Media Releases

September 14, 2021

Bylong Valley has again been spared destruction by coal mining. The valley’s salvation this time was delivered by the NSW Court of Appeal, which this morning rejected KEPCO’s appeal against an earlier refusal. [1]  The Korean mining giant had bought prime farmland in Bylong Valley near Mudgee in the state’s Central West and planned to construct a 6.5 million-tonnes-a-year coal...

September 13, 2021

A new land-clearing code introduced by the NSW Government on Saturday could result in thousands of hectares of previously protected bushland being cleared on the spurious grounds of bushfire risk reduction. [1]  “The new Rural Boundary Clearing Code could see thousands of hectares of wildlife habitat destroyed without requiring independent assessment of the environmental impacts,” Nature Conservation Council Chief Executive...

September 10, 2021

Western Sydney residents can breathe a little easier today after the NSW Government ruled out plans to establish two waste-to-energy power stations, at Eastern Creek and Blacktown.  “This is great news for the community that has fought so hard to stop this proposal going ahead,” Nature Conservation Council Chief Executive Chris Gambian said.  “Waste-to-energy...

September 10, 2021

NSW Environment Minister Matt Kean has announced the NSW EPA will not appeal this month’s landmark Land and Environment Court decision requiring the authority to act on climate change. [1]  “The Minister and the EPA Board have clearly made the right call,” Nature Conservation Council Chief Executive Chris Gambian said.  “We look forward to working with the EPA in developing a series of credible policies that meet the awesome...

September 08, 2021

The conservation movement is mobilising to block a new plan to export 60,000 tonnes of native forest woodchips annually to fuel a Japanese power station. [1]  The company behind the proposal, energy start-up Sweetman Renewables [2], has gone to market seeking $4 million from investors to kick start it plans, which include supplying native forest biomass to Redbank power station near Singleton and its customer in...

September 08, 2021

The NSW Government should follow the lead of Western Australia and set a date for an end to native forest logging in this state.  “Native forest logging has had its day. Our native forests are worth more standing because they store huge amounts of carbon and support an...

September 07, 2021

The Nature Conservation Council welcomes the NSW Government’s commitment to a new suite of measures to protect the state’s most threatened species and ecosystems.  Environment Minister Matt Kean has committed to a target of zero extinctions in national parks and released details of a plan to designate key ecosystems and species as Assets of Intergenerational Significance (AIS) that...

August 31, 2021

Climate change is a conspicuous omission in the list of reasons the NSW Independent Planning Commission has given for rejecting the proposed Hume Coal mine today. [1]  “The IPC’s decision is correct and welcome, but it is disappointing that the climate impacts were not mentioned given the International Panel on Climate Change issued its most sobering report to date just weeks ago,” Nature Conservation Council Chief Executive Chris Gambian.  “Yes, the water impacts of this...

August 31, 2021

The Federal Government’s new Enhancing Remnant Vegetation Pilot project will provide much-needed investment in habitat restoration in the heavily cleared Central West region of NSW.  The project, announced today by Federal Agriculture Minister David Littleproud, will also hopefully advance our understanding of the most effective habitat restoration techniques, which can then be...

August 30, 2021

The Morrison Government should abandon plans for a new gas-fired power station at Kurri Kurri after polling showed most voters, including those in federal electorates in the Hunter Valley, opposed the development of new fossil fuel projects.   The YouGov poll of more than 15,000 voters commissioned...