Wilpinjong Coal Mine Extension

I am opposed to the expansion of the coal mine near Wollar in the Hunter Valley for the following reasons:

*The extension of Wilpinjong Mine will make the village of Wollar unlivable.
*The cumulative social impact of loss of population through mining projects from Ulan to Bylong has not been considered.
*The noise assessment, monitoring and mitigation measures are totally inadequate.
* Air quality has not been assessed against the new standards adopted in December 2015.
*The extension will remove 354 hectares of remnant native vegetation and have an impact on 24 threatened species and ecological communities - more than the current approval. The biodiversity offsets will not provide sufficient habitat for the critically endangered Regent Honeyeater.
*The cumulative impacts on biodiversity, Aboriginal cultural heritage, water sources, greenhouse gas emissions, community and rural industry have not been rigorously assessed.
*The mine will produce an additional 20 million tonnes of greenhouse gasses a year, exacerbating the impacts of climate change. This is at odds with Australia's commitments under the Paris Accord.
*The area has significant Aboriginal cultural heritage values that have not been assessed in a regional context.
*The extension removes existing buffer zones for the Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve.
*The extension will leave three final voids that will permanently scar the landscape and harm waterways for hundreds of years.
*The ongoing impacts on groundwater and surface water systems will be greater than predicted.
*The predicted job numbers are overstated compared, with the current workforce extracting the same volume of coal.
*Peabody Energy is in deep financial distress and may not be fit to meet all its obligations.
*The contract to supply AGL's Bayswater Power Station can be met by the current approval.
*The proposal to continue extracting low quality coal while causing irreversible environmental and social damage cannot be justified.
Thank you for considering these points

Jenny Hughes

As a parent & grandparent who is very concerned for our kids futures I really must question why a progressive State & Country continues to condone & allow the mining of such a harmful substance (coal). We (Australia) will end up with a lot of the damage from the inevitable global warming & if we continue down the current path of approving further coal mining we will get to the point of no return even quicker than currently forecast. We have an abundance of renewable energy sources & we stand to gain significantly more investment & much higher returns from that investment if we venture down the renewable energy path. There are already a significant number of Australian Renewable Energy experts living & working in other countries, creating jobs & wealth to those countries that should've been created in Australia. Why would we approve this development If we are already able to provide the required coal from the current source. Don't we as a nation understand yet that we will become a 3rd world country if we continue on our current journey with fossil fuels.

To allow a coal mine to encroach as close as is proposed to a township is simply not right. The people in the town have every right to live a peaceful, pleasant life in their town without being subjected to the dust and noise that will be a result of the coal mine.

The extension of Wilpinjong Mine will make the village of Wollar unlivable.
The cumulative social impact of loss of population through mining projects from Ulan to Bylong has not been considered.
The noise assessment, monitoring and mitigation measures are totally inadequate.
Air quality has not been assessed against the new standards adopted in December 2015.
The extension will remove 354 hectares of remnant native vegetation and have an impact on 24 threatened species and ecological communities - more than the current approval. The biodiversity offsets will not provide sufficient habitat for the critically endangered Regent Honeyeater.
The cumulative impacts on biodiversity, Aboriginal cultural heritage, water sources, greenhouse gas emissions, community and rural industry have not been rigorously assessed.
The mine will produce an additional 20 million tonnes of greenhouse gasses a year, exacerbating the impacts of climate change. This is at odds with Australia's commitments under the Paris Accord.
The area has significant Aboriginal cultural heritage values that have not been assessed in a regional context.
The extension removes existing buffer zones for the Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve.
The extension will leave three final voids that will permanently scar the landscape and harm waterways for hundreds of years.
The ongoing impacts on groundwater and surface water systems will be greater than predicted.
The predicted job numbers are overstated compared, with the current workforce extracting the same volume of coal.
Peabody Energy is in deep financial distress and may not be fit to meet all its obligations.
The contract to supply AGL's Bayswater Power Station can be met by the current approval.
The proposal to continue extracting low quality coal while causing irreversible environmental and social damage cannot be justified.

The extension of Wilpinjong Mine will make the village of Wollar unlivable.
The cumulative social impact of loss of population through mining projects from Ulan to Bylong has not been considered.
The noise assessment, monitoring and mitigation measures are totally inadequate.
Air quality has not been assessed against the new standards adopted in December 2015.
The extension will remove 354 hectares of remnant native vegetation and have an impact on 24 threatened species and ecological communities - more than the current approval. The biodiversity offsets will not provide sufficient habitat for the critically endangered Regent Honeyeater.
The cumulative impacts on biodiversity, Aboriginal cultural heritage, water sources, greenhouse gas emissions, community and rural industry have not been rigorously assessed.
The mine will produce an additional 20 million tonnes of greenhouse gasses a year, exacerbating the impacts of climate change. This is at odds with Australia's commitments under the Paris Accord.
The area has significant Aboriginal cultural heritage values that have not been assessed in a regional context.
The extension removes existing buffer zones for the Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve.
The extension will leave three final voids that will permanently scar the landscape and harm waterways for hundreds of years.
The ongoing impacts on groundwater and surface water systems will be greater than predicted.
The predicted job numbers are overstated compared, with the current workforce extracting the same volume of coal.
Peabody Energy is in deep financial distress and may not be fit to meet all its obligations.
The contract to supply AGL's Bayswater Power Station can be met by the current approval.
The proposal to continue extracting low quality coal while causing irreversible environmental and social damage cannot be justified.

In a time of Global warming as many fossil fuels as possible need to stay in the ground. As a government you have the chance to show leadership and transition NSW to a new clean future but instead you continually support dirty old technology.

Over the last decade and more it has become obvious that fossil fuels are disastrous for our community, state, country and the world. Our Federal government has made commitments to reducing fossil fuel use.
This proposal flies in the face of common sense and ethical behaviour. It is important that governments take action for the benefit of the people, not just for the benefit of business.
Despite the propaganda of these businesses we know that any jobs created directly by a coal mine will be very short lived and will disrupt many small local businesses that are likely to survive for years if it were not for the proposed mine.
Governments should have the courage to do what is right, not just what is in their own (party) financial interest. They should make commitments to retraining and job creation in fields that have a future - not prop up dead end industries with only a few years to go.
It is outrageous to propose to allow so much environmental and social damage for short term economic gain, especially when it leads to long term economic pain.

Dear Sir/Madam
With respect, I can not understand how a government of the people for the people can trample the people's wishes. This trampling will include family and individual hardship, financially and psychologically. It will create environmental damage including health affesting dust, water contamination, craters left after the mine has gone, carbon increase in the atmosphere and agricultural loss.
The economic benefits are limited with coal being a stranded asset with falling prices. WHY DO IT other than a hope driven by greed and probably election donations.
PLEASE do not allow the expansion of this dirty mine.
Regards
Don Dornan

Its very distressing to hear of yet another aboriginal community being targetted by dirty coal. We need to do better and get things working in a better direction and stop using coal. Solar is always better. Plus we need to stop taking advantage of aboriginal peoples. They have very bad health outcomes and have been disadvantaged since invasion. Noise, air and biodiversity are in that mix

I do not agree with the extension to the coal mine and would like this submission to be be recorded as an OBJECTION.
Given likely long-term ill health effects to human, animals and natural ecosystems from the excessive noise, coal dust and other nasty byproducts of coal extraction; it is not appropraiate for any large scale industrial activity but particuarly a coal mine to be located so close to sensitive natural areas and more so a township.

I object to the extension of the Wilpingjong mine for the following reasons. It will make the village of Wollar unlivable.The extension will ensure the removal of 354 hectares of remnant vegetation and impact on24 threatened species and ecological communities which is more than the current approval. The extension will result in an additional twenty million tons of greenhouse gases a year thus increasing global warming, in contradiction to Australia's commitment at the Paris Climate Summit.

Please address the following points:

he extension of Wilpinjong Mine will make the village of Wollar unlivable.
The cumulative social impact of loss of population through mining projects from Ulan to Bylong has not been considered.
The noise assessment, monitoring and mitigation measures are totally inadequate.
Air quality has not been assessed against the new standards adopted in December 2015.
The extension will remove 354 hectares of remnant native vegetation and have an impact on 24 threatened species and ecological communities - more than the current approval. The biodiversity offsets will not provide sufficient habitat for the critically endangered Regent Honeyeater.
The cumulative impacts on biodiversity, Aboriginal cultural heritage, water sources, greenhouse gas emissions, community and rural industry have not been rigorously assessed.
The mine will produce an additional 20 million tonnes of greenhouse gasses a year, exacerbating the impacts of climate change. This is at odds with Australia's commitments under the Paris Accord.
The area has significant Aboriginal cultural heritage values that have not been assessed in a regional context.
The extension removes existing buffer zones for the Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve.
The extension will leave three final voids that will permanently scar the landscape and harm waterways for hundreds of years.
The ongoing impacts on groundwater and surface water systems will be greater than predicted.
The predicted job numbers are overstated compared, with the current workforce extracting the same volume of coal.
Peabody Energy is in deep financial distress and may not be fit to meet all its obligations.
The contract to supply AGL's Bayswater Power Station can be met by the current approval.
The proposal to continue extracting low quality coal while causing irreversible environmental and social damage cannot be justified.

The dust and noise for local residents will be unbearable, and the harm to our climate from more polluting coal is unacceptable.

he extension of Wilpinjong Mine will make the village of Wollar unlivable.
The cumulative social impact of loss of population through mining projects from Ulan to Bylong has not been considered.
The noise assessment, monitoring and mitigation measures are totally inadequate.
Air quality has not been assessed against the new standards adopted in December 2015.
The extension will remove 354 hectares of remnant native vegetation and have an impact on 24 threatened species and ecological communities - more than the current approval. The biodiversity offsets will not provide sufficient habitat for the critically endangered Regent Honeyeater.
The cumulative impacts on biodiversity, Aboriginal cultural heritage, water sources, greenhouse gas emissions, community and rural industry have not been rigorously assessed.
The mine will produce an additional 20 million tonnes of greenhouse gasses a year, exacerbating the impacts of climate change. This is at odds with Australia's commitments under the Paris Accord.
The area has significant Aboriginal cultural heritage values that have not been assessed in a regional context.
The extension removes existing buffer zones for the Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve.
The extension will leave three final voids that will permanently scar the landscape and harm waterways for hundreds of years.
The ongoing impacts on groundwater and surface water systems will be greater than predicted.
The predicted job numbers are overstated compared, with the current workforce extracting the same volume of coal.
Peabody Energy is in deep financial distress and may not be fit to meet all its obligations.
The contract to supply AGL's Bayswater Power Station can be met by the current approval.
The proposal to continue extracting low quality coal while causing irreversible environmental and social damage cannot be justified.

Once more the coal miners are encroaching on a village, with no concern for the residents. People have a right to live in their towns and villages without having the noise, traffic, and foul air that mining brings.
I have little faith that Peabody will be cleaning up any mess they make.
Don't allow this extention

I am against the extension of this coal mine. The small village of Wollar will become a living hell for its inhabitants. This beautiful area has already suffered enough environmental damage. Not to mention that coal is an outdated and now uneconomic power source. The Peabody company is virtually bankrupt and will almost certainly never repair the environmental damage that has been done .

Even though coal company Peabody is in dire financial straits, it is pushing ahead with plans to expand its Wilpinjong mine ever closer to the community.
The coal mine is poised to expand to within 1.5 kilometres of the village.
The dust and noise for local residents will be unbearable, and the harm to our climate from more polluting coal is unacceptable, while the whole world moves away from coal and fossil fuels. We need to look after our planet. We need clean land, clean water, clean food to live. The future of our children is worth every effort to keep this planet livable.

I wish to object to the proposal to extend the life of the Wilpinjong Mine by another 6 years for the following reasons:
*This extension will bring the mine to within 1.5kms of the village of Wollar which the company acknowledges will accelerate the decline of the community and which I believe will destroy it.
*A further 800 ha of land will be destroyed and 354ha of remnant native vegetation (adversely impacting on 24 threatened species) will be removed.
* The cumulative impact on the areas biodiversity, Aboriginal cultural heritage water sources , greenhouse gas emissions, community and rural industry has not been rigorously assessed.
* This proposal, if allowed means that low quality coal will be extracted producing an additional 20million tonnes of greenhouse gases p.a.and will cause irreversible environmental and social damage. The cost for the community and biodiversity is much to high!!
This proposal must not be approved

The extension of Wilpinjong Mine will destroy the community of Wollar. The cumulative social impact of loss of population through mining projects from Ulan to Bylong has not been considered.
The Peabody Company will be bankrupt very shortly.
The noise assessment, monitoring and mitigation measures are highly inadequate.
Air quality has not been assessed against the new standards adopted in December 2015
The cumulative impact on biodiversity, Aboriginal cultural heritage, water sources, greenhouse gas emissions, community and rural industry has not been rigorously assessed.
The ongoing coal extraction will produce an additional 20 million tonnes of greenhouse gas per year, which will exacerbate the impacts of climate change, and is at odds with Australia's commitments under the Paris Accord.
The area has significant landscape Aboriginal cultural heritage values that have not been assessed in a regional context.
The extension will remove 354 ha of remnant native vegetation impacting 24 threatened species and communities - more than the current approval. The biodiversity offsets will not provide sufficient habitat for the critically endangered Regent Honeyeater.
The extension removes existing buffer zones for the Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve.
The extension will leave 3 final voids in the landscape that will impact the local environment and waterways for hundreds of years into the future. This is a completely unacceptable legacy.
The ongoing impacts on groundwater and surface water systems will be greater than predicted.
The predicted job numbers are overstated compared with the current workforce extracting the same volume of coal.
Peabody Energy is in deep financial distress and may not be fit to meet all obligations.
The contract to supply AGL's Bayswater Power Station can be met by the current approval.
The proposal to continue extracting low quality coal while causing irreversible environmental and social damage cannot be justified.

It is completely unacceptable to open new coal mines. They are extremely polluting. Our society must get rid of all polluting mines and use with alternate means of creating power.