Myuna Coal Mine (MOD 2) - Road transport

The residents and visitors to the Lake Macquarie area already suffer from the toxic heavy metals that leach into Lake Macquarie and also from the toxic chemicals spewing out from the power station chimney stacks AND the toxic dust blowing of the massive ash dams near the Eraring and Vales Point power stations. All NSW residents and all Australian taxpayers are suffering the cost of the damage to the peoples health. The people will also suffer the cost of the eventual cleanup of the toxic chemicals in the massive ash dams. It shocks me that the owners of the Myuna Coal mine now want to impose further costs on the people of Australia, all NSW residents and more locally the ratepayers in the Lake Macquarie City Council area. 35,000 large coal carrying trucks travelling each year on public roads from the Myuna Coal mine in Wangi to Awaba, that's 65,000 trips per year is totally unacceptable.

It must be noted that the reason Myuna Coal wants to have their trucks using the Wangi to Awaba road system is to save money. i.e. they want to pass the cost from their shareholders to the taxpayers of Australia. That is totally unacceptable.

The trucks, even if covered, will spew coal dust out, falling along the road and through the air into passing the cars. This is a serious health risk and cost to the nation and is totally unacceptable. The cost of the massive damage to the roads caused by the heavy trucks will be born by the NSW Government and The Lake Macquarie City Council - that is totally unacceptable.

Then there is the danger of road accidents caused by 65,000 truck per year entering, leaving and traveling along the road. A large part of the road now has a 90KPH speed limit. Where the trucks would cross the Wangi road is at the bottom of a hill making it almost impossible for cars and truck to stop quickly in the event of the inevitable emergency - serious accidents will happen. There is a dangerous intersection nearby where Donnelly Rd meets Wangi Rd. There will be serious accidents there as well. That is totally unacceptable. If government is mad enough to approve this application they will probably also impose on the motor vehicle public speed restrictions and/or traffic lights on the Wangi Road. That is also totally unacceptable.

I understand that there is a coal conveyor belt from the Myuna Mine across mining company owned bushland to somewhere near Eraring, i.e. most of the way to where the Myuna coal is needed. They must not be allowed to use the public roads when they have a viable alternative.

Approval of this application would reinforce the public's lack of faith in the ability of government in Australia to look after the interests of the people. THE PROPOSAL MUST NOT BE APPROVED.
Yours faithfully
JAMES HORN

It is a huge safety risk to residents, commuters,cyclists and visitors that use Wangi and Wilton Roads to have coal trucks on these public roads. There is no Social Impact Assessment, which is very surprising as there are over 8500 people living in the suburbs of Rathmines, Fishing Point, Balmoral, Buttaba, Arcadia Vale and Wangi Wangi, who directly use Wangi Road.
The Newstan/ Awaba CCC were not notified of the lodgement of this modification.
There is a risk to wildlife.

I feel very strongly that the roads that Mauna Coal Mine wish to use for transporting coal will comprise the safety of people using these roads, lead to degradation of the roads , create noise and ruin the ambience of the areas . This must not be allowed to happen.

I strongly oppose the colliery using trucks on Wangi Road to deliver coal to the power stations. I have been told there will be 200 trucks every day on this road. This is very dangerous as it is a 90km zone road and it is already hazardous pulling out of traffic. The demographics of the areas affected are mostly seniors who drive slow and I am sure that they would feel intimidated by these trucks on the road.
There is also concern about pollution from trucks and from coal to the environment.
I have spoken to a number of residents and feel that this was not advertised appropriately as a number of them were not aware of this happening especially as we no longer receive a local newspaper.
I would appreciate your declining this proposal.

Please see attached

I would like to object to the proposal of coal trucks on public roads in the West Lake Macquaire area.
I suspect this mine will get the approval because mines and power stations always do, money,jobs come before the health and safety of the community.

I would like to share my past experience of sharing a public road with up to 500 coal trucks a day at the southern end of Lake Macquarie
and ask that when this modification is approved that you make a number of requirements upon the mine.
I have included two attachments of newspaper articles of local coal truck overloadings an example of what happens when there is no weigh station in place, my
understanding is Myuna will install a weigh station and it must be a requirement on them that if for some reason the weigh station is not operational
than coal can not be transported by road , there is no other means to know the weight of these trucks unless properly weighed before transporting.

There also needs to be a monetary agreement between the mine and Lake Macquarie City Council to the maintenance of these public roads they use , an
agreement between Chain Valley Colliery and Central Coast Council exists after the constant damage to Ruttleys Road over the years, don't be fooled these roads are going to deteriorate very quickly.

There also needs to be put in place a system where the general public can be compensated for damage to their vehicles from coal that will come off these trucks even
with tarp covered tops it still comes off , coal from their tailgates from loading or unloading or coal that has been squashed into the trucks tyres treads that will become a missile when it releases at speed.
Please view the complaints register of Chain Valley Colliery when they were hauling coal to see the complaints from the general public about vehicle damage from coal from these trucks, I have had the experience of passing a coal truck on Ruttleys Road and having a lump of coal penetrate my windscreen then being covered in shards of glass. This mine replaced my windscreen free of charge by a reputable company at my home.

There needs to be a VPA Voluntary planning agreement set up to compensate the local community for the impacts these coal trucks will have to nearby residents , I suggest $1.00 a tonne in a fund for local groups to apply for grant funding, again a precedent being the VPA with Chain Valley Colliery and the local communities of Mannering Park , Chain Valley Bay and Gwandalan/Summerland Point .

Truck monitoring needs to be undertaken by an independent company every 6 months , this will include monitoring vehicles without operators knowing , again this was part of Chain Valley Colliery requirements.

Why is the mine not investigating the conveyer belt option to Eraring , another example is again from Chain Valley Bay colliery installing a conveyer belt system to Vales Point power station , this was done after community pressure to remove trucks from the mine to Vales via public roads , it also reduced their complaints register to very little, they have also investigated a private road to the rail loop on Ruttleys Road when they were hauling coal to Newcastle before the export market collapsed, this road would have included bridges across Wyee Creek and tunnel under Ruttleys Road , why does Myuna not consider this instead of making the community suffer.

Why is Eraring buying poor quality coal in the first place , not only will this hi ash content coal from Myuna fill the Eraring toxic leaching ash dams faster it will also contribute to higher pollution levels from the stack.

See attached PDF document.

My family and I object to the proposed modification - please see attached letter detailing our reasons.

I believe other options need to be appropriately considered. Ie: current infrastructure that could be utilised or modified.
Wilton Road already is an overused road considering it is a tight, one lane rural road that constantly requires maintenance due to the garage truck, among buses when trains are not in use, and many other vehicles and large transportation vehicles.
As it fundamentally is a privately owned business (and not owned by an Australian company) additional information is required to understand how much we will have to contribute to their viability. As they stated it is weighing up the environmental impact and costs against profit, I don’t believe enough measures are in place to protect the small communities this will impact, environmentally, economically nor financially.
I am strongly against this proposal and more time and consultation with the community and local government and stakeholders is required

Centennial Myuna Pty Limited (Centennial Myuna) proposal (Myuna Colliery Modification report for modification to project approval MP 10_0080 dated July 2020)
I would like to object to the Centennial Myuna Pty Limited (Centennial Myuna) proposal (Myuna Colliery Modification report for modification to project approval MP 10_0080 dated July 2020) to carry coal by public roads to and from Myuna Colliery.

Following my review of Centennial Myuna supporting document I believe the document is not fit for purpose and the proposal to carry coal on a public road can, and should not be agreed to by the consent authority in that:
• There is no data included in the document on coal quality changes that drive the whole proposal and how fast the changes are occurring and what are the likely longer term implications of the quality changes,
• Not enough information concerning the Centennial Myuna review of the need for coal haulage on public roads has been included,
• This proposal would significantly increase the risk of accidents occurring on the public road network (3 accidents have recently been reported on 5 km section of the road network being discussed),
• This proposal would mean that the public would be subsidising Centennial Myuna activities because of the cost of increased maintenance on the public road system, and
• Emissions from diesel truck usage would increase by 1162t CO2-e per year from 1564 t CO2-e per year to 2276 t CO2-e per year, plus increased emission of diesel particulates (Report Appendix A).
For example, Centennial Myuna proposal document in Section 1.1.2 states that it has assessed a number of alternatives:
“• Installing and operating a coal beneficiation plant at Myuna’s pit top to improve the quality of coal before it is sent to Eraring Power Station. This option was discounted because of: the high capital costs associated with the additional infrastructure; the potential for increased noise levels at sensitive receptors close to Myuna’s pit top; and the ongoing management of reject material requirements.
• Blending coal on-site at Eraring Power Station to improve the quality of Myuna coal before it is used for energy production. This option would also reduce on-site stockpile capacity at Eraring Power Station and does not align with Origin’s preferred coal delivery strategy.
• Alternative transport coal routes between Myuna and CES. The proposed transport route reduces the length of time heavy vehicles will be on public roads and avoids residential areas. Preliminary feasibility investigations did not identify any issues with heavy vehicle traffic using the proposed transport route including the right-hand turn from Wangi Point Road onto Wangi Road (Figure 4.1).”
However dot point 2 in Centennial Myuna assessment of alternatives above gives a very very short comment, with again little supporting information on their non- preferred option of blending at Eraring Power Station and continued transfer by conveyor, which would result in no increased accident risk from coal haulage trucks on public roads. Origin Energy Ltd has recently also been reported in the media as willing to discuss the option of blending at Eraring Power Station, highlighting that discussions have not previously occurred
Again I believe that the proposal should not be supported by the consent authority and should not even be considered because of the lack of information in the proposal report.
I, as many of the local community, would be happy to discuss further as Centennial Myuna has not put its case directly to the local community. Please feel free to contact me to discuss further.

I do not understand how 1mtpa on the public road network and 90 existing additional workers relocated from Newstan plus service and maintenance personnel not mentioned can only add up to 120 total traffic movements . Noted there is mention in the report that states the size of the trucks. Have I misunderstood and the coal is not been moved on the public road network, and the 120 is only worker and maintenance?

The proposal to operate this large number of trucks on public roads is unacceptable. The increased risk to the public using the roads is absolutly rediculous. The mine should be forced to build its own infrastructure such as conveyer systems not use our roads and put our families at risk and increase the number of heavy vehicles on our roads

I support the modification

Department of Planning and Environment

Dear Director,

Application number: MP 10_0080-Mod-2
Thank you for the opportunity to make this submission regarding Centennial Coal’s planned modification to its existing operational consent.

I am the current State Member for Lake Macquarie in the NSW Legislative Assembly and have held that role for the past 13 years. I was an elected member of Lake Macquarie City Council for 21 years, serving as Mayor for eight years.

Introduction

Centennial Coal is a significant employer locally and important to our local economy. I believe this will likely remain so for the considerable future. The nature of their operation will no doubt need to change from time to time to accommodate changing markets and the capacity to supply desirable coal. I am not opposed to what I refer to as ‘traditional mining’, that being underground mining.

I am however strongly opposed to this proposed modification which could see 62,400 coal truck movements a year on public roads and in doing so reopening a dangerous intersection to allow those trucks access from Myuna Colliery to Wangi Road.

This will place existing road traffic at increased risk, impact on road quality and reduce local amenity. An alternative to road haulage exists. It has for years been used to supply coal safely to Eraring power station and has the capacity to manage the additional demand. That alternative is the existing conveyor system between the colliery and the power station; and in light of that alternative, this proposed modification should be refused.

The proposal

In its application, Centennial says its Myuna mine is no longer providing the high quality coal that it’s contracted to sell Origin Energy to operate Eraring Power Station. I accept that is the case. To solve that problem, it wants to blend its low-quality Myuna coal with the higher-quality coal from nearby Mandalong Mine.

In order to do this, it says it needs to send one million tonnes a year by truck via public local roads. This equates to 62,400 truck movements a year, 10 hours a day, six days a week. That’s a fully-laden coal truck making a return trip every six minutes.


The impact of 62,400 trucks on local roads

On page 44 of Centennial’s application, it says that based on average truck capacity of 32 tonnes per truck and 300 ‘active’ working days per year, moving one million tonnes of coal a year equates to 208 truck movements per day, or 20 truck movements per hour of operation.

On the same page, Centennial says “safety concerns are only minor and do not generally warrant further road safety upgrades along the assessed road corridor”.

As a regular user of this road I do have significant concerns for road safety and strongly disagree with their statement.

Wangi Road is part of a busy State arterial route designated as B53. The area assessed carries more than 7000 vehicles daily.

With the exception of a 1.5km overtaking lane (uphill) in the assessed area, it is a one-lane road in each direction. It is not credible to suggest that adding 208 coal trucks every day is not going to have a significant impact on traffic and road surfaces.

Almost three decades ago, coal trucks were stopped from using Wangi Road because of regular accidents and impact on road quality. The community, along with government agencies of the time, fought hard to have those trucks removed. Mines in the area, as well as the Eraring Power Station which was in Government hands at the time, were given approval to establish a network of private haul roads which didn’t impact on local roads or traffic. They also established an extensive conveyor network to move coal around. Both remain in place.

I do not see any reason why Centennial could not negotiate to use the existing conveyor system which passes under Wangi Rd, to deliver the coal to the power station site and then use trucks to carry it to its desired mixing location along the haul roads.

On page 5 of the application, Centennial says it discounted the conveyor option because it “didn’t align with Origin’s preferred coal delivery strategy” and “would reduce on-site stockpile capacity at Eraring”. My own investigations and discussions with Origin and Centennial indicate that the question had not been put to Origin Energy. I believe that Centennial Coal’s reference to Origin’s preferred delivery strategy was not based on a clear proposal to Origin or indeed a refusal from Origin Energy.

The assessed traffic area also includes five intersections which could generally be regarded as dangerous and are the scene of numerous accidents, yet Centennial says no work is needed to upgrade any of them.

The State Government has spent millions of dollars upgrading the safety of these intersections over the past decade. The Summerhill Drive-Wangi Road intersection is placed on the top of a crest in a 90kmh zone yet visibility for those pulling out of Summerhill is not ideal.

Further north, the Donnelly Rd-Wangi Rd intersection and the Buttaba Hills Rd-Wangi Rd intersection are located reasonably close together at the top of the hill. While safety has been improved, numerous accidents still occur there due in part to poor visibility of oncoming traffic, speed, and the fact that two lanes merge in that vicinity.

Further north, the State and Federal governments spent a combined $4m building a roundabout at the Dorrington Rd-Wangi Rd intersection at Rathmines in 2010. While this improved safety and reduced crash numbers, it was built with a north-bound slip lane which, while appropriate in most circumstances, is more likely to cause merging anxiety and conflicts when the approaching through vehicle is a truck carrying 30 tonnes of coal.

Slightly further north again, Lake Macquarie Council and the State spent several million dollars recently upgrading the Wilton Rd-Wangi Rd intersection. This is already a dangerous intersection where garbage trucks heading to and from Awaba Waste Management Facility have to turn into traffic doing 80kmh. Adding a coal truck every three minutes to that intersection will I believe exacerbate safety concerns there.

I cannot support any plan that will unnecessarily add risk to everyone using those roads, including the truck drivers.


The intersection of Wangi Point Road and Wangi Road

In its application, Centennial is proposing to reopen the now-disused intersection of Wangi Point Road and Wangi Road. This will provide access to and from the Myuna colliery for the 62,400 annual truck movements it proposes.

On page 46 of its application it says “no widening or improvement works are required on Wangi Road to facilitate the efficient entry/exit of heavy vehicles” at the location.

There may be a technical argument that this is the case, however it will not be the real world case as judged by other road users. That intersection was closed decades ago because it was the scene of numerous accidents which I understand resulted in some fatalities.

Traffic coming from the south at 90kmh on Wangi Road head down a hill towards that intersection. There is a bend that veers to the left. Any driver coming around that bend cannot even see the intersection until they are 150m from it. Likewise, no truck driver pulling out of the intersection will see the oncoming traffic until it’s just 150m away. We’ll have cars and trucks and school buses coming around a bend at 90kmh to be suddenly confronted by a fully-laden coal truck pulling out across two lanes of traffic at very low speed. In anyone’s language, that will create disastrous consequences.

It must be noted that there is only one turning lane at the intersection, but it’s a right-turn lane into Wangi Point Road from the south. Centennial’s trucks will be leaving and entering from the opposite direction where no turning or merge lanes exist!

Similarly, trucks returning to the colliery will be coming down a steep hill in a 90kmh zone and then heading up the mild incline before slowing to turn into Wangi Point Road. Again, there is no existing turning lane and none proposed by Centennial.

It is extremely difficult to understand how Centennial reached the conclusion that this would be safe!

That intersection was closed decades ago for a reason – it claimed lives. It cannot be allowed to reopen, least of all for the purposes proposed by Centennial.


Petition

Centennial’s application prompted dozens of inquiries to my office. I successfully sought Ministerial intervention to increase the amount of time people had to make their submissions to Planning NSW, and I am grateful to the Minister and Planning NSW for that extension.

I also started a petition, controlled by the NSW Parliament, which allowed people to register their concern. The petition calls for Centennial’s application to be rejected in full and attracted the names of more than 1100 local people in little more than a week. That number will almost certainly grow as the planning process continues.


Conclusion

I am very strongly of the belief that this application should be rejected.

It is a dangerous proposal that will almost certainly cost lives on the local roads Centennial intends to use. I also believe it will diminish Centennial’s social licence to operate in the area.

There is an alternative available to Centennial and I don’t believe it’s been properly investigated. This is the use of the existing conveyor system.

Centennial should also be encouraged to work more closely with Origin Energy with a view to finding an alternative location for mixing that doesn’t impede the power station’s current operations or stockpiles.

I acknowledge the difficulties faced by Centennial in these challenging times, but we cannot allow an application such as this to go ahead, regardless of the conditions Planning NSW are being requested to consider.

I again thank you for the opportunity to make this submission. I make myself available to you at any stage to discuss the matter further.
Yours sincerely,
Greg Piper

Please note attached submission

Per the Attached.

I object to the modification that would see massive increase of heavy vehicles onto public roads for all of the reasons contained in the article pasted below. At what point do we say 'enough is enough'. With over 800 Australians dying from poor air quality whilst many others suffer: Newcastle Herald reports that 800 premature deaths every year caused by pollution from coal-fired power stations along with 850 low birth weight babies and 14,000 asthma incidences. The report is supported by epidemiologist Professor Fiona Stanley and environmental epidemiologist Professor Hilary Bambrick. (https://www.greenpeace.org.au/news/air-pollution-from-burning-coal-kills-800-people-in-australia-each-year-and-makes-thousands-more-ill/), this is NOT the time to be condoning, let alone supporting the burning of inferior coal. I ask that the modification be denied and that we work towards a world where we take seriously the existential threat of increased global temperatures that faces us by leaving the principal cause of this temperature (fossil fuels) in the ground and embrace, regenerative and sustainable technologies and practices.

Source: Newcastle Herald | By: Max McKinney | Posted: August 12, 2020

Centennial Coal's plan to truck more than a million tonnes of coal per year along Wangi Road, which requires 62,500 truck movements, is a "ridiculous proposition" and would be a "disaster" waiting to happen, says Lake Macquarie MP Greg Piper.

Mr Piper and scores of Lake Macquarie residents have slammed the company's proposed planning modification that would allow 20 truck movements per hour, 208 per day, between its Myuna Colliery and the Cooranbong Entry Site (CES) near Eraring Power Station.

Centennial wants to blend Myuna coal, which is not meeting standards for use at the Origin Energy-owned power station, with coal from its Mandalong pit.

Up to a million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) would be trucked from Myuna to the CES while up to 0.2 Mtpa of Mandalong coal would be trucked to Myuna. Coal would be mixed at both sites and then transferred via conveyors to the power station.

The trucking route includes Wangi Road, Wilton Road and private haul roads.

Truck movements would be limited to 7am to 6pm, Monday to Saturday. Between 3pm and 4pm on weekdays, only 10 movements would be allowed to minimise traffic impacts.

The modification report on exhibition with the NSW Department of Planning says the route was selected "to avoid trucks travelling through residential areas".

"There are no residences immediately adjacent to, or with driveways on, the parts of Wangi Road and Wilton Road that are part of the transport route," it says. "The closest ... are residences on Donnelly Road, Arcadia Vale, which are approximately 80 metres from Wangi Road."

An average 6979 vehicles travel on Wangi Road each day, the report says, and the truck movements represent a "negligible increase (less than 7%) in total traffic".

All trucks leaving Myuna would be weighed, use a wheel wash before exiting and have covered loads.

Centennial says the proposal will allow it to continue to meet its "contractual obligations to supply coal to Eraring" and "secure ongoing employment for Myuna's workforce".

"We have explored a range of alternatives to trucking, including seeking the cooperation of our customer Eraring to blend coal on site at the power station, and unfortunately we have been left with no option other than pursue the current proposal," a company spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Mr Piper said he understood the need to "keep Centennial's employees in jobs" and "Eraring operating", but trucking coal would be "risky and dangerous" and a different option "had to be found".

He is particularly concerned with trucks coming out of Wangi Point Road onto Wangi Road, as the intersection is halfway down a hill and the trucks would be turning into a 90 km/h zone without a merging lane.

He "strongly" disagrees with an assertion in the application that "no widening or improvement works are required on Wangi Road".

"I understand Centennial's needs because ... the coal they've been winning has been reducing, and I understand Origin don't want to take coal that is higher in ash because it causes them problems.

"But to transfer their problem onto the public road ... this is just a ridiculous proposition that is going to put a lot of people at risk.

"Heavy trucks ... should not be mixing in great numbers with the volume of traffic that is on that road.

"The increased risk of a disaster is clearly there. It's just not acceptable in 2020 to be done that way, particularly when there is a conveyor that goes directly to Origin.

"I know they're different companies, but surely we can work this out without putting this impost onto the public road network."

Coal from Myuna is currently transported to Eraring by an overland conveyor. Low-quality coal is held at the pit top until it can be mixed with better product. However, coal quality has become increasingly poorer.

Centennial considered, but ruled out, alternative options to transport the coal.

Installing a "beneficiation" plant at Myuna to improve the quality of coal before it is sent to Eraring via the conveyor was "discounted" due to the "high capital costs", "potential for increased noise" and "ongoing management of reject material".

Sending all of Myuna's coal via conveyor and blending it at Eraring "does not align with Origin's preferred coal delivery strategy".

Centennial introduced the proposal to the DPIE in May, as well as Lake Macquarie council and Transport for NSW.

It then wrote to its Myuna, Newstan/Awaba and Mandalong community consultation committees in June, but two of the groups are yet to meet and none have provided feedback.

The modification's exhibition was due to end on Thursday, but Mr Piper said the Planning Minister had extended it until August 27.

I object to this modification on the following grounds:
The proposed truck movements on public roads pose an extremely high accident risk to the traveling public which is not acceptable. If the private coal mine operator wants to transport coal, they have to do so on private coal haul roads or existing conveyors.
I also object to coal of poor quality being burnt in coal-fired power stations in NSW.

From John Edwards
55 Alexander Parade
ARCADIA VALE 2283
As a local resident I object to the above proposal on the grounds of
• Heavy slow, moving trucks will create dangerous traffic on local roads.
• These same trucks, will over time, damage road surface.
These various businesses should solve this situation at their own cost not by transferring the cost to the community.