We wish to lodge this submission in support of the Wilpinjong Expansion Project.

HIC Services first opened a branch in Mudgee in 2009 with two(2) employees and through our servicing of the mining industry in the Mudgee area we have grown to a workforce of twenty-eight(28) employees, of which twenty-six(26) were employed locally.

Wilpinjong Coal has been a major contributor to our growth and any expansion of the mine and it's life will help in providing security to our company and our workforce into the future.

Besides the direct benefit the Wilpinjong Mine Expansion will provide to us directly, it also filter through to other areas of the community and local economy, with a majority of our suppliers sourced out of Mudgee itself.

Due to the business Wilpinjong Coal generates for HIC Services, we have been able to supply support for local charities and supporting groups and Wilpinjong Coal itself is a big contributor to local community events and charities without whose backing, they would not be able to operate on the same scope or if at all.

We have always found Wilpinjong Coal to be a responsible corporate business that takes it's responsibilities in the area's of Health, Safety, Environment and Community Relations very seriously.

Again we would like to re-iterate our support for the Wilpinjong Expansion Project, as we believe it to be very beneficial to the community and businesses of the Mudgee area.

Should you require any further comment please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards
Stephen Howard
Area Manager

Our Company fully supports the Wilpinjong Extension Project. The combined associated employment and economic benefits to Mudgee and surrounding region are greatly enhanced by an additional 7 years of mine life at Wilpinjong.

Our local area has been strengthened by the positive impacts of increased mining development in the past. It co-exists well with trade, retail, construction & services; providing a healthy economy and infrastructure to our towns in this region.

To place constraints would jeopardise our employment opportunities, especially for the young. Housing growth would decline without the mining expansion, with a de-valuation of our homes and less localised spending which supports our local businesses and retail outlets.

All health and safety parameters have already been established from the Mine successfully, thus an additional 7 years life span can only be beneficial.

By extending the life of the mine this will provide job security to existing employees and contractors as well as indirect employment opportunities by increasing job availability and longevity which in turn will promote a more stable economic base in the region.

We need to support the WEP to create a positive stimulus to education and training as well as towards the region's social infrastructure, such as healthcare, childcare and education.

I support the approval of the Wilpinjong Extension Project.
I am a sixth generation resident of the Wollar area and have witnessed the slow demise of the village which commenced before Wilpinjong mine was even in the planning process.
I have witnessed first hand the support that Wilpinjong has provided for the village and the wider regional towns and community organisations.
Wilpinjong are committed to maintaining and improving the agricultural value of their land. I comment on this with first hand knowledge as we lease our original property and additional land from the mining company and have done for the past several years. Therefore provide a good example of mining and agriculture working side by side.
My family have benefited from employment opportunities provided by Wilpinjong and other local mines and in my opinion employment can only increase with the any expansion.
I have also seen benefits flow through to Mid Western Regional Council with additional provision of facilities and services via contributions and flow on effects.
I consider that for the foreseeable future coal is an important part of our energy supply and believe Wilpinjong is a suitable location for mining activities.

I request that you protect the people of Wollar. They have a right to live in a clean environment. Unfortunately they have already been subjected to unacceptable leveles of pollution from mining.

So many aspects of this mining application have not been assessed properly or are grossly inadequate.

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 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.

This is a stranded asset. The taxpayers of NSW will be payin g for all the mine rehabiltation,becasue Peabody cannot afford to pay.
I object to this proposal as it is contrary to the interests of the NSW taxpayers and the wider community.

1) 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.

2) The noise assessment, monitoring and mitigation measures are highly inadequate.

3) Air quality has not been assessed against the new standards adopted in December 2015.

4) The cumulative impact on biodiversity, Aboriginal cultural heritage, water sources, greenhouse gas emissions, community and rural industry has not been rigorously assessed.

5) 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.

6) The area has significant landscape Aboriginal cultural heritage values that have not been assessed in a regional context.

7) 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.

8) The extension removes existing buffer zones for the Munghorn Gap Nature Reserve.

9) 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.

10) The ongoing impacts on groundwater and surface water systems will be greater than predicted.

11) The predicted job numbers are overstated compared with the current workforce extracting the same volume of coal.

12) Peabody Energy is in deep financial distress and may not be fit to meet all obligations.

13) The contract to supply AGL's Bayswater Power Station can be met by the current approval.

14) The proposal to continue extracting low quality coal while causing irreversible environmental and social damage cannot be justified.

Why in the world would the NSW Government allow the extension of the Wilpinjong mine?
This mine has already decimated the community of Wollar. If it is allowed to expand to 1.5 k from the village, this would be the end of Wollar as we know it. The noise would increase exponentially, so would the dust. He few remaining residents would have to go. Enough is enough!

Extensions of mines should never get the go ahead. It's a trick used by big companies to further their greed. Start small, wreck the environment and then why not let them continue since most people have left and few remain to object.

Wilpinjong, a marginal mine, is asking for an expansion NOW when it hasn't even mined half of their present reserve. We know the company is in financial trouble, so it's easy to imagine that the extension is sought to help Wilpinjong sell on the mine at a much more advantageous price to cover some of their deficits. Does the government really want this when the price of coal has so dramatically dropped and would mean more competition with existing mines?
It should also send alarm bells to the government considering Peabody might not be able to fulfill its obligation to rehabilitate the environment destroyed by mining. At the Planning Department meeting in Wollar a few days ago, no one seemed convinced that a rehabilitation bond would work!

This extension should definitively not happen for the survival of an already compromised environment which comprises 2 adjacent National Parks! A further 800 ha of land would be destroyed and would impact the land and water for 100 years to come! The flora and fauna would be further threatened. Already obvious, when listening to the complaints of the residents, is the level of the water table which has already substantially dropped in the last 10 years. Does any one care?

Peabody says it will, through this expansion, increase their workforce. How so then, when they have recently further reduced their employee number on their various pits?

Now is not the time to be pushing ahead with Wilpinjong's expansion. The mining and burning of coal is a leading contributor to global warming. Coal mines all over the world are closing down forced by the developed countries' push to move away from damaging fossil fuels. Think the bleaching of the Barrier Reef, more heat waves, devastating floods, etc.
It's time the NSW Government starts subsidising renewable energies instead and give up for good the opening of new mines or their extension.

I have been employed at this site for 8 years, in this time I have been able to support my family by earning wages from this site. It has a flow on effect that helps the surrounding communities by way of shopping, fuel, local products and more. Peabody also supports local community events such as the recent of the Mudgee 9's. The Leukemia Foundation had a major boast from fundraising last year and the up and coming Relay for Life with be one of the next beneficiaries.

With most of the wages being earned at the mine site being spent within the community in local shops, rent, mortgages, rates and so on and so forth. Without these wages being paid the community would not be thriving as much as it is now.

As an employee of Peabody Energy at Wilpinjong Coal Mine, a resident, home owner and rate payer of the Mid-Western Regional Council, approval of the Wilpinjong Extension Project is important to me. The mine is already a major contributor to employment within the region, and provides substantial sums of money to assist community organisations, health services, and the upgrading and maintenance of important infrastructure such as Ulan Road.

The Mid-Western Regional Council area is a thriving community, boosted by the contribution the mine makes by way of its employment etc. Further, there are employees who originate from various other parts of the country and world, (including myself) that then bring their families and friends to the region. This is a significant contribution to the tourism industry. Many of my family and friends, who have visited the region, probably would not have if it was not for me residing here. Many of them had not heard of Mudgee prior to me relocating here.

Approval of the Wilpinjong Extension Project will allow continued economic growth, and be beneficial to the entire region.

the mine gives good opportunity to the local area and should have the opportunity to carry on with mining