Mod 6 - Expansion of Coal Mine

Dear Minister,

I support Coal & Allied's Warkworth Modification application to gain access to an additional 350m of land owned by the mine, to avoid a significant drop in production and employment.

Insert personal details regarding why you or someone you know relies on Mount Thorley Warkworth. For example:
*
I have worked for Coal & Allied for 11 years.

I am the sole income earner for my family as due to the dowturn in mining and the uncertainty faced the mines have stopped using the majority of contractors. One of those contractors was my husband who is now unemployed along with many others in this area?

Mount Thorley Warkworth provides a stable income for over 1,300 full time employees in the Hunter Valley. And the operation of the mine reaches into many other businesses that supply MTW. Thousands of people depend on this mine and if production was to drop, the result could be devastating.

We need certainty. We've been wondering what the future holds now for four years. If this minor modification to an existing, 30 year old mine does not get approved, I am worried about what this will mean for local jobs and investment across the NSW mining industry.

Please accept this submission in support of the Warkworth Modification.

Regards

Gail Fairhall

I support the Warkworth Extentsion. As an employee of Mount Thorley Warkworth I am aware that the continuation of mining into the area applied for in the consent modification is absolutely critical to the continuation of mining, maintaining current production levels and the ongoing, secure and certain employment of 1300 employees.
I believe there is a far wider benefit to the communtiy than just those people who work at MTW and the mine will continue to operate within strict environmental limits. The benefits to the greater "community' that MTW offers in both economic and social terms include increased trade, schools, hospitals, roads, community events and facilities and all must be given the highest consideration when reviewing the value of this project to NSW.

I fully support the submission so that the Warkworth Mine can continue at required production levels. As a resident of the Singleton local government area it is critical that this project be allowed to go ahead. The value added by the Warkworth Mine to the local area, NSW and Australia is significant. Warkworth Mine employs over 1400 people directly and many thousands more indirectly. Families rely on the employment that the Warkworth Mine provides to maintain their standards of living (putting food on the table, educating and clothing their children, paying mortagages and other everyday bills). The Singleton area local economy relies heavy on the Warkworth Mine and the state of NSW collects ten's of millions of dollars each and every year from mining royalty from the Warkworth Mine. These funds are critical for providing health care, education and maintaing infrastructure. The current downturn in the coal industry is having a significant impact in the Singleton LGA and the the Hunter Valley already. Singleton, The Hunter Valley, NSW and Australia cannot afford for this project not to go ahead.

Hi,

My name is Jacob Mohamad and I am currently a full time employee at Mount Thorley Warkworth. I commenced my employment 11 months ago as a Graduate Civil Engineer. I moved to Singleton in 2013 to work at Mount Thorley Warkworth.

The extension of Mount Thorley Warkworth will allow me to keep my job. This job is my only source of income. Without it, I will no longer be able to support myself. I will be forced to move away from this region to find work in an already difficult employment climate.

A colleague of mine has recently become engaged. He would like to marry his fiance in the next six months. With a wedding to finance and a mortgage to pay off, this colleague is very concerned about his job security. The extension of Mount Thorley Warkworth will give employees like my colleague the certainty to make similar brilliant life decisions.

We are only two of the one thousand three hundred employees who rely on Mount Thorley Warkworth. Many of these employees have children to feed and mortgages payments to make. If Mount Thorley Warkworth does not receive approval for this extension, the mine will have to shut down and these employees will have to search for new work. Our current job climate will not be able to cope with a sudden influx of thirteen hundred workers. Many will have no choice but to leave the area to search for new work.

Mount Thorley Warkworth supports the local mining and business industry. The site employs numerous contractors to help maintain and upgrade our infrastructure. All our permanent employees and contractors live in the Greater Hunter Region providing economic support to local businesses such as Grocers, Butchers etc. A great deal of the income that I earn is spent locally.

I support this extension as I truly believe it will allow Mount Thorley Warkworth to continue to provide overall benefit to the Greater Hunter Region.

Sincerely,

Jacob Timol Mohamad

I fully support the Warkworth Modification. It will provide a lifeline to the workers at the mine for 2 years and prevent significant job losses. Coal mining in NSW provides jobs and livelihoods for thousands of people, but also significant economic benefit to the state and the country.

Dear Minister,
I support Coal & Allied's Warkworth Modification application to gain access to an additional 350m of land owned by the mine, to avoid a significant drop in production and employment.

As a relatively recent employee of the company, I am seeking additional job security in the coal industry before I am willing to further commit financially to the region. The financial benefits of my employment in the coal industry will enable the benefits to flow through to the non-coal sector, such as the building, tourism, farming and services industries.

The extended uncertainty surrounding the proposed Warkworth Extension has caused concerns in many households regarding their employment and source of income. With the flow on effects, the uncertainty has potentially impacted many thousands of households outside the 1,300 full time employees of the mine.

The operation of the mine affects the finances of many other businesses that supply MTW that are found outside the Hunter Valley. The potential impacts are not a regional issue within one State electorate. Thousands of people depend on this mine and, if production was to drop, the flow-on effects could be devastating.

Please accept this submission in support of the Warkworth Modification.

Regards
Michael Lloyd

Having been born and bred in Singleton, I have seen and expeirienced first hand the effects the mining industry has had on the area.

For the past two years I have been employed at MTW and for this modification not to go ahead wil not only impact directly on my family, but the many others employed directly and indirectly.

Previously to my time at MTW, I spent 23 years in local government with Singleton Council and witnessed direcly the benefit the area recieved from the mining sector through funding opportunities, developement of infrastructure, the growth of the trades sector, and just as importantly through the various government funding to its roads and infrastructure made available through the royalties collected from the mining industry.

The indusrty supports the area as whole, with business, sporting and community groups all having benefited.

The community needs all the industries/ventures in the area to co exist, survive and prosper.

I came to Singleton in 2000 with my family,In this time I have seen the community grow with housing and shops,this is largely because of the minning industry within the shire.
I have been fortune anough to have gained a start with in the minning industry over the last couple of years and set my family up with in the shire.
If this consent is not granted it would put not only my family but many other family in a state of stress and uncertainty of job security.
Singleton was born with coal mines and should be allowed to continue to grow,I see no reason to stop minning in this area.
Singleton is still growing dont let it die now.

I work for RTCA at MTW and HVO.

The fact that the existance of my job relies on the extension being approved, I wholly support the project.

Being from Newcastle, its true that this development has much further outlying repercussions than just the Hunter Valley.

My family also lives with me in Newcastle. As the primary income earner, loss of employment would require me to relocate my family. My partner, working as a Registered Nurse in the public health system, would also have to relocate and find new employment.

Please support jobs and economic development by approving the extension of the Warkworth mine.

I support this submission based on the following:

- This will allow Coal and Allied to continue to mining on land they already own
- Environmental impact on surrounding community is minimal and/or negligible.
- Secures the future of Mount Thorley Warkworth Mine as a viable coal producer and employer in the Hunter Valley for several more years at least

I support the MTW extension application

Date 18 November 2013

Dear PAC Committee or whom it may concern

Please approve the modification to the 2003 consent allowing Mount Thorley Warkworth to mine while the extension to the Warkworth lease is being considered.

As a four year employee at Mount Thorley Warkworth, if granted this modification will throw me, the other employees, contractors, service providers, community and the wider Hunter Valley area a life line in these tough economic conditions. Production at Mount Thorley Warkworth will be impacted in 2014 because of the 2012 extension appeal and this modification will go a long way to reducing the stress on the employee and the operation.

I'm aware that Mining by its very nature impacts the environment and the local communities, but from my experience of 16 years in the Mining industry, Mount Thorley Warkworth does a significant amount to reduce these impacts of noise, dust, blasting, etc. while in addition supporting the community, schools and in general being a good neighbour.

Please approve the modification request for Mount Thorley Warkworth otherwise it will become very difficult to maintain production levels and it only makes sense that this would impact jobs and the economic benefit to the surrounding community.


Yours sincerely


Morgan Costello

Mount Thorley Warkworth Employee

I strongly support this modification. it will only help better the local community and will keep people in jobs.

I am in full support of extension

I personnally support this submission. The expansion will be great for the community

I fully support the MTW expansion for the benenfit of my family and for the Hunter Valley Mining business.

As a single income earner MTW provide in the needs of my family and I. Allowing MTW to extent its current mining area will allow for the lifetime of the mine to be significantly increased. This will provide us as a family with some sense of security in a current volatile coal mining environment.

Not allowing the extension to continue will sterilize a significant amount of coal that could have generated royalties, income tax benefit, foreign currency and job opportunities not only at MTW but also at companies providing goods and services to MTW. The opportunity cost at MTW will be significant but small compared to the regional multiplier effect. As a family living in a regional area we are dependent on goods, services and infrastructure that would not have been a reality was it not for the local mining industry.

I expect the NSW Government to protect workers that are contributing to the NSW economy in a legal and positive manner. In the same way I also expect the NSW Government to protect corporate citizens that form the backbone of a regional communities. The welfare and wellbeing of the majority should in my opinion outweigh the objections of a few.

The Warkworth Modification needs to be approved in order to safeguard the employment of the organisation's workers, as well as ensure that our local community continues to receive ongoing support as a result of mining related activity. Hundreds of local jobs and families are adversely affected every time a mine is forced to close down or downsize its operations.

I am a 16 year old boy. I have a father and a step mother who both work in this mine and who have done so for 17 and 30 years respectively. If it was not for this job, my father would not have been able to provide the best childhood for myself and my younger sister. I also know a lot of people through school and sport that are in a similar situation to myself. they rely on the mine to provide employment and to support their families.I strongly believe this mine should be expanded, not only to keep my family in a job but also provide employment for myself and my mates in the future. Mining is the backbone to the Australian economy and without it, the Hunter Valley and the whole country in general would not be the same. It is vital that this expansion takes place. Thankyou