31 August, 2015
Court action begins to protect koalas from Shenhua coal mine
A local landcare group, whose legal action in the NSW Land and Environment Court starts today, will argue that the Shenhua Watermark mine approval failed to properly consider, as required by law, whether the open cut coal mine would place a viable local population of koalas, a threatened species, at risk of extinction.
Upper Mooki Landcare Group and the NSW Nature Conservation Council have launched a report, ‘Liverpool Plains Koalas and the proposed Shenhua Watermark Coal Mine’, to coincide with the four day hearing, detailing the serious flaws in the assessment process.
Heather Ranclaud, a local beef and egg farmer and spokesperson for the Upper Mooki Landcare Group says, “Coal mining and koalas do not mix, yet this application was assessed without proper scrutiny.
“It’s wrong to push the region’s significant koala population to extinction for the sake of a coal mine, like it’s unwise to destroy NSW’s food bowl and the region’s water security.
“Upper Mooki Landcare is arguing in the Court that the Planning and Assessment Commission failed to determine whether the mine would place a viable local koala population at risk of extinction, as required by the laws of NSW.”
“We are pursuing legal action because there are still so many unanswered questions about the viability of Shenhua's proposed koala plan and it seems at this point the plan does not guarantee the survival of the estimated 262 koalas currently living where Shenhua wants to put its mine.
“This open cut coal mine will clear 847 hectares of koala habitat and risks decimating the local koala population.
“The Planning and Assessment Commission admitted the Gunnedah koala population has already been hit hard by drought and heatwaves, with an estimated 70 per cent reduction in numbers from 2009.
“Shenhua is relying on dubious offset plans and says koalas will either be encouraged to move or ‘translocated’. Experts scrutinising the company’s ‘plans’ have damned the approach. Even Shenhua itself has acknowledged the destruction of important habitat for fauna and that translocations have failed in the past.”
John Hamparsum, a second generation crops farmer from the Liverpool Plains, whose property borders the mine, said, “Growing up on the Liverpool Plains, having koalas all around us, is just part of who we are. We’re worried about the impacts of the mine on this area, which is a major koala breeding ground.
“My family has planted around 5,000 koala friendly trees over the last decade or so, and while not all of them have survived the drought, we’re working hard to improve the local environment.
“We see ourselves as custodians of the land, trying to improve things for the generations to follow, and then along comes this massive coal mine which will destroy our trees, rich soils and precious water.
“I’m really disappointed in the shoddy process that the government has taken to approve this mine. We’ve had big gaps in the water studies and a ‘pick and flick’ approach to research assessing the possible impacts on koalas.”
Kate Smolski, CEO of the NSW Nature Conservation Council said, “The koala is a unique creature and holds a special place in our hearts. Our state would lose a sense of identity if koalas vanished forever.
“The biggest pressure on koalas is the destruction of their habitat, and the last thing we need is a massive new mine that accelerates loss of woodlands for this gentle, iconic animal.”
HIGH QUALITY STILLS of the Liverpool Plains area and local koalas are available, and VISION (on request).
CONTACT: For interviews Daisy Barham 0402 335 664
BACKGROUND
If the controversial Chinese owned Shenhua Watermark coal mine goes ahead it will clear 847 hectares of koala habitat, in an area known as the ‘Koala capital of Australia’, displacing an estimated 262 koalas.
Local community group, Upper Mooki Landcare, is challenging the mine’s approval, because of the failure to properly consider whether the mine will significantly affect koalas, which are a threatened species.
Koalas are listed as vulnerable to extinction in NSW under State and Federal laws. The NSW Planning Assessment Commission, in approving the mine, noted that within the Local Government Area the koala “population has reduced significantly, as a result of droughts and heatwaves, with the estimated reduction of up to 70% since 2009”.
Shenhua says it will mitigate and offset the impacts of the mine through the reestablishment and rehabilitation of habitat, and pursue ‘translocation’ of koalas from the mine site as the woodland is destroyed.
The success of both approaches is under question. For example, there was evidence before the NSW Planning and Assessment Commission that translocation programs have resulted in significantly high mortality rates.
The NSW Office of Environment and Heritage, in its submission to the mine assessment process, stated, “The assessment of significance [of impacts] for the Koala is totally inadequate. No details of the actual Koala population to be impacted upon, nor what impact the Project will have on the population is provided.”
Tags
Coal and gasPlanning and DevelopmentClimate and energy
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