MOD 3 - Pit 8 Extension

I support the development of the Wilpinjong extension project. This extension guarantees a few important things for many stakeholders. It provides job continuity for more than 600 employees in the region. It extends coal supply for NSW power generation which is key to provide reliable and low cost energy to support the transition to other power sources. Finally it provides additional royalties to the NSW government to support funding of other initiatives in the state.

HIC Services and myself have worked for Wilpinjong since they commissioned. During my tenure as a service provider there, numerous employees who started with HIC, made the transition to work directly for Wilpinjong, employees born and bred in the area. Wilpinjong has been a great supporter of our company as well as a lot of local companies throughout Mudgee, Gulgong and surrounding area's. Without this extension, HIC Services would struggle to remain viable in the area. Being local, we see how much Wilpinjong does for the local community which is astounding. We need Wilpinjong, as does the community.

I strongly object to the proposed Mod 3 – Pit 8 Extension of the Wilpinjong Coal Mine on the following grounds:

1. Improper Assessment Pathway
The proposed expansion differs substantially from the currently approved mine and should not be assessed as a modification. It:
- Falls outside the current mining lease
- Mines to the boundary of Wollar Village
- Encroaches on Wollar Creek catchment
- Destroys a new area of Aboriginal cultural heritage significance
- Causes additional biodiversity impacts under Federal environmental law

2. Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Destruction
The Wilpinjong Mine area holds deep cultural and spiritual significance for the Wiradjuri Nation, with over 1,000 recorded sites. Mod 3 will destroy an additional 15 sites, further eroding Aboriginal heritage and spiritual connection to Country.

3. Severe Biodiversity Impacts
The expansion will disturb an additional 155 hectares, including:
- Habitat for critically endangered species such as the Large-eared Pied Bat, Eastern Cave Bat, Regent Honeyeater, and Koala
- Two rocky hills central to a microbat hotspot will be removed
- Box Gum Woodland CEEC, a groundwater-dependent ecological community, will be impacted without adequate assessment
- Landscape connectivity between Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve and Goulburn River National Park will be compromised

4. Water Resource Degradation
The proposal will cause:
- Groundwater drawdown of over 20 metres
- Loss of over 21 million litres/year of baseflows to Wollar Creek
- Increased salinity loads (up to 3.5 tonnes/day) in mine discharge
- No baseline monitoring in the expansion area
- Inadequate assessment of Terrestrial Groundwater Dependent Ecosystems (GDEs), including those within Wollar Village

5. Social and Community Harm
The expansion will bring open-cut mining to the boundary of Wollar Village, exacerbating:

- Health and wellbeing issues from noise, dust, blasting, and water contamination
- Mental health stress due to ongoing uncertainty
- Loss of amenity and rural lifestyle
- Further depopulation and disruption to community rejuvenation efforts, including the return of Aboriginal people through successful land claims.

6. Climate and Energy Transition Conflicts
The project will release over 25 million tonnes of additional greenhouse gas emissions, undermining NSW’s climate commitments. It competes directly with the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone (CWOREZ), which begins at Wollar and represents the future of clean energy and regional employment.

7. Economic Non-Justification
The claimed net public benefit of $21 million is insufficient to offset the costs of climate change-related extreme weather events. Furthermore:

- The region faces a labour shortage in renewable energy, housing, and construction sectors
- Mining expansion is not needed to provide jobs (more doctors and other critical service people actually needed)
- The NSW Government has prioritised transition planning through the Central West Future Jobs and Investment Authority

8. Misleading Assessment Reporting
The exclusion of Cumbo Creek realignment and Rocky Hill cultural heritage site is a red herring. These areas were never viable for mining or should never have been approved. Their exclusion does not justify the destruction of 15 new cultural heritage sites.

This proposal is not substantially the same as the current mine approval and must be rejected or assessed as a new project. It threatens cultural heritage, biodiversity, water resources, community wellbeing, and the clean energy transition. The economic rationale is weak and does not justify the long-term environmental and social costs.

I urge the Department to reject Mod 3 and support the future of Wollar as a hub for clean energy and community renewal.

Quilla Britt Schoenfelder
50 Mitchell st.
Tighes Hill, NSW 2297
[email protected]
Date: 29/10/2025

Formal Submission: Objection to Wilpinjong Modification 3 – Extension of Pit 8

To Whom it may Concern,
I am writing to formally object to the proposed Wilpinjong Modification 3 (Mod 3) – Extension of Pit 8, which seeks to expand the existing mining operations near Wollar Village. My objection comes from not only an environmental perspective, but also a personal perspective. This submission will highlight key environmental concerns as well as personal concerns for myself and my family.
The Wilpinjong Coal Mine, operated by Peabody Energy, is currently approved to mine up to 16 MT/year until the end of 2033. It’s a fully open-cut operation that has already disrupted more than 30km2 of farmland and ecologically rich terrain nestled between Goulburn River National Park and Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve.
The proposed mine expansion should not be assessed as a modification because it differs substantially from the current approved mine. Its purpose is to facilitate a much larger expansion in the near future, that surrounds Wollar village. At the very least, this ‘modification’ proposal should be assessed as a new project.
Wollar is also the gateway to the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone—the first approved REZ in New South Wales. This region is poised to lead the transition to clean energy.
Expanding coal mining here undermines everything the community is striving for. It’s time to draw a line. Wollar deserves a future built on restoration, sustainability, and respect—not further environmental and community destruction.

Personal Concerns
I grew up on private land in the middle of the Goulburn River National Park. My mother still owns and lives on this land along with several other residents. This land is a 20 minute drive from the Wollar Creek Crossing, accessible only via Ulan and Wollar Rd. This access point will be directly affected by the proposed extension and residents will be forced to travel directly through/alongside active mining operations to reach essential services in Mudgee if this extension is approved. Some residents also travel daily on this road for work. Not only will this extension severely affect the residents who live within the National Park, it will affect travellers who come to explore the beautiful bushland and camp along the Goulburn River, and it will undoubtedly affect me and my young family. Every holiday we visit family here. We drive through Wollar and enter the National Park via Wollar Creek Crossing. Driving through this country brings back childhood memories and a sense of deep connection to the land and community, which I now share with my young children. The importance of Wollar and the surrounding community cannot be understated.

Key Environmental Concerns
• The proposal will disturb an additional 155 hectares of vital habitat and farmland, further degrading the region’s environmental integrity.
• Expanding open-cut mining to the edge of Wollar Village poses serious risks to residents’ health, wellbeing, and amenity.
• An additional 25 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions would be generated—at odds with urgent climate action.
• Altering Wollar Creek’s flow and damaging groundwater systems threatens long-term ecosystem health and water security.
• The extension will further disrupt Aboriginal cultural heritage sites and negatively impact Indigenous connection to Country.
• This extension appears to be the first phase of a much larger expansion, with Pit 9 and Pit 10 likely to follow.

Deficiencies in Environmental Assessment
• The assessment fails to account for cumulative habitat loss, particularly affecting threatened species like the Koala, Large-eared Pied Bat, and Regent Honeyeater.
• It lacks adequate analysis of long-term impacts on Wollar Creek and surrounding groundwater systems.
• Social and health risks from constant noise, dust, blasting, and 24-hour operations near Wollar Village and National Park residents are not properly addressed.
• It overlooks the regional job opportunities emerging from the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone, a key alternative to coal expansion.

Concerns with Planning Process
The proposed extension lies well outside the approved mine boundary, yet it’s being submitted as a modification rather than a new project. This bypasses the requirement for a full Environmental Impact Statement and independent review, despite NSW planning rules stating that modifications must be “substantially the same” as the original approval. Approval through departmental staff instead of the Independent Planning Commission removes the public’s right to merit review, limiting transparency and accountability. Similar tactics have been used elsewhere in NSW to avoid proper scrutiny, even when major new impacts are involved.

Request for Action
Considering the significant environmental, social, and procedural concerns outlined above, I urge the Department to reject Modification 3 – Extension of Pit 8. At minimum, this proposal warrants a full Environmental Impact Statement, independent review, and meaningful public consultation. Protecting our natural heritage, safeguarding community wellbeing, and advancing towards the Government’s commitment to Net Zero must take priority over further coal expansion.

Thank you for considering my submission. I look forward to your response.

Kind Regards,
Quilla Britt Schoenfelder

Submission regarding the Wilpinjong Mod 3 Expansion Project

To whom it may concern,

I am writing to object to the proposed Wilpinjong Mod 3 expansion project.

When I learned that this proposal would add over 25 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, I was genuinely alarmed. Most people, if they knew, would be too. To put that in perspective, this is almost equal to the entire annual emissions from all transport in New South Wales (about 28 million tonnes).

Like many others, I try to do my part — I save to afford an electric vehicle, and I choose public transport to reduce my emissions. But the idea that this single project could undo the efforts of thousands of individuals is disheartening.

We are already in a climate emergency. Every fraction of a degree of warming, every tonne of emissions, matters. There has to be a limit — and that limit must be no new coal projects. Approving Mod 3 would push us further away from meeting our national climate commitments.

From what I understand, this proposal is not simply a “modification.” It appears to extend beyond the current mining lease; and form part of a broader expansion.

Given this, it should be treated as a new mine application, not a continuation of the existing approval.

The current operation has already taken a heavy toll on the Wollar community. The mine has eroded the town’s sense of place and wellbeing, contributing to population decline and mental health struggles. There’s ample evidence that Peabody Energy has not been a responsible or ethical operator in the region.

The mine has also damaged critical habitat for threatened species, including the Large-eared Pied Bat, Eastern Cave Bat, Regent Honeyeater, and Koala. This ongoing loss of biodiversity is unacceptable and cannot be justified.

The proposed Mod 3 expansion would also destroy 15 additional Wiradjuri cultural heritage sites. The cumulative effect of mining across Wiradjuri Country has been described as “eroding the cultural landscape, bit by bit” — a devastating legacy we have no right to worsen.

On top of these cultural and ecological impacts, Mod 3 poses significant risks to groundwater quality and natural flows, threatening long-term water security. This is completely at odds with the clean energy transition that Australians overwhelmingly support.

For the sake of our climate, communities, water, and cultural heritage, I strongly urge you to reject the Wilpinjong Mod 3 proposal.

Sincerely,
Megan Turton

I strongly object to the proposed Modification 3 of the Wilpinjong Coal Mine. This expansion represents a devastating threat to the local environment, community, and climate.

1. Irreversible environmental damage
The proposed modification would destroy critical habitats for nationally threatened species, including the Large-eared Pied Bat, Eastern Cave Bat, Regent Honeyeater, and Koala. The expansion would sever key wildlife corridors between Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve and Goulburn River National Park - ecosystems essential for biodiversity and long-term ecological resilience. Once lost, these habitats can never be restored.

2. Threat to local communities and health
Mining has already caused significant health, social, and emotional harm to the Wollar community. Many residents have been forced to leave due to pollution, dust, blasting, and noise from existing operations. Extending mining to the edge of Wollar Village will worsen these impacts and erase any hope of rebuilding a safe and thriving rural community. No family should have to live under constant threat from industrial pollution.

3. Loss of Aboriginal cultural heritage
This expansion will destroy at least 15 more Aboriginal heritage sites and further erode the Wiradjuri Nation’s cultural landscape. These are not just archaeological sites, they are places of deep spiritual and historical significance that must be protected, not mined.

4. Climate impacts and energy transition
The mine would release over 25 million tonnes of additional greenhouse gas emissions which are comparable to all annual transport emissions in NSW. Approving this project would directly undermine state and national climate targets and delay the urgent transition to renewable energy. It would also compete with the Central West Renewable Energy Zone, which offers real, sustainable jobs for the region.

5. No genuine economic justification
The purported $21 million public benefit cannot offset the far greater costs of climate damage, health impacts, loss of tourism, and community displacement. This is not in the public interest—it serves short-term corporate profit at immense long-term cost to the people and environment of NSW.

The Wilpinjong Coal Mine expansion must not proceed. It is not a “modification”, it is a significant new project that will cause irreversible harm to people, wildlife, and climate. I urge the Department of Planning to reject this proposal and instead invest in the clean energy future that regional communities like Wollar deserve.

29/10/2025

Formal Submission: Objection to Wilpinjong Modification 3 – Extension of Pit 8

To Whom it may Concern,
I am writing to formally object to the proposed Wilpinjong Modification 3 (Mod 3) – Extension of Pit 8, which seeks to expand the existing mining operations near Wollar Village. My objection is based on personal concerns as well as environmental concerns.
The Wilpinjong Coal Mine, operated by Peabody Energy, is currently approved to mine up to 16 MT/year until the end of 2033. It’s a fully open-cut operation that has already destroyed more than 30km2 of farmland and ecologically rich terrain nestled between Goulburn River National Park and Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve.

The initial phase of this extension (Mod 3) will destroy a further 1.5km2 of vital habitat and farmland and is a stepping stone to a much larger expansion in the near future, that will surround Wollar village. This extension should not be assessed as a modification because it differs substantially from the current approved mine. At the very least, this ‘modification’ proposal should be assessed as a new project.

Wollar is also the gateway to the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone—the first approved REZ in New South Wales. This region is poised to lead the transition to clean energy.

Expanding coal mining here undermines everything the community is striving for. It’s time to draw a line. Wollar deserves a future built on restoration, sustainability, and respect—not further environmental and community destruction.

Personal Concerns
As the partner of someone who grew up here, I visit this area frequently with my family. We access private land in the Goulburn River National Park via Wollar Rd and the Wollar Creek Crossing. My family is deeply connected to this land, and they and other residents will be directly impacted by this coal mine expansion. Why are their lives and livelihoods not important? Why are their voices not heard? And, why are they not compensated for the continued destruction of their land, health and wellbeing? The importance of Wollar and the surrounding community cannot be understated. Please consider how this mine has and will have long lasting and devastating effects on the residents and the local environment of Wollar and the Goulburn River National Park.

Key Environmental Concerns
• The proposal would impact an additional 155 hectares of crucial habitat and productive farmland, further compromising the region’s ecological health.
• Extending open-cut mining to the boundary of Wollar Village poses significant threats to residents’ health, wellbeing and amenity.
• The project is expected to produce 25 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, directly contradicting the need for urgent climate action.
• Modifying the flow of Wollar Creek and damaging groundwater systems endangers long-term ecosystem stability and regional water security.
• The expansion would further disturb Aboriginal cultural heritage sites, undermining Indigenous peoples’ deep connection to Country.
• This proposal appears to be just the beginning, with future developments—such as Pit 9 and Pit 10—likely to follow.

Deficiencies in Environmental Assessment
• The assessment overlooks cumulative habitat degradation, placing vulnerable species such as the Koala, Large-eared Pied Bat, and Regent Honeyeater at greater risk.
• It fails to thoroughly evaluate the long-term consequences for Wollar Creek and the surrounding groundwater systems.
• Critical social and health concerns—stemming from persistent noise, dust, blasting, and round-the-clock mining near Wollar Village and the National Park—are inadequately addressed.
• It disregards the growing employment potential within the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone, a vital alternative to continued coal development.

Concerns with Planning Process
The proposed expansion extends beyond the approved mine boundary but is being submitted as a modification, avoiding a full Environmental Impact Statement and independent review. This bypasses NSW planning rules requiring modifications to be “substantially the same” as the original. Approval by departmental staff instead of the Independent Planning Commission removes public merit review, reducing transparency. Similar tactics have been used elsewhere in NSW to avoid proper scrutiny, even when major new impacts are involved.

Request for Action
Considering the significant environmental, social, and procedural concerns outlined above, I urge the Department to reject Modification 3 – Extension of Pit 8. At minimum, this proposal warrants a full Environmental Impact Statement, independent review, and meaningful public consultation. Preserving our environment, ensuring the health and safety of our communities, and progressing toward Net Zero emissions must take precedence over any further expansion of coal mining.
Thank you for considering my submission. I look forward to your response.

Kind Regards.

Objection to Wilpinjong Coal Mine Mod 3 – Pit 8 Extension
I declare that I object to the proposed expansion of the Wilpinjong Coal Mine Project. My primary concerns relate to the unacceptable risks posed to:
• Contributing to NSW and Australia not meeting critical reduction of carbon emission targets.
• Water security and the integrity of Wollar Creek baseflows.
• Critically Endangered Ecological Communities (CEEC) and fauna, including a Significant and Irreversible Impact (SAII) on endangered microbat habitat.
• Aboriginal cultural heritage, with the planned destruction of additional significant sites.
• Community well-being and the amenity of Wollar Village due to proximity to mining operations.
• The procedural integrity of the application, which should be assessed as a new project, not a modification.
Detailed Grounds for Objection
My objection is based on the following detailed grounds, which I believe demonstrate that the project is not in the public interest and that the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) fails to adequately assess and mitigate the associated impacts.
1. Climate Change and Greenhouse Gas Emissions
• Quantifiable Climate Risk: The additional greenhouse gas emissions generated by this expansion, particularly the Scope 3 (downstream) emissions from burning the exported coal, will cause a greater public cost and undermine State and National climate efforts.
• Non-Compliance with Targets: The continued expansion of the coal mining sector, of which this project is a part, has been identified by the NSW Net Zero Commission as the single biggest risk to the State meeting its legislated targets (50% reduction by 2030 and net zero by 2050).
• Undermining Abatement: Approving any new or expanded source of emissions, regardless of its individual size, runs directly contrary to climate change legislation and targets, forcing all other sectors to undertake greater, more costly emissions reductions to compensate.
• Economic Justification Failure: The proposal's assessed net public benefit of $21M is not justified, as this amount would not cover the costs associated with one significant climate change-generated extreme weather event. The true public cost of the additional emissions far outweighs this negligible benefit.
2. Water Resources and Hydrology
• The proposal will cause a groundwater drawdown of over 20m and the loss of groundwater (base)flows to Wollar Creek of over 21 million litres per year.
• No adequate baseline monitoring has been conducted within the area of the mine expansion (Pit 8) to establish baseline conditions or measure current impacts.
• Terrestrial Groundwater Dependent Ecosystems (GDEs) have not been adequately assessed, including those within the boundary of Wollar Village, which provide significant ecological and aesthetic values.
• The Wilpinjong Mine has a poor history of water management, having intercepted more water than originally predicted.
• The proposal introduces a potential downstream water quality impact from increased salinity loads of up to 3.5 tonnes of salt per day in mine discharge.
3. Biodiversity and Ecosystem Impacts
• The proposed extension will significantly impact two critically endangered ecological communities (CEEC) and eleven endangered fauna species.
• Endangered Microbats (Large-eared Pied Bat and Eastern Cave Bat): The new open cut area contains the highest density hotspot in the region. The removal of two rocky hills (critical breeding habitats and known maternity sites) will result in a Significant and Irreversible Impact (SAII).
• Box Gum Woodland CEEC: The assessment fails to adequately consider indirect impacts from groundwater drawdown on this community, which is identified as groundwater dependent, and therefore understates the extent of the ecological impact.
• Regent Honeyeater (Critically Endangered): The expansion will directly remove mapped areas of important habitat. Current records of breeding activity in the district are not recognised in the assessment report.
• Koala and Landscape Connectivity: Expansion of open-cut mining will form an extensive and hostile barrier, removing the closest points of intact remnant vegetation on the valley floor that currently act as essential stepping stones of habitat between the locally significant conservation areas of Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve and Goulburn River National Park.
4. Social Impacts and Community Amenity
• The proposed new area will bring open cut mining operations to the boundary of Wollar Village, exacerbating pollution impacts that have already caused significant health and well-being issues for the community.
• The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) has not adequately addressed the ongoing issue of depopulation directly attributed to current mining activities.
• The community is facing future uncertainty and increased stress levels, further threatening mental health and wellbeing, precisely when remaining residents were preparing to rebuild following the scheduled 2025 ramp-down.
• The Social Impact Assessment itself identified seven positive social outcomes if the proposal does not go ahead, and only two negatives, suggesting the current proposal is detrimental to community goals.
5. Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Impacts
• The Wilpinjong Mine area is of high significance for Aboriginal cultural heritage, with over 1,000 sites recorded over many years, providing ample evidence of continuous Wiradjuri occupation and spiritual connection to country.
• The proposed Modification 3 will cause the destruction of an additional 15 sites of Aboriginal cultural heritage significance, an irreparable loss.
6. Procedural and Economic Justification
• Procedural Objection (Not a Modification): The proposed extension should not be assessed as a modification because it is not substantially the same as the current mine approval. It:
 Falls outside the current mining lease.
 Is part of a larger expansion project.
 Mines to the Wollar Village boundary and encroaches on the Wollar Creek catchment.
 Destroys an endangered microbat hotspot and causes additional biodiversity impacts under Federal environmental law.
 Destroys a new area of Aboriginal cultural heritage significance.
• Economic Justification Failure: The proposal's assessed net public benefit of $21M is not justified, as this amount would not cover the costs of current climate change-generated extreme weather events. The additional greenhouse gas emissions will cause a greater public cost.
• Labour Shortage: There is no need for extended coal mining to provide local jobs. Mining is competing for skilled labour urgently required for the construction, housing, and renewable energy industries, specifically for the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone (CWO REZ) construction, which the NSW Government has prioritised.
Conclusion and Recommendation
The proposed expansion of the Wilpinjong Coal Mine poses an unacceptable and detrimental threat to critical water resources, irreplaceable Aboriginal heritage, the long-term viability of the Wollar community, globally significant biodiversity, including a confirmed Significant and Irreversible Impact (SAII), and violates the commitment to meet State and National climate change targets.
I assert that the long-term, irreversible environmental and social imapct costs associated with this project significantly outweigh the claimed short-term economic benefits, especially considering the national priority of transitioning the Central West economy away from coal.
I strongly urge the Planning Secretary to recommend the refusal of the Wilpinjong Coal Mine Expansion Project - Mod 3 - Pit 8 Extension, under the relevant planning legislation.

Increases in coal mining activity are unconscionable. The overwhelming scientific consensus around the world states unequivocally in straightforward language that such actions increase climate change pressure which is already directly harming the lives, incomes and economies of all countries. This is especially the case in Australia where such extraordinary progress has already been made and future potentials for renewable sources of energy exist. Renewable energy is already beginning to eclipse fossil fuel energy production and use, this proposed extension of fossil fuel mining and use will set back progress that aims to mitigate the harms that are already occurring and are growing year by year worldwide.

I am writing to object to the possible expansion of Peabody’s Wilpinjong coal mine, beside the village of Wollar. The plan proposed would disturb farms and surround the village of Wollar with industrial activity as we see in other huge open cut mines causing high light, air & noise pollution as well as destroying significant habitat of endangered wild creatures such as koalas, Regent honeyeaters & bats. It would release an extra 25 MT of greenhouse gas. It would pollute the groundwater, and Wollar Creek catchment and we live in the driest inhabited continent on the planet.
The modification proposal is inappropriate as the mine should be assessed with a full development application.
Please bear in mind our scientists warnings about global heating and stop the mining of more coal.

Briefly, this is a disgraceful proposal by a foreign-owned but morraly (and, in the USA, financially) bankrupt and unworthy company.
The proposal ignores major issues in local environment and sociological matters, and should be rejected in total.
It is too close to towns and villages and will cause pollution and disruption to the resients.
It will destroy the local ecology, in particular the water and habitat currently in good condition, and Indigenous cultural areas will be destroyed.
The company proposing this mine extension has a very poor reputation, particularly in the USA. Any "profits" generated from this proposal will no doubt be funnelled back to the overseas owners, and the local entity will pay no tax in Australia.
The whole proposal is anti-Australian anti-environment, and makes no financial or ecological sense whatsoever.

The proposal is not an extension, it is a whole new develoment that will be detrimental to the community and the environment.
I object to the releasing over 25 MT of additional Greenhouse Gas emissions.
I object to the permanently altering and degrading alluvial groundwater sources and surface flows in the Wollar Creek catchment.
I object to the loss of rural community living.
This "expansion" (new development) will cause more loss of Aboriginal cultural heritage and spiritual landscape for Wiradjuri Nation.
There will be an increase in pollution through poorly assessed noise, dust, blasting, onsite coal ignition (spontaneous combustion), lighting and water contamination and this will impact the comunity.
This project is not needed to provide regional jobs.
Environment and community first over short term profit for a few.

I object to the project on the following grounds:
1.Mining up to Wollar creek will alter and degrade alluvial groundwater sources and the Wollar creek catchment.
2. Mining up to the boundary of Wollar village .
3. The further release of over 25 MT of greenhouse gas emissions.
4. The negative impact on biodiversity, particularly the endangered Regent Honey eater and koala population.
5. Loss of land of indigenous cultural significance .
6. The cumulative impact of recent adjacent mine expansions .

Please do not allow this project to proceed.
We do not need more coal in this country.
We do not need the additional CO2 and other pollution which this will cause.
We do not need the further degradation of the environment which this will cause.
Please do not "fast track" this project or even slow track it.
Persuade this company to invest in renewable energy, not more expensive, polluting coal.
It is so obvious that this project should not go ahead that I can't understand why it is being planned except for a motive of greed.
STOP IT!

Submission: Objection to Wilpinjong Coal Mine Mod 3 – Pit 8 Extension


To: NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure
Date: 29/20/2025
Project: Wilpinjong Coal Mine Mod 3 – Pit 8 Extension




I strongly object to the proposed Wilpinjong Coal Mine Mod 3 – Pit 8 Extension.


As a regenerative farmer and environmental advocate, I work daily to restore soil health, biodiversity and water systems so that our land can sustain future generations. This proposal moves in the opposite direction — it further degrades ecosystems, increases emissions, and undermines regional resilience at a time when we urgently need to regenerate, not destroy.

1. This is a new project, not a modification

The proposed expansion extends mining beyond the current lease area, right to the edge of Wollar village and into new, ecologically sensitive land. It involves new catchments, new biodiversity loss and new cultural destruction. It is not substantially the same project and should be treated as a new development, requiring a full Environmental Impact Statement and public scrutiny.


2. Climate and energy transition

The mine expansion would release over 25 million tonnes of additional greenhouse gases. These emissions directly undermine the state’s climate goals and the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone, which begins at Wollar. This area should be at the forefront of our clean energy transition, not locked into another decade of coal extraction. Every tonne of coal dug here delays the transition that rural communities are already embracing.

3. Impacts on Aboriginal cultural heritage

The Wilpinjong area is significant Country for the Wiradjuri people, with more than 1,000 recorded heritage sites showing continuous occupation and spiritual connection. Mod 3 would destroy 15 additional sites, including parts of a living cultural landscape. Protecting these places is not optional — it’s part of the state’s moral and legal obligation to First Nations people.


4. Community and social harm

Mining has already hollowed out the Wollar district. Many families were forced to leave due to dust, blasting, noise, and water impacts. Those who remain are trying to rebuild community life and welcome back Aboriginal people through successful land claims. This expansion would take mining operations to the village boundary, undoing years of effort to heal and restore the area. The Social Impact Assessment itself found that more positive outcomes would occur if the project did not proceed.

5. Biodiversity loss

The expansion area supports critical habitat for:

• Large-eared Pied Bat and Eastern Cave Bat – key breeding and maternity sites that would be destroyed.
• Regent Honeyeater – breeding and feeding habitat known in the district but not properly recognised in the assessment.
• Koala – the open-cut pit will block habitat corridors between Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve and Goulburn River National Park, fragmenting a vital wildlife linkage.

It will also impact Box Gum Woodland, a Critically Endangered Ecological Community, and groundwater-dependent ecosystems around Wollar Creek. These are ecosystems we rely on for pollination, water cycling and long-term farm productivity — not just “offsets” on a spreadsheet.

6. Water degradation

The project would cause a groundwater drawdown exceeding 20 metres and reduce flows to Wollar Creek by more than 21 million litres per year. Wilpinjong’s past performance shows consistent over-extraction and saline discharge. As someone who depends on healthy water cycles, I know these impacts ripple far beyond the mine site — affecting soil health, riparian vegetation and the resilience of local farms and ecosystems.


7. Economic and employment reality

Claims of economic benefit are overstated. The project’s projected $21 million net public benefit is minimal compared to the escalating public costs of climate impacts like droughts, floods and bushfires.
Meanwhile, the renewable energy and agricultural sectors in the Central West are struggling to find enough skilled workers. Extending coal mining only deepens that shortage and slows the regional transition already underway.

8. Misleading framing of “exclusions”

The company’s emphasis on “excluding” Cumbo Creek and the Rocky Hill cultural site is disingenuous. These areas should never have been considered for mining in the first place, and protecting them now doesn’t justify destroying new areas of high ecological and cultural value.

Conclusion
The Wollar district sits at a crossroads between the past and the future. We can continue to expand destructive industries, or we can invest in regeneration, clean energy and community renewal. As a regenerative farmer, I see firsthand how healing land and restoring ecosystems builds real, lasting wealth.

The Wilpinjong Mod 3 proposal represents the wrong direction for our region. It is inconsistent with the values of ecological stewardship, cultural respect, and sustainable livelihoods that rural NSW needs for the future.

I urge the Department to reject the Wilpinjong Coal Mine Mod 3 – Pit 8 Extension and require any further proposal to be assessed as a new project under a full EIS.

Title:

Objection to Peabody Energy Wilpinjong Coal Mine Modification (Mod 3)

Summary of Submission:

I strongly object to Peabody Energy’s proposed modification of the Wilpinjong Coal Mine. The proposal represents a significant expansion and should be assessed as a new project, not a modification. It will increase greenhouse gas emissions, destroy more habitat and cultural heritage, damage water resources, harm the Wollar community, and undermine the region’s clean energy transition.

Main Issues:

1. Not substantially the same project: The proposed expansion extends mining beyond the approved area, right up to Wollar village. It involves new disturbance zones, additional biodiversity and heritage impacts, and falls outside the current mining lease. It cannot reasonably be considered a modification under planning law.
2. Greenhouse gas emissions: The project will release more than 25 million tonnes of additional greenhouse gases, worsening climate change and offsetting the state’s efforts to reduce emissions.
3. Biodiversity and habitat destruction: An extra 155 hectares of land will be cleared, including critical habitat for threatened species such as the Large-eared Pied Bat, Eastern Cave Bat, Regent Honeyeater and Koala. The proposal would remove breeding and feeding areas vital for their survival.
4. Aboriginal cultural heritage: Over 1,000 cultural sites have been recorded in the area, showing long and continuous Wiradjuri occupation. The modification would destroy another 15 sites and further damage the spiritual and cultural landscape.
5. Water impacts: The expansion threatens water quality and base flows in Wollar Creek, putting ecosystems, farms, and local water supplies at risk. Past operations have already caused higher-than-predicted water interception and salinity issues.
6. Social and community harm: Wollar has already suffered major social and health impacts from mining. The expansion would increase dust, noise, and stress, and discourage community rebuilding efforts. The company’s own assessment shows more positive outcomes if the proposal does not proceed.
7. Economic and strategic inconsistency: The expansion competes with the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone, which begins at Wollar, and contradicts NSW’s clean energy and regional transition goals. The claimed $21 million net public benefit is outweighed by climate, environmental, and social costs.

Suggested Action:

The Department should reject this modification and require Peabody Energy to lodge a new project application subject to a full environmental and social impact assessment. The focus should be on supporting Wollar’s recovery and its role in the renewable energy transition rather than extending coal mining operations.

K2W Link has been alerted to this proposal as a member of the Nature Conservation Council of NSW. We were informed about coal mine expansion in the Upper Hunter a recent regional forum. We were made aware of the landscape scale impact of open cut mining on neighbouring country, on catchment health, on biodiversity and on social amenity and structure. The proposed Pit extension while framed within the current development approval impact permit, is nevertheless manifestly not benign. It will extend working to the border of sensitive reserves, will destroy cultural sites, will worsen pollution of both ground and surface water, and air, and will only deliver the promised benefits if costs of environmental deterioration are ignored. Industrially it is retrograde, competing with a fixed regional pool of skilled workers required in the next phase of energy transition as projected by the Federal Government, and likely to commence before any employment effects of the new work begin. Continuing to mine coal as investments are withdrawn from coal extraction is perilous from national interest perspective, and for the reasons above is against the interests of the local, regional and national publics. K2W is acutely aware of the threats to biodiversity in its own region of interest, particularly those caused by large scale above ground extraction; it supports the views and actions of local campaigners who oppose the projected activity. Secondarily it is aware of the importance of decarbonisation; the reeling back of coal as a source of energy and transition to safer and cheaper sources is a moral imperative. Thirdly the landscape impoverishment of legacy mining does not take account of new economics of natural resource and land management, encapsulated in regenerative farming methods and respect of the cultural values in our hinterlands. We call for this extension to be reframed as a fresh project, and be subjected to rigorous assessment in contemporary standards of impact.

To those who have power on the matter,

I would like to express my objection to the proposed Wilpinjong Coal Mine Mod 3 – Pit 8 Extension by Peabody Energy.

The weight of reason to reject Peabody's application is immense: including but not limited to the impact that it would have on my close friends living in the town of Wollar who are attempting to rebuild their community, the destruction of an already dwindling area of natural habitats for Australian fauna, the damaging and pollution of vital groundwater systems, the destruction of Aboriginal cultural sites, and Peabody's attempt to conceal what is effectively an expansion that falls outside of the current mining lease and not a modification of the existing mine.

The Australian Government and you, the decision-makers, have a responsibility to safeguard the security of future generations, which must translate to no more fossil fuel taken from our lands and waters. Inaction on global warming, allowing mass extinction, poisoning our dwindling groundwater reserves, and neglecting the care for our land and Indigenous Australian culture is a sure-fire way to destroying our future.


Everything below needs to be considered and your decision must reflect this information.

This proposal represents a significant new expansion, not a mere modification of the existing operation. It differs substantially from the current approval and should therefore be assessed as a new project, not under the modification pathway. The expansion threatens the environment, water systems, cultural heritage, and social fabric of the Wollar community and directly undermines the state’s renewable energy transition.

Grounds for Objection

Excessive Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The project would release more than 25 million tonnes of additional greenhouse gases, worsening climate impacts that already threaten regional livelihoods and ecosystems.

Improper Assessment Pathway
The proposal extends beyond the current mining lease, encroaches on new catchments, and reaches the boundary of Wollar Village. It is part of a larger future expansion plan and therefore must be treated as a new project.

Cultural Heritage Destruction
The extension will destroy at least 15 additional Aboriginal heritage sites, part of the continuous cultural landscape of the Wiradjuri Nation. This is an unacceptable loss of spiritual and historical significance.

Severe Biodiversity Impacts
The proposal threatens critical habitat for the Large-eared Pied Bat, Eastern Cave Bat, Regent Honeyeater, and Koala, as well as two critically endangered ecological communities. It will cause irreversible loss of key breeding areas and wildlife corridors between the Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve and Goulburn River National Park.

Water Resource Degradation
The expansion will lower groundwater levels by over 20 metres, reduce baseflows to Wollar Creek by more than 21 million litres annually, and increase salinity downstream. These impacts are poorly assessed and risk long-term degradation of both surface and groundwater systems.

Social and Health Impacts
Mining has already depopulated Wollar and caused significant health and wellbeing issues. The community is now seeking to rebuild, including through the return of Aboriginal residents via land claims. Extending the mine to the village boundary will compound stress, uncertainty, and social disruption.

Conflict with Renewable Energy Transition
Wollar is at the gateway of the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone (CWOREZ)—NSW’s first approved REZ. Further coal expansion here directly undermines the state’s renewable transition and contradicts the Government’s commitment to a clean energy future.

Lack of Economic Justification
The purported $21 million net public benefit does not account for the escalating public costs of climate change, environmental degradation, and social harm. Moreover, the region is facing a labour shortage, particularly in renewable energy and construction sectors, which provide more sustainable employment opportunities.

Conclusion

The Wilpinjong Coal Mine Mod 3 – Pit 8 Extension is environmentally destructive, socially harmful, and economically unjustified. It should not proceed under a modification process and must instead undergo full assessment as a new project with comprehensive public scrutiny.

I strongly urge the Department to reject the proposed modification and support the Wollar community’s right to rebuild sustainably as part of the renewable energy transition.


Take good care and choose wisely.

I believe that this application should not be accepted as a modification, as it is not a modification but a new mine area, separate from the existing one, within a different creek catchment. It is within the area designated under an exploration license. As such, it is potentially the first stage of what may become a much bigger mine through future extensions. This application must be assessed with full development scrutiny.

Realistically this State MUST start to regard such applications, in whatever form, much more seriously in respect of the effects of climate change. Coal mining and the burning of coal emits CO2. The build up of CO2 is comprehensively recognized as the one thing that we must stop happening if we are going to prevent our planet from climate disaster. This means being unable to live on it as we do now. Maybe not so bad for us today but disastrous for every human being in the future. We just have to say NO to any further mine areas being permitted.

In the case of this mine I have a number of serious concerns that I believe should influence any decision to allow it to proceed, indeed, that should cause a refusal.
Namely: The impact that it will have on the environment, ground water, cultural heritage and socially as well as ever greater pollution within the district.

This area of NSW is important environmentally. It is lies where the Goulburn River runs through the range. This is important for connectivity and increasingly as a refugee for a number of threatened species. We cannot afford to lose these species, what is left of their contracting habitat must not be alienated.
This Goulburn River access was incredibly important for our First Nations peoples, we cannot wantonly damage, or even risk damage, where there is such cultural and spiritual importance.
It is well documented that mining affects groundwater. In this case this application is for a mine within the Wollar Creek catchment, this water flows to the Goulburn River and then into the Hunter, a river already beset with the impact of other local mines. There should be no further risks taken that might further impact the stability and supply of good ground water.
The existing mine has had extensive detrimental impact on the Wollar community. There is every justification to accept that enough is enough, given the myriad other reasons why this application is unacceptable. Anyone who lives within the Hunter mining district understands the difficulties of living with the pollution that the industry produces.

Ironically the existing mine borders the Central West Renewable Energy Zone! This is the future. It is the very reason that job opportunities are not an issue, there is already an inadequate workforce.

Given that the time has come to stop coal mining this is the opportunity to, at least, put a stop to new mining activity in this area where renewable energy is going to develop.

In order to properly assess this application, it must, in the first instance, be assessed as a new development and not a modification, which it clearly is not.
Yours sincerely,
Rosie White

As a resident of the central west but also as an Australian citizen I am objecting to the proposed Wilpinjong Coal Mine Extension. Granting approval for the extension will lock in more and more carbon emissions and further climate catastrophes when we as a nation need to be phasing out our reliance on energy from coal. Other grounds I am objecting for include: the physical threats the coal mine extension would have on the village of Wollar, destroying more habitat for threatened species in the region, damage to the groundwater systems in the local water catchments. The world needs to quickly move away from its reliance on coal and we need to protect the worlds climate and environment for future generations and non-human life.