The Lock The Gate Alliance has commissioned new research into the availability of water in the Upper Hunter, following revelations that the Bylong Coal Project will not be able to meet its demand for water from an alluvial aquifer.
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Documents released with the “Gateway certificate” given to the Bylong Coal Project yesterday reveal there is likely to be insufficient groundwater to meet the demands of the mine.
In a submission to the Gateway Panel, the NSW Office of Water said: “Whilst the proponent has acquired a large number of shares for the take of groundwater from the alluvial aquifer, there may be real constraints on the availability of water.
It appears that the coal mines may be sucking the valley dry”
“As demand within the licences entitlement available in the water source increases, or under dry conditions, access to the full entitlement each year may not be possible.”
“There is a substantial economic risk to the activity that there may not be sufficient access to alluvial groundwater to meet the indicated mine water requirements.”
Current laws prevents the Gateway Panel from recommending that a mine not go ahead, and the section of the Water Management Act that makes it an offence to interfere with an aquifer has not yet been brought into force.
Lock the Gate Hunter Co-ordinator, Steve Phillips, said the revelation “should put a rocket up the NSW Government”.
“The NSW Office of Water thinks there will not be enough water in the aquifer to meet the demands of the proposed Bylong coal mine.
It appears that the coal mines may be sucking the valley dry,” he said.
“If the section of the Water Management Act that is supposed to protect aquifers from interference of this kind were in force, if the Gateway Panel had the legal power to recommend rejection of a mine proposal, this project would rightly be knocked off at the first hurdle.”
“The mining proponent should stop wasting their money, and the Bylong Valley should not be put through the trauma of a drawn out assessment process: the Government should reject this mine out of hand.”
Mr Phillips said in times of drought, not all licences will get water allocated.
“It could be that the region will be facing a man-made drought, thanks to excessive purchase of water by coal mines,” Mr Phillips said.
