would not disclose which mines would be targeted but said the audit was likely to be headed by a retired judge or senior barrister.
08/03/2011	O'Farrell must dump mine audit after poll (Added 11/03/11) (The Australian) THAT the NSW opposition should seize any and all opportunities to embarrass departing Labor factional leader Eddie Obeid is as understandable as it is forgivable. But it must be hoped that when Barry O'Farrell strolls into power on March 26, the new NSW Premier will just as quickly walk away from his party's proposed state-wide audit of mining exploration licences. If ever there was an example of good politics that represents poor policy, it is this. The opposition's commitment to an ill-defined but broad-based review process is built partly on an apparent but still uncertain conflict over the issue in June 2009 of exploration licence 7406 to a private company called Cascade Coal.
09/03/2011	Mt Penny unveiled (Added 20/03/11) (International Longwall News) Private company Cascade Coal, subject to a $A486 million takeover offer from White Energy, is targeting up to 5 million tonnes per annum run-of-mine over 20 years from its $400 million Mt Penny open cut project in New South Wales. Cascade Coal's preliminary environmental assesssment and project application were recently released by NSW Department of Planning. Located in the Western Coalfields, 3 kilometres northwest of the village of Bylong and 60km northeast of Mudgee, the thermal coal project'd exploration licence (EL 7406) covers 84 square kilometres south of the Goulburn River National Park.
11/03/2011	Bylong group wants mine application thrown out (Added 20/03/11) (Mudgee Guardian) The Bylong Valley Protection Alliance (BVPA) has called on the State Government to throw out a development application for the Mt Penny Project and insist on a new application covering the whole of the potential mining area. In a letter to the Department of Planning, the BVPA argues that White Energy was promoting its acquisition of Cascade Coal through a “roadshow” document which outlines plans for four open cut pits and one underground mine, producing 8.2Mtpa run-of-mine coal by 2018. “This total project plan is in stark contrast to the more modest single open cut pit project, reaching 5.2Mtpa ROM, proposed in Cascade’s current application under Part 3A,” BVPA interim secretary Craig Shaw wrote in his letter to Director General Sam Haddad.

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2. Reports Related To Mudgee/Hunter Area

Date	Summary
Earliest
04/08/10	Xstrata To Spend $5.8bn On Peru And NSW Mines (The Age) XSTRATA, the largest exporter of coal used for power, has approved investment of $US1.1 billion expand the Ulan West coal venture in NSW, as demand grows in China, Brazil and India. Xstrata plans to start building the Ulan West mine later this year, with first production estimated for 2014. Xstrata said the mine would produce an annual 6.7 million tonnes of thermal coal for export for about 18 years.
09/08/10	Fears For Future Of Agriculture (Newcastle Herald) A battle is looming over the Hunter Valley's water resources and farming future, with coal companies seeking approval to mine riverlands previously regarded by many as off limits. The Hunter Valley Water Users Association, the NSW Farmers Association and Hunter Minewatch are worried the government might approve potentially risky proposals without proper consideration. The Farmers Association wants the government to lift water security considerations out of Labor's controversial 3A planning laws, enabling the Office of Water to insist on better safeguards for rivers and underground water resources.
09/08/10	Appeal For Safeguards (Newcastle Herald) Some mining proposals for Hunter alluvial land should not be allowed under the NSW government's 2005 draft Hunter water management guidelines, Hunter Minewatch spokeswoman Wendy Bowman said. Mrs Bowman specifically criticised two proposals: Coal & Allied's Carrington West plan near the Hunter River and Ashton Coal's Ashton South-East open-cut plan near Camberwell. Mrs Bowman called on the government to reassure Hunter people that Ashton's donations to the NSW Labor Party would not influence decision-making under the government's controversial 3A development fast-tracking laws.
14/08/10	Water Worries Confirmed (Newcastle Herald) THE NSW Office of Water has told Ashton Coal its proposed open-cut mine south of Camberwell village poses potential risks to Hunter River water-use systems and alluvium areas near Glennies Creek. It has called for the coal company to rethink the mine's proposed layout. But Ashton has dismissed the concerns, and says it has expert advice that the new mine would have little effect on water systems.
14/08/10	Stream Of Conscience (Newcastle Herald) It was always going to come to this. Sooner or later, somebody was going to want to strip-mine the Hunter's alluvial floodplains for the coal that lies beneath. Now that most of the other "easy" coal has been taken, it is natural that these areas - previously considered by most to be off-limits - should be proposed as the Hunter Valley's last sacrifice to the great coal god.
02/10/10	Nature Of The Beast (Newcastle Herald) It might be comforting to some people to know that the NSW coal industry is turning over a new leaf. According to King Coal's mouthpiece, the Minerals Council, the industry has recognised the hurt and anger some of its activities are causing in some communities. Apparently we are going to see a new approach. I've been keeping that in mind whenever I read or hear news about the coal industry, hoping to see some sign of this new friendly face of big coal. Not much evidence yet, I'm afraid.
04/10/2010	Mudgee's Moolarben Coal Mine opens (Mudgee Guardian) The odd time of the opening was said to be a lucky number in Chinese culture and some lucky people took the chance to bless the mine after two months of producing saleable coal. Both Yancoal Australia managing director, Brian Flannery, and Yanzhou Coal vice chairman, Weimin Li, described the mine as a “miracle”. “To have the first train of coal head to the Port of Newcastle from Moolarben in May of this year is a remarkable achievement, considering work didn’t start on site until March last year,” Mr Flannery said.
20/10/10	Group Concerned About Mining Effects Plans Coal Meeting In November (Mudgee Guardian) A group of community members concerned about the effect of coal mining in the Mid-Western Region are planning a public meeting in November to allow others to express their views. [This article also discusses actions being taken by Mid-Western Regional Council regarding mining development, and mentions forthcoming meetings between council representatives and both the Minister for Planning and Department of Planning Officials.]
22/10/10	John Hatton To Chair Mudgee Coal Meeting (Mudgee Guardian) Former independent member of the NSW Legislative Assembly and anti-corruption campaigner John Hatton will chair a public meeting on November 15 to discuss the community views on the affect of coal mining in the region. The meeting will be held at the Club Mudgee Auditorium from 7pm to 9.30pm.
22/10/10	Mid-Western Council Wants Better Deal From Mine (Mudgee Guardian) Mid-Western Regional Council is calling for Xstrata, owners of Ulan Coal Mines Limited, to contribute $12 million towards roads and community infrastructure as part of approval for the Ulan West project. Mayor Des Kennedy and general manager Warwick Bennett met Department of Planning representatives in Sydney yesterday to put their case for a greater contribution from the mine owner to help the region cope with the growing demand for medical and community services and housing and offset the cost of maintaining roads carrying mine traffic.
25/10/10	Miners Try To Manage The Outrage (Sydney Morning Herald) Mining companies in NSW are moving to tackle public anger over mine expansion in the Hunter Valley, acknowledging that they might have a public relations problem. The Minerals Council of NSW has sent questionnaires to about 120 groups in the region, including environment organisations and the mining companies, to find out what they think about mining and who influences their opinions.
29/10/10	NSW Government Under Pressure Over Hunter Valley Mines (ABC News) A Hunter Valley farmer believes its now up to the state government to prove it can strike a balance between coal mining and other land users in the region. Peter Dixon-Hughes, from Denman, is a member of the NSW Farmers executive council that has met with the NSW Planning Minister, Tony Kelly, to demand a moritorium on new mines and coal seam gas development. Mr Dixon-Hughes said the government's forthcoming strategic mining plan for the region must address farmer's concerns.
29/10/10	Mine Moratorium Call (Mudgee Guardian) NSW Farmers' Association Mudgee branch president John Webb has backed the group's call for a moratorium on new mining or coal seam gas developments across the state. Mr Webb said as a Mid-Western Regional Councillor and local farmer, he believed the cumulative impacts of the mines should be taken into consideration.
29/10/10	Farmers Take On Coal (Singleton Argus) Adoption of the NSW Office of Water draft guidelines would nip the war between the NSW Farmers Association and the NSW Minerals Council in the bud. The draft document, called 'Management of Stream/Aquifer Systems in Coal Mining Developments', was completed in 2005 but no action has been taken on the guidelines. The document requests a minimum of 150 metres buffer between open cut mining and any third order stream and no mining of alluvial flats.
01/11/10	Coal, Dollars, Food, Water (Editorial, Newcastle Herald) Farmers want a moratorium on all new mining and coal seam gas developments until a strategy is devised to protect some of the state's threatened agricultural and river lands. In this, they are asking no more than has already been enacted in Queensland, where strategic crop land has been cordoned off from mining.
05/11/10	Council Seeks To Join Hunter Group (Mudgee Guardian) Mid-Western Regional Council (MWRC) will move to become part of the Hunter Regional Organisation of Councils (HROC). Mayor Des Kennedy said that both he and general manager Warwick Bennett were impressed with the group’s approach, particularly in regard to coal mining. At the same time, MWRC has declined to comment on the meeting between the Mayor, the General Manager and Minister for Planning Tony Kelly on Wednesday (3/11) to discuss coal companies contribution to regional infrastructure and services.
05/11/10	Gee, Stoner To Hear Views On Mining (Mudgee Guardian) Nationals candidate for the state seat of Orange Andrew Gee and NSW Nationals leader Andrew Stoner will hold a meeting in Mudgee on November 15 to hear Mid-Western Region resident’s view on the effects of mining in the region.
06/11/10	Workings Blamed For Creek Demise (Newcastle Herald) Ron Fenwick remembers when South Wambo Creek flowed across his property at depths of up to eight metres. Water rarely flows in the creek today due to cracking that occurred as a result of longwall mining beneath it in the mid-1990s.
06/11/10	Farmers Criticise Proposal (Newcastle Herald) HUNTER Valley land and water users have warned of potentially disastrous environmental consequences if a proposal to mine on alluvial plains is approved. In their submissions to Coal & Allied's planned Carrington West project, the Upper Hunter Water Users Association and the NSW Farmers Federation said the project's economic benefits did not outweigh the environmental risks.
08/11/10	Cheap Coal For power 'Subsidises Polluters'l (Mudgee Guardian) THE state government's decision to sell coal cheaply to its power generators sends the wrong signal about the need to move to cleaner energy sources and cut greenhouse gas emissions, say critics. The government is proceeding with plans to develop a new coalmine near Mudgee to sell lowpriced coal to the government-run power generators. Earlier talks with the private sector to develop the Cobbora mine have fallen through. The government decided it will operate the mine itself.
12/11/10	Xstrata To Pay $4.5M (Mudgee Guardian) Mid-Western Regional Council mayor Des Kennedy said yesterday he was delighted with a Voluntary Planning Agreement (VPA) with Xstrata Coal that will provide more than $4.5 million for the region. Under the VPA for the Ulan West Coal project, Xstrata will contribute $3.75 million for community infrastructure and pay $50,000 a year for 21 years to maintain Cope Road, between Gulgong and the mine.
13/11/10	Efficiency Key To The Future (Newcastle Herald) WITH the world's energy demand increasing, mining companies such as Coal & Allied are taking up the climate change challenge to find ways to achieve sustainable long-term use of coal. Coal & Allied's parent company Rio Tinto has spent more than $100 million on low-emission coal technologies. In the Hunter Valley, the three Coal & Allied-managed mines are on a continuous quest to find ways to reduce their emissions and reported in 2009 a 60,000-tonne reduction in greenhouse gases.
16/11/10	Lobby group: Mid-Western Region Could Be 'Steamrolled' By Mining Industry (ABC News) The proposed expansion of the mining industry in the Mid-Western Region will be scrutinised by a new lobby group, amid concerns the district will be overrun by new developments. Organisers of a public meeting in Mudgee last night say around 120 people turned out to voice their concerns about the impact on water supplies, roads and air quality if the region's existing mines continue to extend their operations. Work to determine the impact of new exploration projects and mine expansions will now be carried out by the Mid-Western Region Coal Action Group, which was established at the forum.
17/11/10	Region Faces Mine 'Explosion' (Mudgee Guardian) The Mid-Western Region faces an explosion of mining in the next seven years, Mid-Western Regional Council general manager Warwick Bennett told National Party members at a community meeting on Monday afternoon. NSW National leader Andrew Stoner, Member for Orange Russell Turner, Nationals Deputy Leader in the Legislative Council of NSW and Nationals candidate for Orange Andrew Gee attended the meeting to hear the community’s and councillors’ concerns about the expansion of mining in the region.
17/11/10	Mid-Western Coal Group Formed (Mudgee Guardian) The Mid-Western Community Action Group (MWCAG) will be reactivated as a regional body to voice residents’ concerns about the expansion of coal mining, following a public meeting at the Mudgee Soldiers Club on Monday evening. Around 120 people attended the meeting, convened by the Mudgee Coal Action Group and chaired by former independent State MP and anti-corruption campaigner John Hatton. Mr Hatton said after visiting Running Stream, Charbon, Bylong, Ulan, Moolarben, Wilpinjong and the proposed Cobbora coal mine site, he was “absolutely outraged” about what is happening in the Mid-Western Region and elsewhere in NSW.
19/11/10	Bathurst Group Opposes Cobbora Mine (Mudgee Guardian) Bathurst Community Climate Action Network (BCAN) has joined with other environment groups in the Central West in opposing the State Government’s plan Cobbora Mine Project near Gulgong. Coal from the mine is expected to be used to power generators for 17 years at a fixed price of about $32 a tonne, well below the current price of $44. BCCAN is calling on all members of the NSW Parliament and candidates for the state election next March to express their opposition to the plan.
19/11/10	Coal Seam Gas (Singleton Argus) A CAMPAIGN to stop coal seam gas exploration in Singleton’s grape growing areas has won the support of Singleton Council. A unanimous vote to ban coal seam gas exploration and development in Singleton’s grape growing areas was met with a rapturous applause at Monday’s council meeting. A packed gallery filled the chambers hoping to see council support the prohibition of coal seam gas exploration and development in the Broke, Bulga, Hermitage Road and Roughit Lane areas. Cr Alison Howlett moved the motion to amend Singleton’s Local Environment Plan (LEP) so the industry would be banned in the four designated areas.
19/11/10	Fiery Debate (Newcastle Herald) Hunter residents fear the damage from an onslaught of coal seam gas exploration outweighs the environmental benefits of the final product, writes FRANCES THOMPSON.
19/11/10	$1.2 Billion Ulan West Expansion Approved (Newcastle Herald) Planning Minister Tony Kelly has approved a $1.2 billion expansion of Xstrata’s Ulan Coal Mine which will more than double the production of the mine and add 21 years to the mine’s life. Xstrata plans to start building the Ulan West mine this year, with first production expected in 2014.
23/11/10	Mine Project Opposed (Newcastle Herald) THE NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water has publicly criticised Coal and Allied over plans to expand the Mount Pleasant coalmine at Muswellbrook. In what is believed to be the first public challenge to a coal mine proposal in the shire, the department criticised environmental assessments provided by the company and expressed "disappointment" that earlier issues raised by the department had not been addressed.
24/11/10	Mid-Western Moves To Join Hunter Group (Mudgee Guardian) Mid-Western Regional Council has voted to join the Hunter Regional Organisation of Councils (HROC). In his report to council on Wednesday, general manager Warwick Bennett said the councils covered by the HROC were focused on similar issues to the Mid-Western Regional Council, including the rapid growth of coal mining and its effects on employment costs, availability of a skilled workforce, medical services, schooling and community infrastructure. “Hunter ROC is working with the State Government to establish some firm principles and protocols on how mining companies can be better community partners,” he said.
24/11/10	Schools And Firefighters Share $25,000 Ulan Gift (Mudgee Guardian) Ulan Coal Mines Limited has donated $25,000 to local schools and bushfire brigades in the Mid-Western region.
30/11/10	Gas Community Group Disbanded (Newcastle Herald) THE state government has dissolved an Upper Hunter coal-seam gas committee, saying it was time for a statewide review of the way such committees operate. But a spokeswoman for the minister confirmed last night that the Bulga committee was the only one being shut down. Committee member, Councillor Alison Howlett said it "seems more than a coincidence" that the letter from Mr Whan making the decision was dated November 16, a day after Singleton Council voted to restrict gas exploration in its local environmental plan.
07/12/10	Xstrata Approves $1.4b Coal Mine At Ravensworth (nineMSN Money) Mining giant Xstrata Coal has decided to develop the Ravensworth North open cut mine in New South Wales for $US1.36 billion ($A1.38 billion). The project in the Upper Hunter Valley will produce eight million tonnes per annum of export thermal and semi-soft coking coal at full production levels, Xstrata said in a statement on Tuesday. Ravensworth North is expected to have a mine life of about 26 years and will be within the existing Cumnock Coal and Ravensworth complex.
07/12/10	Tinkler's $25m Coalworks Deal (Newcastle Herald) NATHAN Tinkler has agreed to spend as much as $25 million exploring the Ferndale coal exploration area near Denman in a deal that will give him almost 20 per cent of the shares in the small Hunter mining company Coalworks. Mr Tinkler's investment in Coalworks through Boardwalk is the latest in a line of coal industry deals transforming the shape of the NSW industry. The Australian Financial Review reported on Friday that the Mount Penny exploration area west of Denman, bought from the state government about 14 months ago for $1 million, would be sold for $500 million.
09/12/10	Stations Go Live To Test Air (Newcastle Herald) TWO air monitoring stations will go live in the Upper Hunter from today, providing further data on the region's controversial air quality. Stations at Singleton and Muswellbrook will be the first of 14 stations in the Upper Hunter Air Quality Monitoring Network. The network will be partly financed by the community alongside government, miners and power generators, while the state government's Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water will operate the stations.
10/12/10	Fresh Air A Step Closer (Newcastle Herald) UPPER Hunter community groups have described the installation of two air quality monitoring stations as a promising first step in addressing concerns about dust. The Singleton and Muswellbrook stations are the first of 14 that will make up the Upper Hunter Air Quality Monitoring Network. The stations will provide real-time air quality data 24 hours a day. Critically, data collected at both sites will include PM10 and PM2.5 particles.
10/12/10	Hunter Coal Turns To Gold (Newcastle Herald) (Editorial) As attractive as the coal industry might be to investors right now - and as welcome as the jobs are - the sheer scale of the mining and port expansions being triggered by the boom pose major problems for communities and governments alike. Industries in the grip of a boom do not like being held back. But the boom itself is the biggest reason to watch coal companies very carefully, and to ensure they do not run roughshod over their neighbours in the rush for profits.
15/12/10	Whips Out On Mining (Newcastle Herald) ARROWFIELD Stud chairman John Messara called for a ban on new mining operations in the Hunter coalfields as part of a 10-point plan outlined by the Hunter Valley Thoroughbred Breeders Association. Mr Messara was joined by some of the biggest names in Australian racing at a news conference in Sydney yesterday that called for a moratorium on all new mining operations until an independent report was completed. [To read the full Newcastle Herald article, click here. To view the Thoroughbred Breeders full plan document, click here.]
20/12/10	Mining Moratorium Puts Too Much At Stake (Newcastle Herald) (Opinion piece by Dr Nikki Williams, CEO, NSW Minerals Council) We want strategic land-use planning too, writes Nikki Williams. IT wouldn't be practical to ask our farmers to stop working the land while the federal government develops its plan for water use in the Murray-Darling Basin. That "pause" would devastate our agricultural sector, put farmers out of work and affect the nation's food supply. However, some interest groups are calling for exactly this type of "pause" for the coal industry with a moratorium on new projects, extensions and exploration licences as we all wait for the NSW government to start work on its strategic plan for coal.
20/12/10	Dust Breaches 'Low Risk' (Newcastle Herald) AUDITS of several Upper Hunter coalmines found they breached a number of government conditions for dust management but the harm posed to the environment was at the "lower risk" end of the scale. Three government departments held the audits at nine mines, seven of which were in the Upper Hunter, in what is said to be the first round of broader compliance audits.
21/12/10	Airing For Mine Issues (Newcastle Herald) STAKEHOLDERS have raised more than 1600 issues with the cumulative impact of Upper Hunter mining. The concerns have been flagged as part of the Upper Hunter Mining Dialogue, an industry-backed project aimed at building dialogue between Upper Hunter mines and the community. The Australian Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility, which is conducting the study on the industry's behalf, has canvassed more than 93 stakeholders in the project so far.
21/12/10	Colonial Heritage Undermined By Big Coal Interests (Sydney Morning Herald) SHE is a grand old lady of the colonial era, looking tired and a little tipsy, with 20 million tonnes of premium Hunter Valley coal worth $2 billion under her skirts wanted for export to Japan. Wambo Homestead near Singleton, first built in 1830, is on the path to becoming the first protected property delisted from the state heritage register under changes to the NSW Heritage Act which came into effect in January, because the world's biggest private sector coal company wants to mine the seam beneath it.
22/12/10	Former Union Boss Hits Pay Dirt With Mine (The Land) THE former secretary of the mining union, John Maitland, has pocketed another $3.78 million selling 9 million shares in a Hunter Valley coalmine that was approved - without tender and contrary to departmental advice - by his associate, the disgraced former minister Ian Macdonald. Mr Maitland sold the NuCoal Resources shares last Friday, bringing his total cash windfall from the controversial Doyles Creek mine to $4.98 million. His family still holds 33 million shares worth $15 million.
27/12/11	Gas Explorer Upbeat About Its Prospects Off Newcastle Coast (ABC News) Advent Energy could make an announcement this week about whether it has discovered a substantial gas field off the Newcastle coast. Advent Energy began exploratory drilling two weeks ago with its rig positioned 55-kilometres off the coast of Newcastle.
31/12/10	Call To Suspend Cobbora Project (Mudgee Guardian) The Nature Conservation Council (NCC) of NSW has lodged a complaint with the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission asking it to investigate potential breaches to competition law arising from the State Government government’s proposed Cobbora Coal Mine project. The NCC has called on all parties contesting the 2011 State election to rule out establishing the Cobbora coal mine and suspend any coal supply agreement that distorts energy markets by reducing the price of coal.
01/01/11	Talk Of The Town (On The Land) (Newcastle Herald) FRANCES THOMPSON peers into the crystal ball to predict the issues that will dominate the region's headlines in 2011. (see section titled "On the land" for a summary of issues around coal and land use)
10/01/11	Mining Plan Too Shallow (Newcastle Herald) STATE authorities have issued a scathing assessment of a Centennial Coal mine plan at Awaba in west Lake Macquarie.
11/01/11	Coal Exports Keep On Rising Despite Robust Aussie Dollar (Newcastle Herald) THE Port of Newcastle exported a record 102.7 million tonnes of coal in 2010, well up on the 92.8 million tonnes shipped in 2009. At recent prices and exchange rates this coal could be worth $12 billion or more.
11/01/11	Coalmine Growth Threatens To Choke Villages (Newcastle Herald) Upper Hunter communities could be subjected to even greater levels of pollution in the next decade due to the continued expansion of the coalmining, a new report says. With coal production predicted to grow at 2per cent a year for the next 20 years, some fear their communities will become uninhabitable. The international best practice study calls for more stringent pollution controls to protect Upper Hunter communities.
12/01/11	Xstrata Gives $1 Million To Queensland Flood Appeal (Mudgee Guardian) Xstrata, owner of the Ulan Coal Mine, has contributed $1 million to the Queensland Premiers Disaster Relief Appeal to help communities affected by the devastating floods in Central Queensland.
12/01/11	State Nod For Third Hunter Coal Track (Newcastle Herald) THE state government has approved a $210 million third rail track from Maitland to Minimbah despite concerns about the noise impacts of more coal trains on existing and proposed housing in burgeoning suburbs. The federal government will now assess the Australian Rail Track Corporation's 30 kilometre project following the announcement yesterday of NSW Planning Minister Tony Kelly's approval.
13/01/11	Residents Fear Coalmine Water Will Pollute Rivers (Newcastle Herald) ULAN, Moolarben and Wilpinjong coalmines have been granted temporary variations to their water licences to allow effectively unlimited saline discharges after heavy rain. Environmentalists and some residents have complained about the licence variations, but the state government said they were justified.
13/01/11	Hunter Mine Plans Approved (Newcastle Herald) THE state government has approved two mining projects north-west of Singleton that were fiercely opposed by environmentalists. The first allows the layout at Ashton Coal's underground mine to be modified and the diversion of Bowmans Creek. The second, for the nearby Ravensworth underground mine, allows coal production to increase from five to seven million tonnes a year and the extension of four longwall panels.
14/01/11	All The Rivers Run Into King Coal'S Coffers (Newcastle Herald) ANOTHER day, another batch of coalmine approvals in the Hunter. With the exception of Bickham - perhaps knocked back only because it was a tiddler, not owned by a sufficiently powerful group and opposed by the might of some Middle Eastern horse barons - King Coal just keeps getting everything he asks for, no matter the cost to the Hunter's environment.
14/01/11	Dust-Buster Techniques (Newcastle Herald) THE NSW coal industry is investigating new techniques to minimise dust generated from roadways at open-cut mines. The Australian Coal Association Research Program will invest more than $240,000 over the next two years to determine the effectiveness of new synthetic dust suppressants.
15/01/11	Mines, All Mines (Newcastle Herald) THE problem with understanding the cumulative impact of coalmining on Hunter communities is that there's too much information, and too many words about individual mining projects. There's a coalmine expansion or approval story every week or two, it seems, with impressive figures about jobs for the community and millions of dollars for the economy. But for a town like Muswellbrook in the Upper Hunter there's another story to tell.
15/01/11	Mines And Mansions (Newcastle Herald) ONE by one, many remote Upper Hunter historic houses seem to have fallen into the clutches of the coalmining industry in recent years. Soaring Hunter Valley coal production has meant these pioneering houses face what now seems to be an uncertain future.
18/01/11	Gas Site Project Firmer (Newcastle Herald) Eastern Star Gas says it expects to lodge initial details within weeks with the NSW Department of Planning for a proposed coal seam gas export terminal in Newcastle, as it finalises the purchase of 24 hectares at Kooragang.
20/01/11	Mining Blasts Give Upper Hunter The Shakes (Newcastle Herald) Upper Hunter residents are experiencing mining blasts as powerful as small earthquakes several times a week, independent seismological data shows.
20/01/11	Former Nationals Leader To The Coalface (The Land) MARK Vaile may be better known as a politician than as a businessman, but that is changing fast. Named last June as chairman of nathan Tinkler's NSW coalminer Aston Resources, Australia's second biggest float of 2010, the former deputy prime minister appears to be relishing his highest-profile role since leaving federal politics two and a half years ago.
20/01/11	Full Scale Gas Projects 'Inevitable' (Newcastle Herald) THE approval of plans for a coal seam gas export terminal in Newcastle would be a green light for gas projects across the state, despite limited oversight of the industry and deep community concern, the Greens say.
24/01/11	Land Court Challenge To Ulan West Project (Mudgee Guardian) A Hunter Valley environmental group has lodged a Land and Environment Court appeal against the expansion of Xstrata’s Ulan Coal mine. The Hunter Environment Lobby is opposing the Ulan West project on the grounds that the NSW Government approved the Part 3A development without conducting a Planning Assessment Commission to independently assess the effect of the mine expansion. Hunter Environment Lobby spokeswoman Jan Davis said a Planning Assessment Commission assessment was usually done on similar projects, including some much smaller than Ulan West.
27/01/11	Duddy Eyes State Seat (The Land) CAROONA district farmer and activist against coal exploration on the Liver-pool Plains, Tim Duddy, will stand as an Independent for the seat of Upper Hunter in the March State election. He will have a formidable task to beat the sitting member, The Nationals’ George Souris, who won with 64.7 per cent of the two-party preferred vote in the 2007 election. But Mr Duddy – who has achieved a kind of folk hero status with his resistance as a member of the Caroona Coal Action Group against coal exploration in the Caroona district by BHP-Billiton – says, "I am not playing to lose."
28/01/11	Baal Bone Colliery Lease Extended Until 2014 (ABC News) A local environmental group says dozens of native flora species will be wiped out by the expansion of mining at a colliery near Lithgow. The NSW Planning Department has approved Xstrata's application to continue longwall mining at the Baal Bone Colliery near Cullen Bullen until 2014.
28/01/11	McKay Clears Air On Coal (Newcastle Herald) Hunter Minister Jodi McKay says more must be done to redress the imbalance of the coal industry’s impact on communities.
28/01/11	Rising Tide Shouldn't Have To Pay Costs: Greens (Newcastle Herald) GREENS MLC David Shoebridge has condemned police and Port Waratah Coal Services for taking legal action against seven Rising Tide activists.
29/01/11	King Coal's Reign Treads On Grapes (Newcastle Herald) A David versus Goliath battle in the Upper Hunter has the wine industry fighting for survival amid the ever-expanding coal giants. Already facing a brutal adjustment due to the global wine glut, wineries and growers in the Upper Hunter are under further pressure from the expansion of mines. It is understood more than 800 hectares of vineyards have been lost in the Upper Hunter to mining over the past few years, with a further 400 hectares gone as a result of industry rationalistion. The latest in a line of Upper Hunter wineries to close was Arrowfield Estate, at Jerrys Plains. Formerly the largest vineyard in Australia, Arrowfield closed its doors to the public in November and the final employees left at the end of the year.
05/02/11	'Left out' on mine, gas talks (Newcastle Herald) HUNTER environment groups have accused the state government of failing to consult adequately about the impact of gas and coalmining in the region. The paper, designed to encourage community and stakeholder input, will be used in the development of a NSW coal and gas strategy. Several Hunter groups have complained they had not been consulted about the issues.
12/02/11	Greens Councillor wins pre-selection (Mudgee Guardian) Chris Parker, who stood for the seat of Hunter in the Federal Election, has been endorsed by the Upper Hunter Greens to stand as a candidate in that seat in next month's State Election. ”It appals me that such pristine agricultural land as that in the Bylong Valley may be placed at severe risk of destruction and as a result may one day present the same ugly sight that now exists just down the range.
12/02/11	Mid-West deserves to be consulted (Mudgee Guardian, Editorial) The NSW coal and gas strategy scoping paper, released last week, identified the northern half of the Western Basin specifically the areas around the existing Moolarben, Ulan and Wilpinjong mines, Bylong and Mt Penny, and the proposed Cobbora Coal mine as one of the areas where most of the growth in the coal seam gas industries over the next 25 years is likely to occur. The scoping paper is intended to give the community a chance to comment on how this growth will affect them and how they believe these effects can be controlled or mitigated.
15/02/2011	Lake Council looks to coal-free future (Newcastle Herald) Lake Macquarie City Council can see an end to the city’s coal-fired power stations and coal mines, but the industries beg to differ and expect to be around for a long time. A council report that looks ahead to 2030 said the industries faced ‘‘dramatic changes’’ from government responses to climate change and increasing energy prices. ‘‘Power generation and coalmining occupy considerable areas of land in Lake Macquarie,’’ the report said.
17/02/2011	Farmers will fight to retain their land (Newcastle Herald) GLOUCESTER farmers have vowed to fight to save one of the state's last remaining repositories of prime agricultural land from being swallowed by mining. Dozens of concerned farmers and community representatives will meet at a NSW Farmers Association mining taskforce meeting in the town today to discuss how mining and farming can coexist. The Gloucester Valley has been one of the state's richest agricultural resources for the best the part of 200 years. But in recent years the area's land and water reserves have been under increasing pressure from the rapidly growing mining and resources sectors.
17/02/2011	In the hall of the coal king (Newcastle Herald) IN the wider Hunter Region today it seems almost all roads lead to the throne room of King Coal. The price of the black mineral is so high and international demand for energy so intense that great fortunes are being made. Recent profit results from the big multinational mining companies that control much of the Hunter's coal speak volumes about the present resources boom. BHP Billiton yesterday announced a record half-year profit of $10.6 billion, following earlier full-year results of $14 billion for Rio Tinto and $5.2 billion for Xstrata.
18/02/2011	Long and winding road for gas pipeline (Newcastle Herald) A 280-KILOMETRE pipeline from Coolah to supply the state's first liquefied natural gas export terminal in the Port of Newcastle will make numerous crossings of creeks and rivers in its path through the Hunter, plans from Eastern Star Gas show. A project application lodged with the NSW Department of Planning said the high-pressure gas pipeline would stem from the Narrabri to Wellington pipeline adjacent to Coolah, linking the proposed terminal at Kooragang Island to the company's Narrabri coal seam gas project.
18/02/2011	Farmers want more say (Newcastle Herald) MORE than 150 concerned farmers and community members from the Gloucester Valley have called for a greater say in how mining affects their lives. NSW Farmers Association mining taskforce chairwoman Fiona Simson said a wide range of views about the impact of mining were presented at yesterday's Gloucester meeting. "There were people there who were concerned from an environmental viewpoint and there was a need expressed for a more balanced debate and process," she said.
22/02/2011	Easy land-use solution NSW (Newcastle Herald) THE Coalition should have seized the "simple solution" and immediately ruled out coal seam gas exploration in winegrowing areas of the Hunter in its new land-use policy, the Hunter Valley Protection Alliance says. The Coalition unveiled its land use policy recently, and is tipped to announce soon its royalties for regions scheme for returning a percentage of mining royalties for infrastructure investment. The land-use policy involves drawing up regional plans to resolve conflicts between industries including viticulture, mining and horse breeding. During a "transition period" of up to a year, tougher assessment requirements would apply to exploration licences and residents would be given a say.
22/02/2011	Chemical concerns over coal seam gas mining (ABC News) A Hunter Valley environmental lobby group is warning of widespread damage to the nation's water resources if coal seam gas mining is not stopped. ABC's Four Corners program last night highlighted the concerns of Australian farmers and scientists when it comes to the coal seam gas industry. Concerns were raised about the regulation of chemicals used in the production of coal seam gas. While the majority of coal seam gas is produced in Queensland, resource companies are also exploring other states.
Most Recent
24/02/2010	Cobbora coal mine branded a waste of money (Added 11/03/11) (ABC News) Environmental campaigners say a report into the state's electricity sell-off is further proof a proposed $1 billion coal mine near Dunedoo in central western New South Wales should be abandoned. An Upper House committee examining the power sale is calling for the contracts to be cancelled and a full judicial inquiry to be set up.The New South Wales Government has decided to operate the Cobbora Coal Project, to provide coal for state-owned power stations, after negotiations with a company fell through during the tender process.
25/02/2011	Gloucester calls for tighter mining exploration licence controls (ABC News) A mid north coast council is pushing for a tough new approval process for mining exploration licences. The Gloucester Shire Council says the region is attracting strong interest from mining industries. It says it is due to the renewed value of coal and potential to extract coal bed methane gas from the Gloucester Basin. The Gloucester council says it would only support new mining proposals if very stringent conditions were met.
03/03/2011	Gloucester coal seam gas project spark alarm (ABC News) The state government approval of almost 90-coal seam gas wells on the mid north coast has raised concerns in the region. The State government has approved the wells, a processing centre and pipeline near Gloucester. Greens MP and mining spokeswoman, Cate Faehrmann, says coal seam gas mining poses huge threats to the community's health and the water supply. "The Department of Planning approved up to 90 coal seam gas wells for AGL on February 22," she said. "This didn't appear on the department's website until February 28.
03/03/2011	Public ‘left in dark’ about project approval (Added 11/03/11) (Newcastle Herald) Labor's political opponents say Gloucester residents were left in the dark about approval of a major coal seam gas project in the area. A decision on the AGL Gloucester Gas project was delegated to the Planning Assessment Commission. It approved the project on February 22 after imposing a number of conditions but the decision was not made public for about six days. ‘‘The whole process makes a mockery of the supposed ‘tough new rules’ [for coal seam gas projects] announced late last year,’’ Greens upper house MP Cate Faehrmann said.
03/03/2011	Rising Tide protestors victory (Added 11/03/11) (Newcastle Herald) Rising Tide protestors have won in a victims compensation case brought by Port Waratah Coal Services and the police for losses incurred when the protestors shut down Newcastle coal loaders in September last year.
03/03/2011	Hunter Valley mine trials new blasting products (Added 11/03/11) (ABC News) Mining giant, Xstrata, has told the NSW Government it is trialing new blasting products to avoid fumes experienced at a Hunter Valley mine earlier this year. NSW Planning has used the latest audit and compliance report to outline the results of inquiries into the January 11th blast at the Bulga open cut, south of Singleton. The department found the blast complied with over-pressure and ground vibration requirements and that the weather conditions were assessed by the mine to be suitable for blasting. The report said resulting fumes, which alarmed residents of nearby Broke, were most likely the result of wet conditions prior to the blast.
04/03/2011	AGL defends Gloucester coal seam gas project (ABC News) An Australian gas company has rejected claims a coal seam gas project on the mid north coast poses risks to the community's health and water supply. The State government has given AGL the go-ahead to drill about 90 coal seam gas wells, a processing centre and pipeline near Gloucester. It is the first stage of a $200 million project.
04/03/2011	Clean end to Hunter's dirty coal industry (Added 11/03/11) (Newcastle Herald) The way Gary Ellem sees it, the Hunter Valley’s coal success story is built on a failure to generate more energy from something better. The Carbon Valley 2050 project manager said the region’s massive coal exports made it perfect to spearhead clean industries. ‘‘It’s not as simple as making coal the bad guys and renewables the good guys and squaring them off against each other,’’ Dr Ellem said.
04/03/2011	Council welcomes Coalition royalties policy (Added 11/03/11) (Mudgee Guardian) Cr Percy Thompson has urged Mid-Western Regional Council to keep lobbying for a Royalties for Regions scheme modelled on Western Australia’s. At the finance and corporate committee on Wednesday, council voted to support the Coalition’s Resources for Regions program, which would provide up to $160 million extra for infrastructure projects in communities affected by mining in the Coalition’s first term in Government.
04/03/2011	Mayor attacks mine over pollution (Added 11/03/11) (Muswellbrook Chronicle) Muswellbrook Shire mayor Martin Rush has launched a scathing attack on Xstrata and the NSW environment department over the handling of a mine pollution incident last month. The Xstrata Mangoola mine was fined $100,000 after 46 megalitres of sediment-laden water washed from the mine site into Wybong Creek in early February. In an effort to make amends, the company has been forced to contribute the funds to the Hunter-Central Rivers Catchment Management Authority, which will be spent on improvements to the Maison Dieu travelling stock route near Singleton. Cr Rush said the environmental harm caused by the pollution of the creek was a betrayal of the community’s trust.
05/03/2011	Tinkler pushes coal-loader plan (Added 11/03/11) (Newcastle Herald) Nathan Tinkler believes container and coal terminals can coexist on the former BHP site at Mayfield despite Minister for the Hunter Jodi McKay’s insistence a coal-loader is not an option. Mr Tinkler’s company, Hunter Ports, bought 60 hectares of land from Buildev, a company in which he has a stake and the same firm the state government contracted to redevelop the site. NSW government body, Newcastle Port Corporation, tabled plans for a multipurpose facility that did not include a coal-loader or terminal for the shipment of coal. Hunter Ports will make a $1billion submission to the state government that will include plans for a coal-loader, conveyor belt, use of two shipping berths and an upgraded rail system to export between 30million to 60million tonnes a year.
06/03/2011	Scone rail concerns (Added 20/03/11) (The Land) COAL trains from the Gunnedah Basin trundle with increasing regularity through the Upper Hunter township of Scone – blocking both railway crossings and cutting the town in half for up to 20 minutes. Scone has the only level crossing on the New England Highway between Newcastle and Brisbane, and persistent lobbying for the past four years by the community to solve the problem has amounted to little being done. Apart from the inconvenience for commuters on the New England Highway at the northern end of town, and the busy Liverpool Street, the problem is that all of Scone’s emergency services – the medical practice, hospital, fire, police and ambulance stations – are on one side of town, while a significant number of people live on the other side of town.
07/03/2011	Mining heartlands add to Labor's NSW headache (ABC News) New South Wales Premier Kristina Keneally is back in the Hunter Valley today, chasing votes in what was once a Labor stronghold. Ms Keneally's "Fairness for Families" road trip rolled into Newcastle last night, without the fanfare because her specially branded bus broke down outside her house yesterday. The Premier quickly sought to exploit newspaper comments from Opposition treasurer Mike Baird that he would be prepared to consider a state-based tax on mining profits to replace the current royalties system. Ms Keneally says thousands of jobs would go in mining regions such as the Hunter.
10/03/2011	Minerals strategy enrages (Added 20/03/11) (Newcastle Herald) THE NSW government will hold an extra community forum in the region next month after an outpouring of "incredible emotion" by more than 500 Upper Hunter residents affected by "the minerals rush". A forum was held yesterday in Singleton to gain community input into a proposed coal and gas strategy for NSW. But Hunter Valley Wine Industry Association representative Stewart Ewen said community consultation was 10 years too late. "[The government] are way too late and are now in catchup mode," he said.
10/03/2011	Miners and conservationists co-operate (Added 20/03/11) (ABC News) A newly-declared state park area near Lithgow may provides a future blueprint for co-operation between mining and environmental interests. The Colong Foundation and Blue Mountains Conservation Group, have won a 30-year campaign to have the bushland around Mount Airly protected. Dr Hayden Washington from the Colo Committee praised the efforts of miner Centennial Coal for working with them to preserving this very special environment. The 3,500 hectare site will now be known as the Mugii-Murum-Ban State Conservation Area will connect the Capertee National Park with the Gardens of Stone National Park
10/03/2011	Coal-seam gas mining shaping as election issue for Gloucester (Added 20/03/11) (ABC News) Coal-seam gas exploration is shaping up to be a key election issue for the region. The state government's approval for AGL to drill 90 gas wells, and build a processing centre and pipeline near Gloucester has sparked outrage locally. A pre-election meeting in the region yesterday with Planning minister Tony Kelly drew around 400-people. Graham Healy from the Barrington-Gloucester-Stroud Preservation Society says coal-seam gas mining is a very serious issue.
14/03/2011	Wilpinjong buys air conditioning for Gulgong special ed (Added 20/03/11) (Mudgee Guardian) Wilpinjong Coal mine has lent its support to Gulgong Public School by handing over a cheque that will fund the installation of airconditioning in their Special Education room. Representatives from the mine visited the school on Friday for the official presentation. Wilpinjong Property Officer Lloyd Coleman said when the company became aware of the situation they wanted to help. “We had found out that the Special Education classroom didn’t have airconditioning and that it wasn’t covered by government funding,” he said. “We’re just filling the gap. We’re donating $4950 for reverse cycle airconditioning for the classroom. “We looked to do this because it will help children who are the future and that’s what it’s an investment into.” Gulgong Public School Principal Alan Walker said the school appreciated the contribution of the mine.
14/03/2011	UK expert calls for better air monitoring (Added 20/03/11) (Mudgee Guardian) A United Kingdom industrial health expert has called on the NSW Government to introduce more stringent air quality monitoring to protect communities living near open cut coal mines, power stations and cement factories. Dr Dick van Steenis, who has studied the effects of industrial air pollution in the UK for 16 years, was in Mudgee and Bylong on Saturday as part of a speaking tour of coal mining regions. He told the Mid-Western Community Action Network (MWCAN) meeting that the NSW Government currently monitored for emission particles no smaller than 10 microns. However, it was the smaller particles which could be breathed in and absorbed into the blood stream, causing health problems such as cancer, asthma and other respiratory disorders, heart attacks, low birth weights in babies and depression, he said.
15/03/2011	Premier moves for 'exclusion zones' around mines (Added 20/03/11) (Newcastle Herald) PREMIER Kristina Keneally has used a visit to Cessnock today to announce her government would, if re-elected, move to implement ‘‘exclusion zones’’ to protect industries such as horse breeding and vineyards from mining and coal seam gas extraction. Unveiling a 10-point plan to deal with coalmining and coal seam gas she said was shaped by recent consultation in communities including the Hunter, Ms Keneally pledged to appoint a ‘‘Coal and Gas Ombudsman’’ to investigate and respond to complaints.
16/03/2011	Upper Hunter support for Labor's resources plan (Added 20/03/11) (ABC News) Labor's ten point plan to address environmental concerns with coal and gas mining has received a positive response in the Hunter Valley. Thoroughbred breeders, who have argued strongly for an end to the land use conflict with coal mining, have welcomed proposed exclusion zones for the horse and wine industries. Muswellbrook Mayor, Martin Rush believes bans on resource exploration in waterways adjoining national parks could affect six contentious Upper Hunter projects. "Doyles Creek, Ferndale, potentially Spur Hill, Castle Rock, Mt Penny in the Bylong Valley and Cockatoo Coal," Councillor Rush said. "There is a second limb to this, the banning of coal operations in economically or environmentally sensitive areas which includes the thoroughbred industry and the viticulture industry, two extremely important industries here."
18/03/2011	When it comes to coal and wine, truth is the first victim (Added 20/03/11) (International Longwall News - 'Hogsback' Column) "When wine enters, out goes the truth." Hogsback cannot claim credit for that little gem because Benjamin Franklin said it first, without realising that it would still be accurate 230 years later in Ausralia. Ben's remark, no doubt fuelled by a session at Boston tavern, was one of many he made about the delights of drinking wine- "wine is proof that God loves us and wants to make us happy" is another Franklin classic. What a pity then that some people in the wine industry have decided they're not happy, and that the coal industry is their enemy, and that every opportunity should be taken to attack coal mining, which has worked peacefully alongside vineyards for centuries. Across Australia there is ferment in the relationship between wine and coal, with the proposed government tax on carbon and an associated advertising campaign only likely to make things worse.

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3. Other Reports

Date	Summary
Earliest
23/10/10	Residents Fear Mining Behind Mystery Of The Vanishing Lakes (Sydney Morning Herald) AS THE drought breaks across the state, an ancient waterway system on Sydney's fringes is slowly drying up. For at least a year, water levels in the historic Thirlmere Lakes, near Picton in the city's southwest, have been dramatically dropping despite above average rainfall in the region over the past six months. Caroline Graham, vice-president of the environmental group Rivers SOS, said there were increasing concerns that aquifers had been fractured by nearby longwall mining.
27/10/10	Farmers' Call For Mining Moratorium Rejected (ABC News) The New South Wales Planning Minister Tony Kelly has rejected calls for a moratorium on any new mining or coal seam gas projects in the state. The New South Wales Farmers Association has called for the halt until after a strategic plan is developed.
28/10/10	Green Win Signals Shift In Mine Approvals (Sydney Morning Herald) BHP Billiton has shelved plans for a vast new coal mine under a conservation area south of Sydney, after a scathing review by the state's Planning Assessment Commission found that society would be better off if the coal remained in the ground. The findings signal a change of direction for the state's mining approval process, with the commission also deciding that remediation by the company would not be able to make up for the environmental damage it would cause.
30/10/10	Lack Of Mine Control Forces Farmers' Hand (Newcastle Herald) Farmers don't usually call for moratoriums. This week, though, a meeting of the NSW Farmers Association executive council in Sydney backed plans for a pause on any new mining or coal seam gas development across the state, with more than 70 members of the council offering unanimous support. As the chairwoman of the association's mining taskforce, I should explain our reasons for calling for a moratorium, and quell any misinterpretation of our intentions. [Article by Fiona Simson, NSW Farmers]
30/10/10	Rigorous Assessment Already Takes Place (Newcastle Herald)We recognise that there are genuine concerns about the growth of the minerals industry and there is a need for greater certainty about future land use in NSW. But the farmers' call for a blanket ban is irresponsible, ill-informed and will do untold damage to the state's economy and regional communities. [Article by Sue-Ern Tan, NSW Minerals Council]
04/11/10	South Korea To Cut Coal Imports (Sydney Morning Herald) South Korea is set to cut its demand because of climate-change policies. Despite signs that key trading partners are looking to wean themselves off coal, the Australian coal industry remains confident clean-coal technologies will ensure overseas coal demand remains strong for decades to come.
08/11/10	Mining Strategy Delayed (Newcastle Herald) THE state government is lagging behind its timetable for a new coalmining strategy to address land-use conflicts across NSW as it continues to process plans for multimillion-dollar new and expanded Hunter mines. A new cabinet subcommittee of five ministers that was announced in July to devise the strategy has yet to set its terms of reference. The government said initially it intended to outline the strategy by October, and then by 'the end of the year'. It now says it 'will not be rushed', as the state election looms in March.
08/11/10	Qld Farmers Vow To Lock Out Miners (Sydney Morning Herald) Farmers in the Felton Valley west of Brisbane have vowed to lock out mining company representatives carrying out exploration work for an open-cut coal mine. The anti-mine group Friends of Felton says up 100 farmers will lock their gates and refuse Amber Energy permission to access their land. The company is accessing farm land in the valley to explore coal deposits. It's also conducting research for an environmental impact statement (EIS) on its proposed projects, which is due next year.
14/11/10	The Coal Bosses' Plan: Mine Coal, Sell Coal, Repeat Until Rich (Sunday Age) ONCE a year, coal industry bosses gather for the World Coal Conference: "It's where the coal deals are done," says the brochure. This year, I went too, as an academic, an observer and someone deeply concerned about coal's indisputable contribution to climate change. I half-expected to find an industry worrying about rising demand for clean energy. But at the conference in Amsterdam last month, there was no hint of foreboding among the 1400 delegates. The concern wasn't dwindling demand, but meeting runaway demand, mostly in China and India. (Article by Guy Pearse, Research Fellow, Global Change Institute, University of Queensland.)
14/11/10	Coal Seam Gas Is The Way Forward (Mudgee Guardian) THE immense natural gas reserves throughout NSW offer an overdue solution to the state's energy supply problems. (Opinion piece by Belinda Robinson, chief executive of the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association.)
15/11/10	Family's Stand Against Miners (Daily Telegraph) WHEN a Chinese mining company wanted to buy the land George Clift's family has farmed for 180 years, his answer was a simple "no". "My family came out in army ships, they've been to war, given their life for this country and it's up to us to look after the land that Australia has given us," the 81-year-old said. The fifth-generation farmer, who runs a 5260ha mixed property with his sons and grandson at Caroona near Gunnedah in the state's north west, is fed up with the Federal Government allowing foreign investors to buy large parcels of land for food and mining.
17/11/10	Shenhua Buys Water Licence Outside EL7223 (ABC News) The Chinese-owned coal miner, Shenhua Watermark, has purchased farmland outside the area of its exploration licence, on the Liverpool Plains. The deal includes a 142ML water licence. Caroona Coal Action Group spokesman, Tim Duddy, says the Group is concerned the Chinese-owned resources company appears to be entering the water market. Mr Duddy says he's deeply curious about the purchase because it is outside the water zone in which the mining company holds its exploration licence (EL7223), and also because it is so close to the Mooki River.
19/11/10	Toxins Found At Third Site As Fracking Fears Build (Sydney Morning Herald) TRACES of toxic chemicals have been found at a "fracking" operation to extract coal seam gas - the third time this year that gas producers have detected contamination at a drill site. Arrow Energy confirmed that benzene, toluene, ethylene and xylene - together known as BTEX - had been found in wells at a gas site east of Mackay, Queensland. In NSW documents obtained from the Department of Industry and Investment show that a coal seam gas drilling site near Lismore, run by the Sydney company Metgasco, was permitted to use fracking after supplying a generic list of hazardous materials safety guidelines.
20/11/10	Australia Counts Cost of Selling Off The Farm (Sydney Morning Herald) Securing the country's food supply is fast becoming a hot political issue, writes Ian McIlwraith.
25/11/10	Gas Plan Raises Farm Fears (The Land) Ulan Coal Mines Limited has donated $25,000 to local schools and bushfire brigades in the Mid-Western region.
01/12/10	CO2 Storage Bill Doesn't Have Numbers (ABC News - New England/North West) The New South Wales Government's Greenhouse Gas Storage Bill looks set for defeat after the Coalition announced it will not back it. The Keneally government wanted a vote this week on the proposed new law, which plans to bury carbon dioxide in government-designated reservoirs 800-metres below ground. The Bill has been roundly criticised by the Greens, farmers groups, irrigators and local government. Shadow Primary Industries Minister, Duncan Gay, says the Coalition could not support the legislation because none of the stakeholders knew what was going on.
07/12/2010	Audits and inspections to increase (Sydney Morning Herald) The NSW Government has moved to increase public confidence in the enforcement of its major planning decisions. Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act - the section used by the government to bypass local councils to directly approve projects of state and regional economic significance - has produced allegations of a cosy relationship between the government and developers who donate to the Labor Party. The government recently banned developer donations.
15/12/10	Caroona Group Loses Licence Appeal (The Land) THE Caroona Coal Action Group on the Liverpool Plains today lost an appeal against the coal exploration licence former NSW Mineral Minister, Ian Macdonald, granted to Coal Mines of Australia Ltd, a subsidiary of BHP-Billton, to explore for coal in the Caroona district. Judge J. Tobias in the Court of Appeal also awarded costs against the CCAG. CCAG had challenged a previous court ruling that the renewal of the coal exploration licence over 350 square kilometres was valid.
18/12/11	Coal Action Group Opposed To Coal Exploration In The Southern Highlands (ABC News) The Southern Highlands Coal Action Group is urging landowners near Sutton Forest to resist approaches from mining companies wanting to explore for coal on their properties. Action Group spokesman Peter Martin says Anglo Coal, which owns exploration leases in the area, has started approaching land-owners to gain access to their land.
20/12/10	New Gas Mining Regulations Give Power To The People (Illawarra Mercury) THE State Government yesterday announced new rules giving residents more say in coal seam gas exploration in a bid to quell community fears over environmental impacts. Companies now will be required to submit work plans detailing environmental effects before any gas drilling takes place. Details of drilling, chemical use and hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking" will be taken into account before licences are granted.
27/12/10	Cockatoo Coal Gets Serious (Illawarra Mercury) MINING company Cockatoo Coal has demonstrated how serious it is about its lease in the Southern Highlands, issuing $21 million worth of shares to fund a proposed mine there. The move came as the resources giant Anglo American, which has approached Sutton Forest landowners about drilling for coal on their land, announced it had completed the sale of its leases to a Korean-Australian consortium.
28/12/11	Highlands Locals React To Coal Lease Sale (ABC News) A group opposed to an underground coal mine in the New South Wales Southern Highlands says it's surprised the sale of assets has gone through. Cockatoo Coal has bought Anglo Coal's Sutton Forest coal leases, to facilitate plans to mine up to 115 million tonnes of coking coal to supply the large Korean steel producer POSCO.
29/12/10	Policy To Blame - Not Mines - Says Harvey (The Land) POLITICS – not the actions of mining companies – is the fundamental problem behind issues of competing land use in NSW, says Harvey Norman chairman and Thoroughbred owner-breeder, Gerry Harvey. Mr Harvey, a significant landowner in the Upper Hunter Valley with studs running 400 broodmares, said the actions of the NSW Government and its failure to implement a balanced strategic land use policy continued to create uncertainty.
30/12/11	Highlands Landowners Can't Stop Coal Drilling (ABC News) Landowners in the New South Wales Southern Highlands have no right to stop a coal mining company carrying out exploration drilling on their properties. Cockatoo Coal is pushing ahead with plans to mine up to 115,000,000 tonnes of coking coal from underneath Sutton Forest to supply the large Korean steel producer POSCO.
31/12/10	Eucalypts Could Be Part Of The Greenhouse Solution (Sydney Morning Herald) PLANTING an area almost the size of Sydney with mallee eucalypts grown specifically to fire electricity generators could provide up to one-tenth of the nation's energy needs within the next 16 years. The trees, grown in rows as energy crops on farms, could attract enough revenue to pay for the cost of establishing them within five years and would generate a reliable supply of electricity like coal, but with fewer greenhouse emissions, researchers at the Future Farm Industries Co-operative Research Centre say.
05/01/11	Opposition Growing To Mine Plans (Illawarra Mercury) REAL estate agents have joined a revolt against a mining firm's plans to drill for coal beneath Sutton Forest, with some refusing to help it set up an office in the district. A consortium led by Korean steel giant POSCO and Australian company Cockatoo Coal wants to drill near some of the most valuable properties in the district.
08/01/11	O'Farrell Shuts Out Mining Colossus (Sydney Morning Herald) THOUSANDS of hectares of pristine wilderness on the edge of south-western Sydney, fought over by mining and environment interests for decades, will be saved and opened to the public as a national park if the NSW Coalition wins government in March.
11/01/11	Shoalhaven Gas Drilling Push Starts (Illawarra Mercury) PLANET Gas has started asking residents along Joadja and Wombeyan Caves roads for permission to begin a seismic survey into a coal seam gas development. Approval is needed from landowners within 200m of any survey, which it says will have "minimal impacts" on the environment. The firm has signed a deal to explore three leases for coal seam gas held by Leichhardt Resources.
15/01/11	Aquifers Lap Up Water Gratefully (Mudgee Guardian) FOR every cloud, a silver lining, and for every devastating flood there is also delight for at least one group: the farmers and rural communities who depend on groundwater. The aquifers, comprising water trapped in gravel 50 to 100 metres below the surface, are being replenished. Dr Wendy Timms, the chief investigator for the national centre for groundwater research at the University of NSW, said the aquifers were receiving a huge boost in the Murray-Darling system, which would absorb water from the floods in NSW and parts of southern Queensland.
16/01/11	The $8m That Got Away (The Land) RURAL councils crying out for funding for essential infrastructure were appalled to learn the State Government failed to collect $8 million in mining royalties in 2008-09. While $8 million may not seem great fortune compared with $1,280 million that went to State coffers in 2008-09, it would go a long way in small country communities. NSW Auditor-General, Peter Achterstraat, said taxpayers were being shortchanged by millions of dollars because of poor auditing by Industry and Investment NSW.
20/01/11	Clean Energy Alternatives To Allay Big Coal's Flood Of Tears (Sydney Morning Herald) To blame Bob Brown is to shoot the messenger. As we ache for Queensland's losses and rightly look to recovery, we must also heed the cataclysm's larger lesson. It will be tempting for governments to shore up the coal industry, a hard-hit Queensland business. And easy for the rest of us to habituate to repetitive catastrophe as though it were simply the natural order. (Comment/column piece by Elizabeth Farrelly)
20/01/11	Coalition Lets Miners Write Lands Policy (The Land) THE state opposition has allowed the mining industry to rewrite parts of its regional land use policy, deleting commitments to toughen regulatory compliance on miners, leaked documents reveal. The Liberals and Nationals also handed their draft policy to the NSW Farmers Association to amend - but only after changes made by the NSW Minerals Council were included in the document.
20/01/11	Mining Land Use Claims "Wrong" (The Land) CLAIMS that the state opposition has allowed the mining industry to draft its eagerly-anticipated policy on mining and land use are "wrong", say the NSW Minerals Council and Nationals, but NSW Farmers mining taskforce chair Fiona Simson is unperturbed. Ms Simson said stakeholders including NSW Farmers and NSW Minerals Council had "significant input, and we would expect and hope that input is reflected in the policy".
21/01/11	Mining Group Input Into Coalition Policy 'Appropriate' (Mudgee Guardian) MINING and farming groups defended the NSW Coalition's development of its regional land use policy, saying it was entirely appropriate for third parties to be asked for their input. The opposition industry spokesman, Duncan Gay, defended the Coalition against accusations the Minerals Council of NSW, a mining lobby group, had edited its regional land use policy. "Under 16 years of Labor the pendulum has swung too far in the miners' favour - the NSW Liberals and Nationals are determined to put proper balance in place and take the politics out of the process," Mr Gay said.
25/01/11	Coal Proposal A Blow To Margaret River Wineries (The Land) THE owner of a major vineyard in Western Australia's Margaret River region says a proposed coalmine one kilometre from his property has halved its value. David Atkinson, who owns Jane Brook Estate Wines, said the project - which has yet to win environmental approval - would also pose an unacceptable risk to the region's water supply and a dam on his vineyard (which grows grapes for his Shovelgate label).
27/01/11	King Coal Will Be Dethroned, And Bhp Should Align Itself With The Carbon Revolt (Sydney Morning Herald) This decade will mark the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel era. Countries that are taking rapid action on climate change are reshaping the global commodities market. Coal is now among Australia's largest exports but demand for the commodity will drop as the global economy shifts to renewable energy. This represents a risk and an opportunity for Australia and its miners. (Opinion piece by Matthew Wright, executive director of Beyond Zero Emissions)
28/01/11	Government Deems Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) Trial Risk 'Unacceptable' (ABC News) The Queensland Government is shutting down a trial underground coal gasification (UCG) plant, citing unacceptable environmental risks. Cougar Energy's plant near Kingaroy in the South Burnett region was temporarily shut down last year when traces of cancer-causing chemicals were found in water bores at the site.
28/01/11	Protesters Sued Under Victim Compensation Laws (ABC News) A New South Wales coal company has been accused of misusing victims compensation laws to prosecute seven climate change activists. More than 40 protesters broke into Newcastle's coal terminal in September last year, climbing onto ship loaders and shutting down coal loading for several hours. Seven members of the group are now being pursued for over $500,000 in lost profits by the coal loader operator, Port Waratah Coal Services.
29/01/11	Leaders Fiddle While The World Burns (Sydney Morning Herald) THE word is, new modelling is being done on a "10 per cent by 2020" target for greenhouse gas reductions - double that of last year - suggesting that, despite all the wailing, the climate debate moves only one way: ever more pressing, ever more expensive. Even so, the question of targets is in the too-hard basket of the Climate Change Minister, Greg Combet. (Comment/column piece by Paddy Manning)
02/02/11	Scoping paper - too little, too late? (The Land) NSW FARMERS questioned where the NSW Government was heading with its “scoping paper seeking input from the public and key stakeholder groups to guide the preparation of a NSW Coal and Gas Strategy”. Planning Minister Tony Kelly announced the “scoping paper” today - a document well short of the promised strategic review into mining and land use promised before the end of last year.
03/02/11	Coal seam gas report points to chemicals ban (Sydney Morning Herald) THE Planning Minister, Tony Kelly, has given the strongest sign yet that the state government would ban the use of a group of chemicals in the controversial technique known as fracking to extract coal seam gas. Mr Kelly yesterday published a scoping paper on the coal and gas industry to provide an overview of the main problems facing the coalmining regions of the Hunter, Gunnedah and the western and southern coalfields. ” We are probably of a mind to do the same [as Queensland],” Mr Kelly said.
03/02/11	Farmers want study on impact of mining (Newcastle Herald) THE NSW Farmers Federation has called for a cumulative impact study of the effects of mining on agricultural land. It coincides with the release of a state government scoping paper yesterday, which seeks stakeholder input into the preparation of a NSW coal and gas strategy. Farmers Federation spokeswoman Fiona Simson said mining projects, such as those under consideration in the Hunter and Gloucester valleys, should no longer be considered on a project by project basis.
05/02/11	A strategy for coal and gas (Newcastle Herald, Editorial) MINERALS Council chief Dr Nikki Williams hit the nail on the head this week in commenting on the state Labor government's belated moves to discuss proper land use guidelines across NSW. With farmers and rural communities up in arms over growing pressure from mining companies on land and water resources, clear guidelines are overdue. “We need a land use planning roadmap so we can all move forward together. But ultimately it's up to our political leaders to get the balance right,” Dr Williams observed.
05/02/2011	Report recommends national food security agency (ABC News) The Federal Government is being urged to set up a National Food Security Agency to help reverse declining agricultural productivity. The Government has been told agricultural productivity has fallen in the past decade, largely because of cuts to research and development funding. The report also warns that international food shortages are likely to become more severe
08/02/11	Illawarra's mining up for debate (Illawarra Mercury) NSW Minerals Council chief executive Dr Nikki Williams is visiting Wollongong tomorrow. She will host a panel discussion about the mining industry's place in the Illawarra's history, society and culture and its potential contribution to economic, investment and employment growth in NSW. Dr Williams has just returned from delivering a presentation at a Global Steel Summit organised by Gujarat NRE chairman Arun Jagatramka at the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi.
09/02/11	Lukewarm response to the state's coal, gas consultation (The Land) THE NSW Government's eleventh hour public consultation on a proposed NSW coal and gas strategy has received a lukewarm response at best, while the Opposition has pledged to toss out the controversial laws that allow the Planning Minister to have the ultimate say on whether mines get the green light. Opposition leader Barry O'Farrell this week reaffirmed his commitment to throw out the contentious 'Part3A' legislation and overhaul 30-year-old laws.
11/02/11	Politics of mining in NSW (ABC News) As the state election looms farmers and miners are asking, what is the NSW coalition's policy on mining? Last week the Coalition's Mike Baird addressed a forum looking at the place of mining in this state. He argues that mining should be encouraged at this time, given demand from China and India has pushed prices so high.
11/02/11	Gunnedah speaks out about mining (ABC News) The New South Wales state government released its scoping paper into coal and gas mining last week. And at the Gunnedah Town Hall landholders had their chance to tell Planning Minister Tony Kelly what they thought about it. He argues that mining should be encouraged at this time, given demand from China and India has pushed prices so high.
16//02/2011	Coalition to overhaul mining laws (The Land) NSW Opposition Leader, Barry O’Farrell, has reaffirmed the Coalition’s commitment to throwing out the contentious “Part 3A” laws under which most mining and coal seam gas projects are granted approval under an overhaul of 30-year-old laws. Under the laws, NSW Planning Minister Tony Kelly has the final say on whether to allow projects to proceed. The Minister does not have to consult with other departments – such as Agriculture or Environment and Water. The Department of Planning Director General sets out environmental assessment (EA) requirements, the mining company submits an EA if it is accepted, it goes on exhibition for 30 days.
16/02/2011	Food security outranks mining in land use policy (Sydney Morning Herald) MINING would take second place to food security when assessing competing land use claims if the Coalition were elected at next month's state election, with a halt proposed for all new mine and gas exploration licences for up to a year pending further study. In a dramatic overhaul to the way contested land use is handled, a Coalition government would establish as a central tenet that strategic agricultural land is a finite resource that must be conserved to ensure future food security.
17/02/2011	Breathing space offered in licence overview (Newcastle Herald) THE Coalition would place tougher controls on mine and gas exploration licences, Nationals MP George Souris said. The Upper Hunter MP says an assessment of the cumulative impacts the mining industry has had in the region may mean far fewer licences are issued in the future. Mr Souris was commenting yesterday on the Coalition's new land use policy, which proposes a halt on all new mine and gas exploration licences for up to a year. Under the policy, work would begin within a year of the Coalition taking office on a new land use strategy for the Hunter and other regions, setting out which land uses were appropriate.
19/02/2011	The coal hard truth (Newcastle Herald) A FEW words of advice to Australia's renewable energy sector. Guys, I think you're going about things the wrong way. Now, your products are great. What's not to like about energy sources that don't involve ripping dirty big holes in the ground? Who wouldn't prefer to turn on a light or flick on the TV courtesy of energy generated by the sun or the wind, or an army of fitness freaks on tethered unicycles for that matter?
19/02/2011	Delicate Balance (Newcastle Herald) (Opinion piece by NSW Minerals Council CEO, Nikki Williams) THE minerals sector, other industries and the community have long been calling for strategic land use planning in this state to provide greater certainty and to minimise tensions. It seems that change is coming. The NSW government's consultation process to develop a coal and gas strategy is welcome progress, as is the Coalition's new strategic regional land use policy. It is unrealistic to expect that one policy document will be the cure-all for questions about competing land use. These are complex issues and there are difficult decisions ahead.
21/02/2011	Farmers count cost of coal seam gas rush (ABC News) The company behind a $15 billion coal seam gas development in Queensland is being investigated for damaging an underground water source within the Great Artesian Basin system, Monday's Four Corners program reveals. The incident was uncovered by a sleuthing Queensland farmer, Anne Bridle, as she investigated rumours of a fracking mishap near her beef and grain property in Dalby. Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, involves blasting a mixture of water, sand and diluted chemicals into a well to help open coal seams, increasing gas production.
22/02/2011	A cloud over coal-seam gas (Business Spectator) The coal-seam gas industry is going to have to get its act together, and fast, or it will not achieve anything like the future the share market expects. Just about every group that looks at Australia’s coal-seam gas industry says that there are too many players and that rationalisation is required. To date those concerns have come from those who saw the impossibility of constructing so much duplicated infrastructure.
Most Recent
23/02/2011	Major wind farm proposed for Boorowa district (Added 11/03/11) (ABC News) The energy company, Epuron, wants to build between 80 and 110 turbines on a site at Rye Park which are expected to generate enough power for 90,000 homes. "We've been monitoring wind speeds in the Yass area for over 10 years now and have had monitoring masts on the Rye Park Wind Farm site since 2008 and the other thing that you need for a wind farm are power lines and there are some high voltage power lines that will transport the electricity generated back to load centres."
25/02/2011	Farmers outline five pillars of development (Added 11/03/11) (Mudgee Guardian) Recently appointed Chief Executive Officer of NSW Farmers Association, Matt Brand has called for the State Government elected on March 26 to adopt five pillars for future development. Speaking at the NSW Farmers Federation regional conference in Mudgee yesterday, Mr Brand said productivity, community, environment, transport infrastructure and planning should underpin the future government’s decision. “The coming State election is very important for the future of the farming community,” he said.
01/03/2011	Coal and the NSW election (Added 11/03/11) (Newcastle Herald) It has taken years to achieve, but at last a proposal to return a fairer share of mining royalties to the regions that produce the wealth has been proposed by a major party contesting the NSW election. The Liberal-National Coalition has promised that, if elected, it will introduce a "resources for the regions" program under which it will spend $160 million on infrastructure projects in NSW mining communities. Nationals leader Andrew Stoner - who hopes after March to be the state's regional infrastructure and services minister - has foreshadowed a new emphasis on the regions of NSW. With the exception of a few marginal seats, much of the state outside Sydney has felt neglected under Labor. This is especially true of coal-producing areas where residents have had to cope with the adverse consequences of an extraordinary expansion of mining activity.
02/03/2011	No regulation for many CSG chemicals (Added 20/03/11) (The Land) THE NSW Farmers' Association is extremely concerned none of the chemicals used in a controversial mining process known as 'fracking' have been properly tested. Hydraulic fracturing, or 'fracking', involves introducing potentially dangerous chemicals into groundwater systems, with little control or understanding of where they will end up. NSW Farmers' Association Mining Chair Fiona Simson says there is an urgent need to better regulate the chemicals used in this process.
03/03/2011	Connecting anew with consumers (Added 11/03/11) (The Land) WITH the strong prospect of a solid Coalition win against the Keneally Government on March 26, NSW Farmers wants the new brooms in Macquarie Street to commit to rebuilding a research and development and on-farm extension culture within the State’s agriculture department. Farmers also want a simple, stand-alone agriculture department as opposed to the identity crisis that currently exists in the multi-tentacle Orwellian-sounding mega bureau, Industry and Investment NSW. Mr Brand and NSW Farmers elected leadership have spent the past two months telling all political parties agriculture needs a minimum $120 million budget commitment from the State’s coffers.
05/03/2011	Mine rejected at last minute (Added 11/03/11) (Newcastle Herald) The state government has been criticised for rejecting the proposed Wallarah 2 underground mine near Wyong just hours before it went into caretaker mode ahead of the March 26 election. Planning Minister Tony Kelly’s decision was applauded yesterday by environmentalists. But Wallarah 2 spokesman Tony Smith said Mr Kelly had gone against his own planning assessment commission in rejecting the mine. NSW Minerals Council chief executive Nikki Williams said the organisation rarely commented on individual projects but the decision ‘‘plays Russian roulette with investment and leaves the planning commission with an uncertain future’’.
07/03/2011	Developers push to scrap 'tainted' planning law (Added 20/03/11) (The Land) ONE of the state's leading developer groups has called for the end of the Labor government's controversial part 3A planning laws under which the minister can approve big projects, including residential developments, worth more than $100 million. The head of the Urban Development Institute of Australia (NSW), Stephen Albin, said the law that allowed the Planning Minister to approve developments at Barangaroo, Catherine Hill Bay and Sandon Point as well as wind farms, dams and coalmines, was so damaged it had to be scrapped. "We believe that part 3A has reached its use-by date,'' he said. ''The debate has moved away from the important issues like delivering the houses we need to meet demand and housing affordability, and that's not a good outcome for the state."
09/03/2011	Baird to worse: O'Farrell sinks mining tax (Sydney Morning Herald) The idea had barely seen the light of day before Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell swooped in to kill it off. Shadow treasurer Mike Baird had posited in the media the possibility of a profits-based mining tax in NSW under a Coalition government. Baird said he was ''open to looking at'' replacing the existing royalty system with a profits-based tax as it would be fairer to start-up mining companies and potentially earn more revenue for the state. But when Premier Kristina Keneally leapt upon the remarks, claiming they amounted to a ''jobs killer for the Hunter and the Illawarra'', the idea was unceremoniously euthanased. ''The NSW Liberals and Nationals have no plans to change mining royalties,'' Baird said in a statement.
09/03/2011	Landowners vow to block coal seam gas firm (ABC News) Concerned property owners say they are determined to stop coal seam gas (CSG) companies from accessing their land on southern Queensland's western Darling Downs. Dozens of residents and environmentalists rallied outside State Parliament in Brisbane on Monday, calling for a moratorium on new gas wells. Scott Collins, from Tara, says the Queensland Gas Company plans to enter properties in the area next week. "I think there'll be people standing in front of trucks, we don't want to get arrested but we want to prove and make a point that we don't accept it," he said.
09/03/2011	Mining threatens national park plan (Sydney Morning Herald) THE centrepiece of the Coalition's environment platform for the state election has become a legal minefield with revelations that its planned national park on Sydney's fringe is layered with previously unpublicised mining licences. The discovery of the licences, over Dharawal State Conservation Area, has shocked the Coalition and potentially exposes taxpayers to tens of millions of dollars in extra compensation before the park can be created. The Herald has obtained confidential advice from the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water that shows BHP Billiton holds two active coalmining leases ''which cover almost all of the Dharawal SCA''.
09/03/2011	Catchment gas leak as coalmine cracks (Sydney Morning Herald) METHANE is bubbling up through one of the key rivers in Sydney's drinking water catchment, after a coalmine cracked the rock underneath it. The flammable gas is emerging in the Waratah Rivulet, east of Campbelltown, above a longwall mine operated by a subsidiary of Peabody Energy, the world's biggest coal company. The ground under the river has tilted and cracked as a result of the mine, causing methane trapped between rock strata to leak out. ''It will probably take three to four months to stop,'' a spokeswoman for Peabody, Jennifer Morgan, said. ''Look, this is a completely natural occurrence in the vicinity of coalmines. ''There is no toxicity and we are sure we are in compliance with our environmental requirements. We are monitoring it closely.'
11/03/2011	Comments sought on coal and gas strategy (Added 20/03/11) (Mudgee Guardian) The NSW Government has set up an online forum to allow the public to comment on the coal and gas strategy for the state. The online forum is at www.nsw.gov.au/shapeyourstate and is part of public consultation on the NSW Coal and Gas Strategy scoping paper, which is on exhibition until April 15. Minister for Planning Tony Kelly said as a result of the industry’s growth, debate was emerging about issues associated with mining and coal seam gas production. “The forum enables the public to join in an interactive online debate about the strategy, with three separate discussions about mining, regional and communication issues,” he said.
11/03/2011	Mining deals may give farmers bum steer (Added 20/03/11) (Sydney Morning Herald) THE state's peak farming body fears many of the thousands of landholders who have signed secret agreements allowing mining and exploration companies access to their land during the latest resources rush have been given poor deals. ''Some of our members have signed open-ended agreements, which is appalling … In some cases even if a landholder signs for exploration, you can have pilot production and even fracking,'' said the NSW Farmers Association mining spokeswoman, Fiona Simson, who last night hosted a meeting at Spring Hill near Orange for locals who must by law negotiate with licensed resources companies requiring access. ''Farmers might think they are signing up for one [drilling] hole, whereas they sign up for a pad of gravel and the associated infrastructure that goes on with much more major activities,'' she said.
15/03/2011	Coal gas policy all sizzle, no sausage: O'Farrell (Added 20/03/11) (Sydney Morning Herald) NSW Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell has labelled the Labor government's coal seam gas strategy all "sizzle" and no "sausage". Premier Kristina Keneally on Tuesday announced she would ban exploration activities on waterways next to national parks and look at introducing exclusion zones to stop mining or extraction in areas of social and economic significance, such as prime agricultural land. The use of BTEX chemicals would also be outlawed across the state while a coal and gas ombudsman would be appointed to investigate complaints about mining activities. But Mr O'Farrell accused Labor of making pre-election commitments and failing to deliver, warning voters to be wary of its promises.
16/03/2011	Labor strikes green note with chemicals ban (Added 20/03/11) (Sydney Morning Herald) KRISTINA KENEALLY has pre-empted her government's review of the coal and gas industry and committed to banning the use of a toxic group of chemicals in the controversial technique known as fracking to extract coal seam gas. The Premier published a 10-point plan for coalmining and coal seam gas exploration that includes a ban on mining licences in waterways adjoining national parks and reducing exploration in sensitive areas. Ms Keneally, who was campaigning in the wine region of the Hunter, conceded that the review was still under way but said voters deserved to be aware of Labor's plans for the mining industry before the election.
16/03/2011	Libs rule out controversial mine for Coast (Added 20/03/11) (ABC News) he State Liberal candidate for Wyong says a Coalition Government would never approve the Wallarah Two underground coal mine, even if its proponents re-submitted new plans for the project. Earlier this month, hours before the Government went into caretaker mode, the Planning Minister, Tony Kelly rejected the controversial mining proposal near Wyong on environmental grounds. A delegation from the proponent, Korea Resources Corporation, has since met department officials in a bid to have the decision overturned but was told the Minister's ruling was final. Company spokesman, Peter Smith says while all options are being considered, 90 million dollars has been invested in the project and it's unlikely they'll give up on the project.
16/03/2011	Coal dust won’t feed voters: NSW farmers (Added 20/03/11) (The Land) FARMERS are warning voters in NSW that food production in this State will be compromised if the Labor Government continues to put mining and coal seam gas first, following the release of its 10-point coal and gas plan announced by Premier Kristina Keneally yesterday. NSW Farmers’ Association President Charles Armstrong said this 10-point plan is a plan for the mining and gas industry and shows little regard for protecting the critical agricultural land and water resources that are essential for feeding families across the State. “Today’s announcement by the Premier does very little to set a statewide strategic plan for achieving balance between our major land uses – from agriculture to mining to housing,” Mr Armstrong said.

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4. Who's Who - People In The News

   - BENNETT, Warwick
   - BOWMAN, Wendy
   - BURNS, Arthur
   - DIXON-HUGHES, Peter
   - DUDDY, Tim
   - IMRIE, Julia
   - KELLY, Tony
   - KENNEDY, Des
   - PHELPS, Christine
   - RHIANNON, Lee
   - SIMSON, Fiona
   - SMILES, Bev
   - TAN, Sue-Ern
   - WEBB, John
   - WILLIAMS, Dr Nikki

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NAME	PHOTO	ROLE / ORGANISATION	COMMENTS
BENNETT, Warwick		- General Manager – Mid-Western Regional Council	With Mayor Des Kennedy has recently been involved in meetings with Planning Minister Tony Kelly regarding coal companies’ contribution to regional infrastructure and services, and with approaches to the Hunter Region Organisation of Councils for MWRC to become a member of that group (having been particularly impressed with its approach to coal mining issues). (Back to Who's Who)
BOWMAN, Wendy		- President – Minewatch, NSW - Member – Singleton Shire Healthy Environment Group	In a written tribute Glenn Albrecht, former Hunter resident and now a professor of sustainability at Murdoch University in WA, says of Bowman: "She is one of the true patriots, a battler for genuine productivity and sustainability in opposition to some of the largest and most powerful mining companies in the world. She has also had to fight state governments and their bureaucracies as they have systematically avoided their duty to protect the health of people and the environment." Read more about Wendy Bowman here. (Back to Who's Who)
BURNS, Arthur		- Co-chair - Hunter Community Reference Group, Board Member – Hunter-Central Rivers CMA - President – Hunter Water Users Association - Dairy farmer - Scotts Flat (near Singleton)	Has recently called for the adoption of NSW Office of Water guidelines concerning minimum buffer sizes between open-cut mining and third-order streams, as well as being part of calls for an end to mining on alluvial flats. (Back to Who's Who)
DIXON-HUGHES, Peter		- Executive Councillor (Region 7), Cattle Industry Committee Member, Denman Branch Chairman – NSW Farmers - Member, Hunter Community Reference Group – Hunter-Central Rivers CMA - Stud beef producer – Denman	Has been heavily involved in discussing farming industry issues in the media, including the call for a moratorium on new mining developments. (Back to Who's Who)
DUDDY, Tim		- Media Spokesman – Caroona Coal Action Group - Councillor, Gunnedah Council - Farmer – Liverpool Plains	A key player in the Caroona Coal Action Groups ‘No Mines’ campaign on the Liverpool Plains. Featured in many different media reports. (Back to Who's Who)
IMRIE, Julia		- Co-chair - Hunter Community Reference Group, Board Member – Hunter-Central Rivers CMA - Member - Hunter Region Landcare Network - Member - Ulan and Moolarben Community Consultation Committees	Has worked in the environmental science and land management fields for the past 18 years and has co-managed her 872 hectare family property in the upper Goulburn River for 25 years. Operates an eco-tourism business and is involved in a number of groups representing environmental interests. (Back to Who's Who)
KELLY, Tony		- Minister for Planning - Minister for Infrastructure - Minister for Lands - Deputy Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council - Leader of the House in the Legislative Council	Tony Kelly’s profile on the Labor Party website cites “sustainable regional development in country NSW” as being a key interest. Recently rejected NSW Farmers’ call for a moratorium on new mining development. (Back to Who's Who)
KENNEDY, Des		- Mayor - Mid-Western Regional Council	With General Manager Warwick Bennett has recently been involved in meetings with Planning Minister Tony Kelly regarding coal companies’ contribution to regional infrastructure and services, and with approaches to the Hunter Region Organisation of Councils for MWRC to become a member of that group (having been particularly impressed with its approach to coal mining issues). (Back to Who's Who)
PHELPS, Christine		- Councillor - Muswellbrook Shire Council - Member - Anvil Hill Project Watch	Has been active for many years in the fight against new coal mining, particularly with respect to the Anvil Hill mine (now known as the Mangoola mine). Lives in Wybong. (Back to Who's Who)
RHIANNON, Lee		- Former NSW Upper House MP, Currently NSW Senator-Elect – The Greens	Working closely with communities affected by coal mining, Lee campaigned against the expansion of the NSW coal industry, highlighting damage to the natural environment and water sources, prime agricultural land and the quality of life of local people, including their health. In 2009, she moved a private member’s bill to safeguard prime agricultural land from mining. It was defeated by one vote. (Back to Who's Who)
SIMSON, Fiona		- Vice President, Member Conservation and Resource Management Committee, Mining Spokesman - NSW Farmers - Past Secretary – Caroona Coal Action Group - Farmer – Liverpool Plains	Elected to the NSW Farmers Association executive in 2008, becoming chairwoman of its mining taskforce last year (2009) and vice-president this year (2010). She and other executive members have held 10 months of negotiations with the state opposition over the policy on mining and farmland it will implement if elected in March. Has been the public face of the association’s call for a moratorium on new mining projects while a state plan guaranteeing prime farmland protection is devised. Read more about Fiona here. (Back to Who's Who)
SMILES, Bev		- Chairperson – Mudgee District Environment Group - Member – Minewatch, NSW - Member – Wilpinjong and Ulan Community Consultative Committees	Well known in the Mudgee region for her active involvement in matters relating to natural resource management, sustainable agricultural production and healthy, vibrant rural communities. Main issues of concern include unprecedented expansion of the coal industry in the Upper Hunter and the need for rigorous monitoring of existing mines and effective mine rehabilitation. (Back to Who's Who)
TAN, Sue-Ern	[NO PIC]	- Deputy CEO – NSW Minerals Council	The main media spokesperson for the NSW Minerals Council and the public face of the council’s response to the calls by the NSW Farmers Association for a moratorium on new mining development. (Back to Who's Who)
WEBB, John		- Councillor - Mid-Western Regional Council - Mudgee Branch Chairman - NSW Farmers - Member Wilpinjong, Ulan and Moolarben Community Consultative Committees	Apart from his involvement on Council and different mining Community Consultative Committees, John has had practical experience on his own property in the rehabilitation of saline sites. (Back to Who's Who)
WILLIAMS, Dr Nikki		- CEO - Minerals Council NSW	Although Sue-Ern Tan (Deputy CEO) tends to be more in the media spotlight, Dr Williams has appeared in a number of different news reports. 'I think it's also incumbent on those who have concerns about mining - and those who campaign against mining - to make sure they're actually dealing with facts and not simply perpetuating fears.' (Back to Who's Who)

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