Modification 11 - Time Extension

This proposal which seeks to extend operations for another five years, is in my view wholly inconsistent with Australia's commitment to urgently reduce its reliance on coal (along with other fossil fuels). I strongly reject that we need to continue to extract and burn coal for our energy needs, I also reject the proposed extension because every extension application approved adds to Australia's methane and carbon output when we need to be urgently reducing these emissions. I have six children, seven grandchildren and one grandchild all of whom will live through the catastrophic conditions that continuing to burn fossil fuels creates. WE MUST STOP NOW.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Clarence Colliery’s proposed extension - MOD 11 Gardens of Stone- Application Number- DA504-00-Mod-11. This proposal presents several environmental concerns (contaminated water, damage to pagoda landscape and species habitat), social issues that undermine climate action, and community distrust in government environmental regulations that are meant to protect environmental values and not coal mining interests.
I object to the extension of another 5 years of this project.

Please see my attached document.
Thank you for your time.

I can not believe that it is 2026 and I still need to write a submission to stop more coal mining. Surely there is overwhelming evidence published that correlate the use of fossil fuels with the devastating impacts of climate change.
My wife and I have nine children and twenty one grandchildren that we would like to imagine have some chance of coping with the future that our generation are intending to leave them with.
We here in Australia have an ethical responsibility to reduce fossil fuel use both here in Australia and throughout our planet.
We are blessed with so many other options and there are no excuses for extending any coal mine.
Please reject the Clarence Collery proposed Modification 11.

I object to this proposal for an extension of 5 years to operate this coal mine near a conservation area the ‘Gardens of Stone’. This area should be protected from any long term mining operations that conflict with long-term conservation values. We already have far too many coal mines in NSW that are escalating climate change and compromising NSW Climate Targets. Along with the threats to biodiversity, habitat destruction and water contamination including unique upland swamps and toxic pollution affecting Sydney’s drinking water.
Please see my attached document.

Thank you,
Janice Haviland

I write to support the Clarence Colliery Mod 11, which seeks to extend the existing mining consent to 31 December 2031. The proposal represents a continuation of an established and approved operation. Approval of this Mod is important to maintain ongoing employment, continue to support the local businesses and provide regional economic stability in the Lithgow region which is currently struggling in an already tough economic environment. This Mod 11 provides a sensible and orderly transition period while longer term approvals are progressed, avoiding unnecessary disruption to employees, local businesses and the local community. For these reasons, I strongly support the approval of Mod 11.

I support the continuation of Clarence Colliery. The extension of the Consent is logical. To continue the use of existing infrastructure is sensible as once removed it would be unfeasible to replace. The continuation of 300 local jobs is significant and worth preserving. Furthermore the coal to be mined is a resource that we all benefit from through the royalties, taxes, and salaries, that are otherwise unrealised.

I support the approval of MOD11 to Clarence Colliery consent. I do not work for Clarence, but I work for Centennial and have spent time at Clarence on and off since 2001 when I first worked there as a vacation student so know the operation and the people who work there.
Clarence's workforce is made up of hard working, proud locals from the Blue Mountains and the Central West, and then there are many more regular contractors from the same regions who support the business in many ways. There is also the flow on effect for local businesses who include Clarence as their customers.
This modification is just allowing Clarence to continue operating in the same manner as they have for so many years and to provide employment security to those people.
It should be approved.

This project extension is not warranted. Mining and burning coal prolongs the environmental damage already affecting our waterways, landforms and climate. At a time when we urgently need to reduce reliance on coal, approving extended coal extraction is the wrong direction for the Gardens of Stone region and for NSW.
If the NSW Government is going to approve this extension despite community opposition, including my own, that approval must come with these six strict conditions.
1. Link the approval to the upgrade of the Lidsdale coal unloader. This critical infrastructure would reduce reliance on the polluting, wet Springvale mine.
2. Reject the continued approval of 300,000 tonnes of coal being moved by truck. There is no justification for extending years of heavy truck movements through the Blue Mountains and Sydney. Rail is available and its use should be mandatory.
3. Acknowledge the real impacts of truck transport. The claim of “no or negligible” impacts does not reflect the experience of communities dealing with noise, traffic, diesel pollution and road safety risks from over 7000 truck trips every year.
4. Prioritise local use over export. Most Clarence coal is exported. If extraction continues, it should supply Mount Piper Power Station to avoid pressure for new coal from more damaging mines in the region.
5. Strengthen rehabilitation requirements. Existing rehab commitments are outdated and inadequate. Any extension must impose modern, enforceable rehabilitation standards.
6. Link approval to rehabilitation of old waste dumps. The disused coal waste heaps of this mine must be rehabilitated immediately to prevent fine sediments washing into the Wollangambe River, a listed wild river.

I object to the proposed five year extension of the permissions for the Clarence Coal Mine.
I believe that we urgently need to reduce reliance on coal, so approving extended coal extraction is the wrong direction for NSW. Mining and burning coal prolongs the environmental damage already affecting our waterways, landforms and climate. If the extension were to be approved, despite strong community opposition, then it must come with these six strict conditions:
1. Link approval to the upgrade of the Lidsdale coal unloader.This critical infrastructure would reduce reliance on the polluting, wet Springvale mine.
2. Reject the continued approval of 300,000 tonnes of coal by truck.There is no justification for extending years of heavy truck movements through the Blue Mountains and Sydney. Rail is available and its use should be mandatory.
3. Acknowledge the real impacts of truck transport. The claim of “no or negligible” impacts does not reflect the experience of communities dealing with noise, traffic, diesel pollution and road safety risks from over 7000 truck trips every year.
4. Prioritise local use over export. Most Clarence coal is exported. If extraction continues, it should supply Mount Piper Power Station to avoid pressure for new coal from more damaging mines in the region.
5. Strengthen rehabilitation requirements.Existing rehab commitments are outdated and inadequate. Any extension must impose modern, enforceable rehabilitation standards.
6. Link approval to rehabilitation of old waste dumps. The disused coal waste heaps of this mine must be rehabilitated immediately to prevent fine sediments washing into the Wollangambe River, a listed wild river.
I believe that the NSW Government should not facilitate the continuing pollution caused by the Clarence Coal Mine beyond December 2026. We need to invest in protecting our treasured natural environment, like The Gardens of Stone, and begin to repair damage already done by stopping the coal mining.
Yours sincerely, Steve Garthwin

To whom it may concern,
l am making this submission to strongly oppose the extension in its current form.
Mining and burning coal prolongs the environmental damage already affecting our waterways, landforms and climate.

1 Link approval to the upgrade of the Lidsdale coal unloader.This critical infrastructure would reduce reliance on the polluting, wet Springvale mine.
2 Reject the continued approval of 300,000 tonnes of coal by truck.There is no justification for extending years of heavy truck movements through the Blue Mountains and Sydney. Rail is available and its use should be mandatory.
3 Acknowledge the real impacts of truck transport. The claim of “no or negligible” impacts does not reflect the experience of communities dealing with noise, traffic, diesel pollution and road safety risks from over 7000 truck trips every year.
4 Prioritise local use over export. Most Clarence coal is exported. If extraction continues, it should supply Mount Piper Power Station to avoid pressure for new coal from more damaging mines in the region.
5 Strengthen rehabilitation requirements.Existing rehab commitments are outdated and inadequate. Any extension must impose modern, enforceable rehabilitation standards.
6 Link approval to rehabilitation of old waste dumps. The disused coal waste heaps of this mine must be rehabilitated immediately to prevent fine sediments washing into the Wollangambe River, a listed wild river.
This is a critical moment. Five more years of coal extraction is not a minor administrative change — it is a significant decision for our environment, our communities and the Gardens of Stone
regards Mr Roger Corben

I object to any part of the application that proposes to use Sandham Road, Bell, either as a haul road for trucks carrying coal, or any general increase in usage of the Road. Sandham Road crosses my property for some 500m; in other words that part of the Road is private property. In Bell Quarry Rehabilitation Project Pty Ltd v Lithgow City Council [2022] NSWLEC, Mr justice Moore denied the appeal to allow the project to proceed upon one ground - my objection, presented through Blue Mountains City Council, to the Project crossing my property to access the 'development' site. Again, I do not give permission to Centennial Coal or Clarence Colliery or parties associated with them to use the private secion of Sandham Road.

The Clarence Modification 11 application has my support.

As an employee within the mining industry I will not make extensive comments on the benefits of mining, rather centralize my comments towards the benefits of the project to the community and neighboring stakeholders.

The project provides for:
- a time extension. without significant change or major variation to existing consent controls,
- road transport of coal during the period (as has been in place under previous modifications),
- maintaining employment to a large portion of local residents,
- support to energy generation to a growing level of residents in the state; and
- no change to existing and approved disturbance footprint.

Yours sincerely,
Dennis Wallace

I object to the proposed extension of operations. As unequivocally shown by the reports and statements of the United nations framework on climate change and following many years of research by scientists the world over, extension of coal mining, which supports extension of greenhouse gas emissions into the future is unethical in the extreme. Climate change is already causing and will cause significant and growing suffering amongst the peoples and living creatures of the earth. This applies especially those already disadvantaged economically and geographically. Those proposing and agreeing to continued mining and burning of coal are complicit in this growing disaster.

https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/united-nations-framework-convention-on-climate-change

I am writing to oppose the extension of the colliery for another 5 years. We need to reduce our reliance on coal now to help reduce climate change impacts in Australia and overseas.

I am a Life Member of the Australian Plants Society NSW and Sutherland Shire Environmental Citizen of the Year 2025. I am well aware of the importance of our natural environment for human health and wellbeing, and actively work as a volunteer to protect our environment. Communities everywhere, not just in the colliery's local area, will suffer the impacts of the extension.

If the extension is approved, I ask you to strengthen rehabilitation requirements for the site. Existing rehabilitation commitments are outdated and inadequate. Any extension must impose modern, enforceable rehabilitation standards.

Keep the soot flowing.

This would support local jobs and continue to provide coal to the power network.

I am writing to support the proposed mine extension. This mine provides steady work for more than three hundred people, many of whom live locally, including myself and people I know. These jobs help families stay in the area and give our community security and stability. The mine also supports many other local businesses, contractors, shops, and services that rely on it.
Mining has always been a big part of our community. It’s part of who we are and has supported generations of local families. Keeping the mine going helps protect that history and ensures our town continues to grow and stay strong.
The mining methods used here are carefully managed and designed to have very little impact on the environment and the land on the surface. The company monitors this closely, and the community sees the benefits of mining done responsibly.
Most importantly, this is a local mine that employs local people. The extension means ongoing work, ongoing support for local families, and ongoing benefits for the whole region. Losing these jobs would hurt our community, but continuing the mine will help keep it thriving.

I support ongoing operations, maintaining local employment and revenue to NSW.

I support this project

As a concerned local resident, I strongly believe the Clarence mine extension should go ahead for the long-term benefit of our community and region. The Clarence Colliery has been a cornerstone of our local economy for decades, supporting families, small businesses, and essential services across the Lithgow area. Extending the mine is not about short-term gain — it is about sustaining livelihoods in a region where stable employment opportunities are limited.
Many of my neighbours either work directly at the mine or rely on the economic flow-on effects it generates. From local suppliers and contractors to cafés, schools, and sporting clubs, the mine’s presence keeps money circulating within our community. Without the extension, we risk job losses that would ripple through the region, forcing families to relocate and weakening the social fabric that makes our town strong.
Importantly, modern mining practices are far more regulated and environmentally accountable than in the past. The operators of Centennial Coal are subject to strict state and federal environmental standards, ongoing monitoring, and rehabilitation requirements. If the extension proceeds, it will do so under rigorous oversight, ensuring environmental impacts are carefully managed and minimised.
We also need to be realistic about energy demand. While Australia transitions toward renewables, high-quality coal from Clarence still plays a role in steel production and global energy markets. Abruptly shutting down viable operations does not eliminate demand; it simply shifts production elsewhere, often to countries with lower environmental standards.
Approving the Clarence mine extension is about responsible continuity — maintaining jobs, supporting families, and allowing time for a gradual economic transition rather than a sudden shock. As residents, we must balance environmental responsibility with economic stability, and I believe this extension achieves that balance for our community’s future.