Email NSW Planning Minister to protect Sydney's drinking water
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Protect Sydney’s drinking water from coal mine waste
I am writing to you as a citizen concerned about the threats to community health and our environment, posed by Centennial Coal’s plans to modify the existing consents for Angus Place coal mine (MP06_0021-Mod-8) and the Western Coal Services site (SSD-5579-Mod-5). These plans propose discharging 10 million litres of contaminated mine water per day into Wangcol Creek, which flows to the Coxs River, and is part of the Sydney Drinking Water Catchment. I am deeply concerned about these projects for a number of reasons. The discharge water will be contaminated with toxic chemicals like arsenic, selenium, ammonia and fluoride, as well as other heavy metals. This water will flow into waterways and will cause likely harm to aquatic ecosystems before it ends up in Sydney’s drinking water supply at Warragamba Dam – which is relied on by hundreds of thousands of people for clean, safe, unpolluted water. Additionally, pumping millions of litres of water from Angus Place mine, which is underneath the Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area – home to incredible forests ancient rock formations, ecological communities cultural heritage, and countless threatened plants and animals – may impact on groundwater availability and precious wetlands that are sensitive to changes in the water table. The Gardens of Stone region is a globally-recognised area and must be protected. Minister Scully, as the Minister for Planning, which is responsible for overseeing the assessment of the projects, you have a duty to ensure robust processes for assessing projects. This includes ensuring the objects of the Bilateral Agreement between NSW and the Commonweath are met to facilitate a cooperative approach to referrals, the timely and effective assessment of projects and ensuring that matters of national environmental significance are protected. That’s why I am requesting you refer Centennial Coal’s plans for assessment under our federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. Due to Centennial’s plans being integral to coal mining and that significant impacts on water resources are likely, the ‘water trigger’ applies and the plans must be assessed under the EPBC Act. Clean water is vital for life. It is essential to the health of our communities and our environment. Minister, I am asking you to recognise this and act to ensure these projects receive the highest possible scrutiny and inefficient, inconsistent assessment of the projects is avoided.
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