Craig Thomson (Dobell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I did not work this out in advance with the member for Parkes, but a general theme is emerging. I wish to bring to the attention of the House a serious issue in my electorate, which is the plan for a large longwall coalmine under the valleys of the Wyong shire, some of the most pristine rural areas on the New South Wales Central Coast. This mine, made up of 46 underground longwall shafts, is planned over a large area of the region’s water catchment. Half of the Central Coast’s water supply is drawn from the rivers and creeks where the mine is planned. Independent research shows that much of the catchment would be at risk if the mine is allowed to go ahead. Similar mines in water catchment areas south-west of Sydney have caused major, irreversible damage and environmental harm to rivers and streams in those areas. In some cases, water flows have dried up altogether or have suffered pollution. During mining for coal under the riverbed of the Cataract River, the mining company cracked the rock in the riverbed, allowing thermal gases to vent into the river and water to drain away. There is no guarantee that this will not happen again in the valleys of Wyong shire in my electorate.

Of course, the mining company will brush aside all of this. They will say that they can guarantee the water catchment will not come to any harm and that they have ways and means of preventing damage to the sensitive environment. Yet there is nowhere that such longwall underground mining has not caused subsidence and other environmental damage, including the loss of groundwater and surface water. Kores, the proponent of the coalmine, acknowledges that subsidence will occur. Subsidence has, in past and current mines, caused underground aquifers and the flood plains situated above the coal seams to fracture. New drainage channels which arise from these fractures and natural drainage flow lines can intercept contaminated coal seam waters before their final discharge into the Wyong River. Polluted river waters would destroy aquatic life in the estuarine areas of Tuggerah Lakes, the feeding habitat of some 19 international migratory birds recorded in these areas and listed under agreements between Australia, China and Japan known as the CAMBA and JAMBA agreements. Thirty-three threatened species of flora and fauna have been documented by the National Parks and Wildlife Service for both valleys. Mine subsidence also causes soil poisoning from leaking methane or carbon dioxide gases. Contamination can also occur from acid drainage and deterioration of water quality due to a reduction in dissolved oxygen within the coal seam aquifers.

Water is precious to the Central Coast, as it is to many other regions. Our water supply was down to 13 per cent. The Rudd government is providing $80 million to the Gosford/Wyong Councils Water Authority to help drought proof the region. The funding will go towards building a new water pipeline between two dams to allow the region’s largest dam to be stocked, ensuring the water supply for over 300,000 people is secure. The irony is that the valleys through which the pipeline will be built could also be where water is lost forever because of mine subsidence. If there is subsidence, there is real danger that the pipeline itself could collapse.

Incidentally, the company behind the mining plan is owned by the Korean government. The profits generated from this mine will go offshore. Job opportunities for people from the Central Coast will be limited for two reasons: firstly, because the skill base required to fill vacancies already exists in the nearby Hunter Valley and Lake Macquarie and, secondly, because more jobs will be lost by this coalmine going ahead. Seventy-five thousand people are expected to move into this region in the next few decades. Companies have already said that they will not invest in building plants and creating employment in this area if this coalmine goes ahead. Part of the plan is to build a gigantic coal loader right next-door to the largest urban growth area on the Central Coast. This will create noise, dust and air pollution.

I commend the stand taken against this planned coalmine by Alan Hayes and the Australian Coal Alliance, who have fought very hard to make sure that this coalmine does not go ahead. I also put on record my congratulations to the state Labor member for Wyong, David Harris, for the fight he is taking up on this issue to make sure that the pristine valleys of Yarramalong and Dooralong are not damaged by the coalmine going ahead. I call on the state government to listen to what the Central Coast community are saying about this coalmine and to consider it when they are deciding whether or not to let this coalmine go ahead.