Bowdens Silver

Please see attached

Please see attached

I object to the project as unsafe and hazardous to people and the environment.
a) the health impacts are too great (there is no safe level exposure to lead, particularly for children and Lue Primary School is only 1.9km from the mine)
b) there is not enough water to run the mine
c) the resultant acid mine drainage will contaminate water resource be a problem for generations to come.
We do not need this mine. Why not take initiate and create solar and wind farms that will not wreak havoc on the environment - create clean energy and create thousands of jobs!

Lisa Matthews

I am a irrigation Lucerne farmer in the Mudgee region. I am extremely concerned about the short and long term consequences of heavy metals into the local environment and food chain.
I have seen the Ongoing generational problems From a silver and lead mine at Yarranderra silver mine (inc silver peak mine , colon peak mine ) in the catchment area of the Warragamba dam. At that old site the park rangers have to monitor the heavy metals flowing from the disused mine into the Surrounding creeks.
I am also concerned about the local environmental impacts on the Lue Community and particularly the school. The particle dust will inevitably impact on students and the general health of the community through tank water which is an unreasonable price to pay for a short term financial gain by one Commercial party.
I urge the department to reject this application for the benefit of the majority.

This project will create a toxic legacy for the future. It will endanger the health of residents. It will reduce habitat for threatened species. It will risk major pollution of surface and groundwater. The EIS is flawed.

I am a traditional custodian of this part of Wiradjuri Country I strongly object to the proposed Bowdens Silver Mine at Lue, NSW.
I have serious concerns which lead me to object to the project including the following:
This project will result in the permanent destruction of cultural heritage sites within our region. Our cultural heritage is already significantly impacted by existing mines in the region. This mine will add to the growing number of sites destroyed. This seriously affects our ability to teach the next generation about their culture and heritage and is irreversible. We have lost enough of our culture and heritage in this region due to mining - this alone should be a major cause for concern in approving this project.
The impacts from significant increase in noise on residents in Lue and surrounding the mine
The impact of dust on the Lue and surrounding residents and the local primary school.
The impact on the local water table from the mine. The loss of water from the catchment due to the mine will impact on local waterholes and springs.
The impact on the Goulburn River catchment from diverting water to the Bowdens Silver Mine. The water from the Goulburn catchment belongs in that river system - it should not be diverted across. If the mine does not have sufficient water to run their operation without bringing in water from another area then this should be another reason why the mine should not be approved.
The potential threat from the toxic tailings dam. This dam will be less than 1 km from Lawsons Creek and will contain chemicals like Arsenic, Cyanide, Cadmium and Lead. There is no second safety wall for the dam so if it leaks or there is a significant rain event that causes it to overflow it will flow to Lawsons Creek and then to Mudgee and the Cudgegong River.
The whole site will not be rehabilitated - leaving a permanent scar on the environment.
The impact on local residents from blasting.
The potential threats of toxic chemicals being trucked through Mudgee is a major concern. If there is an incident there could be devastating effects on not only human life but also the environment. The health, social and environmental and economic effects of a potential disaster should be a major concern in the approval of this mine.
The viability of the mine during its life and the potential employment and economic benefits of the project are not substantial enough for the risks involved.
As such I oppose this mine.
Thankyou for the opportunity to raise my concerns.
Warranha Ngumbaay

I appose the amended submission entirely , personal reasons

Attached PDF states my comments for your consideration

As an Aboriginal person and traditional custodian of this area I strongly object to the project.
I have serious concerns about the social, environmental, cultural impacts from this project. I also have serious concerns about the potential impacts on the health of the residents and community from this mine - from expected impacts (noise and dust) and potential impacts from potential incidents.
I object to this project for the following reasons.
This project will result in the loss of Aboriginal cultural heritage sites. Mining in our region has already caused the destruction of a significant number of Aboriginal places. This mine will add to that number and affect our ability to teach our children about their culture.
The impacts from significant increase in noise on residents in Lue and surrounding the mine is a cause of concern, The modelling for noise does not seem to be based on contemporary data, predictions are underrated and do not account for changes in power levels, source heights or the haul road. A project such as this must provide sound, relevant data so that it can be assessed with correct information. This in addition to the blasting from the project will have significant impacts on the local residents.
The impact of dust on the Lue and surrounding residents and the local primary school is of serious concern. The health issues which could arise from potentially contaminated dust is a major threat. The EIS underestimates community exposure levels as it doesn’t use concentrate, mine ore materials (stockpiled oxide material and
tailings) as sources of dust.
The impact on the local water table from the mine. The loss of water from the catchment due to the mine will impact on groundwater and local waterholes and springs. Future droughts combined with lowering the water could have devastating environmental consequences and affect the reliability and viability of water sources.
The impact of diverting water from the Goulburn River catchment to the Bowdens Silver Mine. The proposed pipeline could impact on cultural heritage which has not yet been recorded - surveys of this pipeline should have been done prior to the EIS so that all relevant information on the impact on cultural heritage was included.
Impacts from the toxic tailings dam in the event of a leak or overflow. This dam will be less than 1 km from Lawsons Creek and will contain chemicals like Arsenic, Cyanide, Cadmium and Lead. There is no second safety wall for the dam so if it leaks or there is a significant rain event that causes it to overflow it will flow to Lawsons Creek and then to Mudgee and the Cudgegong River.

The whole site will not be rehabilitated which will permanently impact on the local environment. Rehabilitation should be a requirement of any approval.
The potential threats of toxic chemicals being trucked through Mudgee and the potential for an incident to concern is a major concern. The serious impacts of an incident are a major threat to the health, social, environment and economics of the Mudgee region.
The potential short term benefits from employment and economic benefits of the project are not significant enough to justify the environmental, health, social and cultural impacts that this mine will have.
Thankyou
Aleshia Lonsdale

The Bowdens Silver Project is Australia's most strategically important project to the National Interest. Whether speaking in terms of a green future, a technological future or even Australia's participation in the burgeoning space industry, access to domestically produced silver will ensure supply and allow Australia to control its own destiny and to build these vital future industries for the benefit of all Australians. In a world which is quickly turning-in on itself, Australia must rely on itself to forge a way out of the current and growing world economic and social issues. What better way to do this than to promote self-reliant prosperity by having control of its own supply of this scare and valuable commodity, feeding directly into Australian Industries of the Future, with any surplus also making a valuable contribution to the nations exports.

I object to the Bowden Silver mine, Project SSD-5765

OBJECTION TO BOWDENS MINE PROPOSAL
My name is Sally Nagel, I am an owner of a cattle property, Old Bara which is located 8kms as the crow flies from the proposed Bowdens lead/silver mine. I have lived in the Mudgee region for 27yrs and am very passionate about the great and healthy lifestyle we have by choosing to live in this area.
The reasons why I object to this proposal are:
1. I am very concerned about the huge amount of water which is needed if this project goes ahead, both the ground and surface water levels will be substantially effected. The ground water on the mine site will drop by 25 metres and the open cut pit will continue to draw on ground water for up to 100 years after the mine has been abandoned. Bowdens mine will use more water from the Lawson Creek catchment than all current users combined. The water level in the creek will drop by one metre rendering much of the creek dry for other users.
Future droughts have not been considered. In the past 13 years, droughts have caused the Bara creek to dry up completely twice, the most recent time being the beginning of 2020. Climate change must be taken into consideration before relying on the water source in this area.
The area of Lue and Bara does not have enough water to support this project. Even if the piping of water from Ulan mine is granted, which is not definite to date, this will only supply 15% of the water needed. This geographical area does not have enough ground or surface water to support this project.
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If the creeks run dry, not only will this mean that the Bowdens silver project will not be viable, this will also have a massive effect on the agricultural land surrounding the mine site. Very well-established sheep and cattle properties are reliant on this water, including Old Bara. Life is not possible without water.
2. The mine will produce 95000 tonnes of lead - a highly toxic mineral. There is no safe level to exposure of lead. Lead is a cumulative toxicant that affects multiple body systems. A deadly cyanide processing plant is proposed to operate on site. We breed Angus beef cattle, if there is any trace of lead in their blood, they will be deemed unsalable. If this mine is given approval, we will be taking blood tests before the project commences. We will also be testing our soils, as we do this regularly.
3. A highly toxic large tailings dam will be constructed less than a kilometre from Lawson Creek and will be there FOREVER long after the mine has been abandoned - these dams have been known to fail. The result would be an environmental disaster for Lawson Creek which feeds into the Cudgegong River at Mudgee. It will pollute our water supply forever. Tailings dams regularly fail around the world, in fact there 23 tailings dams have failed in the world in the last five years including the dam at Newcrest Mining’s Cadia Gold Mine near Orange NSW.
4. Acid mine drainage (AMD) occurs when mining operations result in sulphate bearing ores, such as pyrite and chalcopyrite being exposed to the air and water. Over time, sulphides react with oxygen to form sulphates, these dissolved in water forming sulfuric acid which then leaches heavy metals from rock exposed by mining. The mine will produce two massive dumps of 56 million tonnes of acid forming rock and tailings (crushed ore remnants post processing) above the water table and local creek catchments of Price Creek, Hawkins Creek and Lawson Creek. Once you disturb a metal sulphide deposit and allow water and oxygen to enter, Acidithiobacillus will ensure acid mine drainage occurs and continues until the sulphide is all converted. There is no known solution to this reality, and acid mine drainage can continue for hundreds of years, Bowdens Silver’s failure to discuss this is both unscientific and unethical. The EIS is thus totally inadequate scientifically and ignores and downplays the risk of acid mine drainage. The United Nations have labelled AMD as the second biggest problem facing the world.
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5. The environmental and economic effect on tourism in the Mudgee region. The tourism industry is likely to diminish if our water and air is polluted. Old Bara also runs a tourism business, made up of people wanting to escape to peace and quiet and fresh clean air. The noise level from a mine operating 24hrs a day, 7 days a week will destroy any peace and quiet, also due to the light pollution, the ability to see stars at night will be minimised, this is a major attraction for visitors from cities. One word about a lead mine in close proximity could destroy the whole Mudgee region tourism industry for the sake of a handful of jobs promised by Bowdens silver mine. If the proposal to operate the mine 24 hrs a day, seven days a week is true, the effect from noise, dust and light is totally unacceptable for all residents of Lue and Bara.
6. 227000 tonnes of ore will be trucked along the winding and narrow Lue Road through Mudgee town ship. Our local road is already very busy with tourists and commuters from Rylstone and Kandos. In order to cope with the proposed use of B Double trucks, the road would have to be upgraded significantly if the mine goes ahead.
7. Bowdens does not offer a suitable plan for rehabilitation of the mine. When the mine closes the tailings dam and all the PAF will remain forever, an environmental disaster!
I believe this project should be rejected. Thank you for taking my submission into consideration.

I object to this proposal on several grounds .Firstly I am concerned at the risk of the tailings dam and general mine site leaching into the local water supply.With the dam perched above a significant water course that flows through high value agriculture land heavily populated and on to Burrendong dam,in the event of leakage or spill it will have a detrimental impact on the viability of food production and fishing in the area.I fail to see how it could be contained in a severe weather event such as a localised storm many of which i have seen over the last few years.
The proponent will take significant amounts of groundwater lowering the water table and even this is NOT ENOUGH for their needs and propose obtaining water from the Goulburn River which is already stressed due to 3 coalmines extracting water.
The project is far too close to the Lue community to be safe especially children at the local school .
I believe the proponent has been deceptive advising the community that this is a silver mine and employing the usual industry standard of trying to buy a social licence .When I advise locals of the quantity of lead to be extracted they are both shocked and angry.
I believe the risks of this proposal in a highly valued agricultural setting is unacceptable and should not be approved.

I object to this project as it will increase fumes in the air, create a lot more traffic and substain the substances of Lue as a quiet country town . It is wrong to demolish the land for this .