HVO North Open Cut Coal Continuation Project

Please see submission attached

Great work opportunities for the local people and valuable to future living.

I support the HVO Open Cut Coal Continuation Project as it will continue to employ hundreds of local people that have homes and families within the Hunter Valley. All parts of this project have been thoroughly and carefully planned.

The expansion of activities at HVO would inevitably result in degraded air quality, with
significant and prolonged air pollution in the form of PM10 and PM 2.5 emissions. PM 2.5 emissions are particularly concerning. Last year, Associate Professor Gabriel Da Silva - expert on the chemistry of air pollution at The University of Melbourne -
made a submission on the expansion of the Mount Pleasant mine (also in the Hunter
Valley), finding that for health reasons, “the mine shouldn’t be allowed to expand.”
Reaching this conclusion, Dr Da Silva found “emerging science” is telling us “that
PM2.5 is actually more harmful than we once understood” and that “the latest studies
are showing we can’t actually work out where a safe limit for exposure to PM2.5 is.”
Voids
HVO proposes to leave two huge voids that will slowly fill up with salty water. HVO South and HVO North pit lakes are expected to take about 1,000 years to ‘reach an equilibrium level’ (that is to say ‘salty lake’ that will remain an environmental hazard in perpetuity). (EIS Main Report pg 239)

Aboriginal cultural heritage
Significant Aboriginal cultural heritage values would be impacted by this Project,
therefore the Plains Clans of the Wonnarua People object to any expansion of open
cut coal mining at HVO.

Biodiversity
The Project would clear 397 ha of native vegetation, 97.4 ha of which is home to Threatened Ecological Communities (TECs).

I am writing this submission to oppose the HVO Operations continuation Project in my capacity as a concerned NSW citizen, a mother and grandmother who is deeply worried about the impact of global warming and the threat it poses.
I would like to begin by questioning why the NSW Government is even considering an application from Glencore, a company which has very clearly shown that is not a ‘fit and proper’ title holder, as required under our mining and EPA legislation. Glencore has very recently been charged and found guilty of massive corporate bribery and sustained criminality overseas and in Australia it is facing investigation by ASIC. Why on earth are we considering extending this company’s operations here?
In relation to this application for expansion, I am objecting on a range of grounds.
Foremost is my concern about the massive greenhouse gas pollution the project will create, which will seriously and irreversibly undermine our ability to reduce dangerous CO2 emissions. If approved this project is estimated to produce an additional 1.2 billion tonnes of carbon emissions – at a time when NSW has a target of reducing GHG emissions by 70% by 2035. It’s methane emissions will triple over the life of the project at the same time as Australia is trying to meet it’s commitment under the Global Methane Pledge to reduce fugitive methane emissions by 30% by 2030. The applicant is not even making the smallest attempt to limit it’s carbon pollution – it is not even going to clean up operations, eg limiting it’s diesel emissions from its mining fleet – applying instead for approval to increase this form of pollution!
The extension of mining also poses a serious threat to Aboriginal cultural sites in the area, and is being opposed by local custodians of the land, and it will destroy hundreds of hectares of native vegetation, some of which provides shelter to threatened species.
And finally the project will create massive voids, which threaten to fill up with salty water, which scientists estimate may take up to 1,000 years to repair. It will leave in its wake a landscape dotted with unusable and hazardous sites.
Approving this project will provide very little benefit to local communities or to the broader economy. It will create massive long-term damage, it threatens the future of our children and for what goal – just to further line the pockets of already mega-rich corporations who are trying to squeeze as much profit as possible from a dangerous and dying industry.
Please, for our children’s sake, reject this proposal.

As a wife of a truck operator at HVO I would like to support this submission so that we can keep providing a better future for our family , as well as the business is supporting many more other small business in the Hunter valley and elsewhere in NSW .
we are a mining community

This project can only be beneficial for the people of the Hunter Valley. I have been involved in mining my whole career and it was this career that brought me to the Hunter Valley. Like so many people, there would be no reason to be here without the jobs and the security that mining provides. The ongoing benefits for people outside of direct employment from the mines is enormous. Those of us that have chosen to have families here mean that there are more school options available and more employment for people outside of the mining industry. At 40 years old, I have never lived in a better place.

The continuation of this project is a cynical attempt to maximize corporate profits at the detriment of Australia's natural environment and her long-term economic prospects.

Climate change has a greater effect on Australia's ecology than for many countries, due to not only our geographic position and related climate patterns, but also to our unique environment. It is the responsibility of our government and the corporations that exist here to make decisions in the common interest, not just in the interests of short-term profit.

The EIS report has deliberately glossed over scope 3 carbon emissions when discussing the impact of this mine in section 9.4. While I understand that scope 1 and 2 are more directly related to the mine itself, the fact remains that the vast majority of emissions that will occur as a result of this project will not come from the mine itself and related activities, but from the actual coal it exports (see table 9.3). To not mention the global impact of the emissions caused by this mine - however indirectly - is a cynical and unethical attempt to sidestep an issue that will affect australians for generations. It is in effect cheerfully kicking the can down the road.

At the very least, the EIS should aknowledge the impact of scope 3 emissions that will result from the continuation of this mine, instead of hiding behind a cowardly lie by omission.

Continuing employee and support

My family and friends depend on HVO to survive so I would like the mine to continue

I believe it is of great importance to continue with mining at HVO North Open Cut Coal as it is an integral part of employment in this region. The mine adheres to EPA regulations and for a sustainable future for the production of clean coal. The importance of a strong community in the upper hunter region is also of great importance. Plus the revenue that is contributed to the state government.

I support this project for the future of the Hunter Valley and the local communities that rely on Hunter Valley Operations as a source of employment and income. I am fortunate to work in mining, and am grateful for the opportunities mining has presented to me personally and for the local community. HVO contributes to local community and without it, support industries will suffer. Jobs will be lost, and people will relocate away from the area for stable employment. What is Singleton without HVO? I would rather not find out. This mine is not a new mine, the scale of mining does not intensify. Why deny something from continuing into the future when the change is minimal? Lets secure the future of the Hunter Valley.

I support the project

I support the project

I support this project.

I support this mine continuing operations, I think the positives far out weigh any negatives.

The current work force relies on HVO to remain open and operating as does the local businesses that also relies on HVO
My children have grown up in the local community which also relies on sponsors from mining
I started working at HVO in 2008 in the land rehabilitation field and believe we have some of the best standards

SUBMISSION RE Hunter Valley Operations Continuation Project
I object to the two projects: HVO North Open Cut Continuation Project and HVO South Open Cut Coal Continuation Project.
My reasons relate to 1. climate science and the NSW government’s policy commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; 2. The Aboriginal cultural heritage that would be affected by the projects and 3. The totally unnecessary damage the projects would inflict on the environment and biodiversity of the Hunter Valley.
I believe it is time to listen to the experts on these three critical topics, rather than facilitate a huge expansion of coal mining in the Hunter stretching more than two decades into the future.
Please listen to the climate science
This project should not be ticked off as a mere continuation of coal mining to maintain some jobs, profits for Glencore and Yancoal and some royalties for the state.
It is in fact a proposal to make a great leap in the production of climate destroying emissions in NSW. Unleashing 1.2 billion tonnes of total emissions on the atmosphere would be an extraordinary act of climate denial for which we and future generations would pay dearly.

The climate science has been clear for a few years now, and the first step in effective climate action is to stop approving new coal and gas mines. This is why the NSW government has stated the aim of reducing emissions by 70% by 2035. Approving this mine would fly in the face of the government’s promise to the people of NSW to respond to the realities of climate change.

Please listen to the Aboriginal traditional custodians
The Plains Clan of the Wonnarua People have objected to the expansion of open cut coal mining at Hunter Valley Operations. The Aboriginal Cultural Heritage of this area should be protected in line with the cultural heritage values expressed by the Plains Clan in their application under the Commonwealth ATSIHP Act.

Please listen to the ecological and environmental experts
These projects would require destruction of native vegetation which is made up of threatened plant species or habitat for threatened wildlife. We are in the midst of a crisis of nature and every natural environment requires protection in order to turn that around and protect biodiversity into the future.
The voids left by these projects would add to the already enormous degradation of the environment caused by the coal mining industry with the permission of those in power in this state over past decades. The people of NSW do not deserve this blight on the natural environment, and remedial action is required. The environmental and financial costs of restoring the Hunter after coal mining can be reduced significantly by refusing these projects and the damage they would inflict.

This project is an extreme threat to our climate, culture and environment and is therefore not at all in the public interest. Please reject it.

The continuation of the HVO North cut coal project not only supports family members but also supports the Hunter Region as a whole. HVO mines efficiently and responsibly with neighbouring communities in mind. I feel it is extremely important to continue the HVO cut coal project for the benefits for the community.

I wholeheartedly support the continuation of the mine. As an educator in the Singleton area, Hunter Valley Operations mine has provided many community based grants that have supported our school community. Not only does the mine provide jobs for Singleton and the surrounding areas, but the closure of the mine would have a devastating impact on all aspects of the community.