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Pick the letter(s) you want to send. Copy and paste these to
your word processor. Add your address, print them out, sign them and send them
off. Send a copy of replies to the Colong Foundation, 2/332 Pitt St, Sydney NSW
2000.
Return to the Gardens of Stone Home Page
Protect the Gardens of Stone - Say NO to open-cut coal mining
The proposed 1,088 hectare open-cut coal mine in the Ben Bullen State Forest is endangering the Gardens of Stone, threatening to turn scenic public forests into piles of waste rock.
The Gardens of Stone are incredibly beautiful and diverse. It must be reserved as a state conservation area and not totally destroyed by open-cut coal mining. We can stop it now, but only with your help (letter writing guide).
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Ben
Bullen Addition to the Gardens of Stone National Park |
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Download a quality image of spectacular stone pagodas at the head of Baal Bone Creek in the Gardens of Stone for free personal use here (2Mb).
We invite you to write a short letter requesting the reservation of this fantastic area as an addition to the Gardens of Stone National Park. Xstrata Coal's mine operations are now completed and the former mining area is being rehabilitated. It is up to you to help secure this beautiful area within a state conservation area.
So let the O'Farrell Government know you support the reservation of this area:
The Hon. Robyn Parker MP The
Hon. Barry O'Farrell MP The Hon Chris
Hartcher MP
Minister for the Environment
Premier of NSW
Minister for Resources & Energy
Parliament House Parliament House Parliament House
Sydney NSW 2000 Sydney NSW 2000
Sydney NSW 2000
office@parker.minister.nsw.gov.au premier@www.nsw.gov.au
office@hartcher.minister.nsw.gov.au
Some of the points you could include in your letters:
• The entire 8,776 ha Ben Bullen and Wolgan State Forests, including the upper Baal Bone Creek area, should be reserved as a state conservation area.
• Nestled on the Great Dividing Range, the spectacular Ben Bullen forest merits protection for its scenery values alone. Reservation would also protect to two important upland swamps.
• The pagoda rock formations in area proposed for national park protection form several complex mazes surrounded by high cliffs.
• If the Coalpac open-cut mine should not be allowed to scalp 1088 hectares of forested hillsides on both sides of the Castlereagh Highway. Please take action to reserve these forests to stop the damage.
(send a copy to the Premier as well, address below)
(your address)
The Hon. Robyn Parker MP
Minister for the Environment
Level 31, Governor Macquarie Tower
1 Farrer Place
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Minister Parker,
The Gardens of Stone Stage Two Reserve proposal
The reservation of the 41,500 hectare Gardens of Stone Stage Two reserve proposal would greatly enhance the conservation of a stunning landscape, which contains unique botanical, recreational and scenic assets that are not part of the existing Blue Mountains reserve system. These include the best examples of 'pagoda' rock pinnacles created by ironstone bands etched from the Burramoko sandstone that outcrops only in the western Blue Mountains; the highest density of rare plants in the Mountains; and outstanding examples of nationally endangered upland swamps.
The reserve proposal contains no commercial natural resources not found elsewhere, and the state conservation reserve areas of the proposal are configured to allow continued mining of coal within existing mining interests. The threats to the area's real value, its scenery and biodiversity, can only be effectively addressed through reservation action. A state conservation area reservation over existing coal leases will facilitate more sustainable outcomes where the environmental values of this outstanding area are protected and managed.
I also ask that you take the steps necessary to ensure that the Public Land Rationalisation Scheme is implemented so that all 4000 hectares of suitable land are added to the Blue Mountains National Park, as originally planned. These lands are part of the Western Escarpment Biodiversity Corridor. Furthermore, splitting the management between two local councils of areas including the nationally significant heritage at Mount York, which has the first passes into the interior, is inappropriate. This area merits better recognition and effective, consistent management.
Yours sincerely
cc: The Hon. Barry O'Farrell MP
Premier of NSW
Level 40
Governor Macquarie Tower
1 Farrer Place
Sydney NSW 2000
Minister for Primary Industries
(your address)
The Hon Chris Hartcher MP
Minister for Resources and Energy
Level 37, Governor Macquarie Tower
1 Farrer Place
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Minister Hartcher,
Gardens of Stone and Coal Mining
As you would be aware, the Gardens of Stone Stage Two reserve proposal does not oppose coal mining but seeks reservation and better management of lands over Newnes Plateau and the public forests along the Great Dividing Range.
I support the efforts of your Department of Investment and Trade to work with the Office of Environment and Heritage and Centennial Coal to develop a management strategy over part of this important area. To make coal mining compatible with that area's heritage values please support protection zones for streams, swamps, cliffs, pagoda formations and cultural heritage, such as Aboriginal art sites and oil shale ruins.
Given the outstanding qualities of the area, I believe the area's natural and cultural heritage deserve effective management.
Yours sincerely
(your address)
The Mayor
Lithgow City Council
PO Box 19
LITHGOW NSW 2790
Dear Sir,
The effects of cliff destruction and loss of wetlands arising from poorly regulated coal mining will be with us for thousands of years. A legacy of broken cliff lines, polluted rivers and degraded swamps would hinder Lithgow becoming a centre for tourism. I ask you to support moves to better protect the environment from the damaging effects of coal mining. The World Heritage area so close to a big city is drawing tourism to Lithgow as seen with the Emirates development. Please support protection zones for streams, cliffs, pagoda formations and cultural heritage, such as Aboriginal art sites and oil shale ruins.
Yours sincerely
Top of page
(your address)
The Hon Brad Hazzard MP
Minister for Planning and Infrastructure
Level 33, Governor Macquarie Tower
1 Farrer Place
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Minister Hazzard,
Don't turn Newnes Plateau into a Sydney's sandpit
The protection of the Gardens of Stone Area, centred on Newnes Plateau has for many years been recognised as a high conservation value area, with spectacular scenery and rich botanical values. The proposal to develop the Newnes Plateau as a strategic sand resource must be rejected due to the damage that would be caused to the area's other values.
The Newnes Plateau is situated on the watershed of the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area and the headwaters of Sydney's water supply. It would have to be one of the least suitable places for a sand mining district. It would impose a visually intrusive, polluting, noisy, dusty blight on the most botanically diverse area in the Blue Mountains.
We urge you to support the Gardens of Stone - Stage Two reserve proposal, which would permit effectively regulated underground coal mining operations, but should prevent further sand mining on the surface, which results in the wholesale removal of the natural environment.
Yours sincerely
(your address)
The Hon Tony Burke MP
Minister for the Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities
PO Box 6022
House of Representatives
Parliament House
CANBERRA ACT 2600
Dear Minister Burke,
Clarence Colliery Mine: the World Heritage Area should be protected from pollution
Centennial Coal, which owns the Clarence Colliery near Lithgow, has for decades discharged 15ML of polluted water each day into the otherwise pristine Wollangambe River that flows into the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area.
The river is a major recreational resource used by many wilderness tour companies to introduce Blue Mountains visitors to the sport of canyoning. Many thousands visit the Wollangambe's canyons each year.
In the past Centennial Coal, NSW Environment Protection Agency, Department of Land and Water Conservation and Lithgow City Council and even the company itself considered the current pollution of the Wollangambe River is unacceptable. Yet the pollution continues.
Centennial Coal has not adequately addressed the unacceptable pollution when the mine was expanded. The proposal stated 'it must be stressed that the proposed new water management system is not part of this EIS proposal'. 'In terms of the existing proposal, there will be no changes made to the existing management system and therefore the impact on water quality in the region will be neutral' (page 4-7 of the Clarence expansion EIS).
That 'neutrality' encompasses continued unacceptable pollution of the Wollangambe River by the Clarence Colliery. Back in March 1999, a Centennial Coal report stated 'If the current system is allowed to continue indefinitely, the discharge of such water into the Wollamgambe would be considered a breech of the (former) Clean Water Act 1970, rendering the mine liable to prosecution. It is therefore evident that this is not an option that is acceptable to Centennial, DLWC, Council, or the EPA.'
As a World Heritage area is being affected. The Commonwealth approval under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, 1999 for extending the mine must surely be contingent upon Centennial Coal's compliance with State pollution laws. What steps will you take to ensure that Centennial Coal makes good their own commitments to stop the pollution being discharged to the World Heritage Area?
Yours sincerely
(your address)
The Hon Tony Burke MP
Minister for the Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities
PO Box 6022
House of Representatives
Parliament House
CANBERRA ACT 2600
Dear Minister Burke,
Protection of Newnes Swamps
Please take further steps to protect all nationally endangered Temperate Highland Peat Swamps on Sandstone in the Gardens of Stone Reserve proposal from subsidence damage due to underground coal mining. We are pleased that investigations by your environment department confirmed that longwall coal mining operations by Centennial Coal on the Newnes Plateau, near Lithgow, New South Wales, had caused a significant impact on the endangered Temperate highland peat swamps on sandstone ecological community, which environment groups had previously identified. As you are be aware, Junction, East Wolgan and Narrow Swamps on Newnes Plateau have all been ruined by intensive longwall mining undermining them.
I am also pleased that Centennial Coal was ordered to pay $1.45 million under national environmental laws after causing damage to these swamps. The swamps are now susceptible to being totally destroyed by wildfire.
It is disappointing that the
general manager for Centennial Coal, Katie Brassil still denies the damage was
due for coal mining and instead asserted in the Lithgow Mercury (27 Oct. 2011)
that “we consider changes to the swamps are related to changes to climatic
conditions in the area.”
In your media statement on the 21 October, you said that you will not tolerate
companies causing needless damage to the environment. I believe Centennial has
overstepped the mark, and urge you to protect all the endangered swamps on
Newnes Plateau before further needless damage by longwall mining.
Centennial Coal needs to be stopped from undertaking further intensive longwall mining under these national endangered swamps as doing so would permanently damage the remaining swamps.
Yours sincerely
The Impact of Coal Mining on the Gardens of Stone report
The Hon. Bob Carr
launched a report on
the
Impact of Coal Mining on the Gardens of Stone
(2 Mb pdf file)
on 27 April, 2010. The Gardens of Stone is New South Wales very own Bungle
Bungle Range, just 2½ hours from Sydney on the
western edge of the Blue Mountains. This place of superlative scenery and
tremendous botanical diversity is called the Gardens of Stone.
The report details the devastating impacts of coal mining at the Gardens of Stone, including the collapse of several hundred of cliffs and the poisoning of nationally endangered swamps with mine effluent. The report also outlines what can be done to stop the damage and save this ecologically significant area.
A transcript of the speech by the Hon. Bob Carr at the launch of The Impact of Coal Mining on the Gardens of Stone report is available here.
A short report
(html) on Monitoring the Death of Protected Swamps is available here.
See the Damage to NSW's "Bungle Bungle Range"
Hundreds of cliff collapses and large surface cracks have been recorded by Mr Chris Jonkers at the Baal Bone Colliery, but nothing has been done to reduce the cliff damage in the 28 years of mine operation.
The GPS co-ordinates and a brief description for over 200 damage sites are available here. This data of the coal mining abuse done to NSW's equivalent of the Bungle Bungle Range in Western Australia was recorded by Mr Chris Jonkers .
To Take Action to stop the damage, read below...
Return to the Gardens of Stone Home Page
Return to the Blue Mountains Mining Threat Page
To comment on these letters, email: foundation@colongwilderness.org.au
Last updated Tuesday 29-Nov-2011