Mod 3 - Mod to The Rail Facilities

There will be over 260,000,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases created due to this mine and the coal that comes from it. This equates to 8000 premature deaths worldwide.
There will be a deterioration is air quality in the upper hunter resulting in more illness for the local community.
Over 454 hectares of forest will be removed with 223 hectares in an endangered areas.
It will impact on 128 Aboriginal heritage sites.
The net benefit to the NSW economy will be $414 million over the entire 23 years of the project ($18 million per year). Which doesn't take into consideration the health impacts on the local community or the effects of greenhouse gas emissions including the premature deaths (as above) and the costs extreme weather events

I object on the following basis:

1. Additional human deaths: There will be over 260,000,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases created due to this mine and the coal that comes from it. This equates to 8000 premature deaths worldwide. The total stated benefit to the NSW economy for the entire project is $414 million over the life of the project. This values each human life lost at $51,750.

2. Harm to human health: There will be a deterioration is air quality in the upper hunter resulting in more illness for the local community.

3. Environmental: Over 454 hectares of forest will be removed with 223 hectares in an endangered areas.

4. Indigenous Heritage: It will impact on 128 Aboriginal heritage sites.

5. Poor economic case: The net benefit to the NSW economy will be $414 million over the entire 23 years of the project, ie. $18 million per year. These numbers fail to factor in the health impacts on the local community, or the effects of greenhouse gas emissions including the premature deaths (as above) and the costs extreme weather events.

The economics of this project need to be independently assessed. Clearly the economic modelling needs to include the costs to the local community, the cost of greenhouse gas emissions, the cost of the additional human deaths, the cost of environmental impact, and the economic and social cost of the impact on indigenous heritage.

It would be surprising if this project was cost neutral when the real costs are factored in. It would be unlikely to be profitable in any economic or social sense.

I actively oppose this development citing health impacts as the most important negative effect -air water and noise pollution

I hereby object to any extension of coal mining activity at Wambo. Several reasons include;

- projected CO2 emissions of 260 million tonnes over 20 years
-destruction of over 450 hectares of native forest habitat
-impact on over 120 irreplaceable aboriginal heritage sites
-minimal if any, financial benefit to taxpayers. Most of the profits from the mining industry flow OVERSEAS.
-minimal employment in a dirty and outdated industry.
-loss of job opportunities in more sustainable and higher value- added industries such as agriculture and advanced technologies.

PS Declaration; I have made political donations to the Greens in recent years and these have been reported

The net benefit to the NSW economy will be $414 million over the entire 23 years of the project i.e $18 million per year. Taking into consideration the health impacts on the local community and the overall impacts on climate change, I strongly object to this proposal.