Mangoola Coal Continued Operations Project

I do not foresee any problems with this project, it is a relatively short project in mining terms and Mangoola Coal has a worlds best practice rehabilitation program that is evident within their current miming operation so I see no concerns with the condition of the land during or post project.
I have been an Upper Hunter Valley resident for the past 17 years and Mangoola Coal provides secure employment for local families along with consistent patronage to local suppliers.
If this project doesn't go ahead it will have a detrimental effect on the local township of Muswellbrook where I reside along with the other small towns of the Upper Hunter.

Recently had a tour of the rehabilitation and it was outstanding, extra economy from this project is absolutely vital considering the current drought in the local area.

I Encourage the expansion and look forward to the extended benefits the project provides me, my family and the community.

As an employee of the mine and live locally I support this project

I have been Working at Mangoola Coal Since 2011. Lived in the town of Muswellbrook all my life. In the past 8 years I have built a home in Muswellbrook, Send both my Daughters to Muswellbrooks Schools. My Mum also works here at Mangoola.
My income spending stays local as much as possible.
Mangoola Employs over 51% of the Permanent Workforce from the Muswellbrook District and Many Local Smaller Businesses will Rely on Mangoola's Continued Success.
We have excellent Facilities for Coal Preparation Handling. Rail Load out and maintenance Workshop. Also Industry leading Mine Rehabilitation.
Without Mangoola Continued operations I would be forced to pack up my family sell my house in a stagnant market and move as I could not do FIFO.
Being at Mangoola lets me see my family each and every day and I am blessed I have the job I do and love.
Mangoola is an Environmentally Responsible Operation which also gives so much to the local community and Charities.
Without Mangoola, my Honest opinion is that economically the Town of Muswellbrook would struggle as its a mining town and the Benefits that the continued operations will bring would continue to stimulate growth and spending locally, not to mention State and federal royalties the operation will continue to raise.
Kind regards.
Kieren O'Brien

We live on Wybong Road, approximately 10kms from the mine, and since Mangoola Coal has been operating, the road improvements are substantial, making it a much safer commute to Muswellbrook.
They are a very community minded company and have put a lot of time and effort into the local community, including the local Wybong Hall, Denman Food Fair, local fire brigades, and the list goes on.
The mining company employs local people, local contractors and local businesses.
The drive past the mine site is a pleasure as it is virtually impossible to spot where the mine began, the attention to the rehabilitation is a credit to the team of people who are carrying the work out.

Mangoola Coal has contributed a lot to the local and wider community. I live only 20 minutes away and wouldn't even know it was there, such is their commitment to dust and noise level procedures. Many people I know, some as far as Maitland and Cessnock, have benefited from the existence of Mangoola Coal and I support its continued existence through to 2030.

My family has lived in the Denman area for generations and Mangoola coal is a Huge economic boost to the region. Mangoola Coal has provided the community with many jobs, supports community projects and has provided the community with growth. My grandfather was a farmer and had a great relationship with many farmers in the area who also held a job with Mangool Coal. In times or drought working for Mangoola Coal would help supplement their income and enable them to continue providing for their family. When I visited my grandfather and grandmother in Denman you could not hear or notice that the mine was near. I would absolutely love to support the ongoing operations of Mangoola Coal.

RE: Mangoola Coal Continued Operations Project Application No SSD 8642
I would like to submit my objection to the proposed extension of mining north of Wybong Road and Big Flat Creek Wybong. I am a resident and property owner at Castle Rock and I have lived here for 58 years along with my family. We have been witness to the extensive changes in our local area and the impact that has had on our lives and our neighbourhood.
Our concerns and objections are as follows:
• Proximity - The Mangoola mine is approx. 7 km from our residence and with the proposed extension being north of the existing mine it will be coming closer towards our home. With this comes the potential to create more impact on our lives, our health and our well-being
• Air Quality & Dust Levels – the level of dust and air pollutants have definitely increase over the past 15 years due to mining and Mangoola contribute to these increases in our area. We are extremely concerned about the increase of dust and pollutants due to the extension of Mangoola Mine because of the closeness of mining activities to our home. We have seen an increase in the dust we breath, dust on our buildings inside and outside, dust in our water tanks and drinking water, and dust on our vegetation and bushlands.
• Noise – As the proposed mine extension will be closer to our residence there is a major concern about the emission of noise levels by the open cut machines and operations. The impact of noise levels and vibrational levels has the potential to affect our well-being and may have a cumulative effect on the health of my family. Family members have experienced disturbed sleep because of mining activities from Mangoola Mine in the past and the possibility of this being an unbearable issue will increase.
• Underground Water and water balance – we are concerned about the loss of underground water and water balance which would directly affect our farming activities and our ability to sustain vegetation.
• Blasting – Being closer to us the impact of mine blasting is a concern. There is the possibility of vibrational movement to our buildings causing cracking and damage. Also a concern about blasting creating more dust and pollutants over our home and area.
• Traffic & Transportation – We are also concerned about the increase of traffic and transportation on the Wybong road. Both myself and my family use this road to travel to and from work and also to go to Muswellbrook and Merriwa on regular basis and any increase on country roads has the potential to cause problems and even accidents.
• Impact to our Neighbourhood – Finally we are concerned about the overall impact of mining on our neighbourhood. The decrease of community and decrease of local people who care about the community and the decrease of the value of our property are of extreme concern to myself and my family.

I object to the Mangoola Coal Continued Operations Project because of the following concerns;

My family and I have saved up for several years to purchase our farm where were we can make a profitable business to support our family, which will now be worth a substantial amount less if the MCCO Project is approved and out property will be unsaleable.

• Information provided by comprehensive Social Impact Assessment identified property devaluation as the biggest concern, yet their mitigation measure is to develop a community enhancement program which is not a helpful source as this is not going to help my property value that will decrease by hundreds of thousands of dollars (which has been advised by a real estate agent that have valued our property twice within the last 4 years, and also have been advised by an independent property evaluator that our house will be unsaleable and stale within the market if the MCCO project is approved) Mangoola has not helped, nor have they seemed to care about our decreasing property value.

• When confronted about the 38dB (A) noise line shown on figure 3 in the combined noise contours all year all time period map in the summary booklet the contour line follows our whole property boundary fence, even as far as following the dips and corners which seem unlikely that noise will follow a boundary line, but seems convenient that Mangoola Coal Operations owns the property next to us and both properties are completely flat with no hills or rises within the contour of the land. Being able to hear the mine, inside our home and continuously getting worse and they are mining in their current mine plans how can they move over 3 kilometers closer and the noise levels not raise substantially, we have already had incidence when the noise levels are unbearable at night to the point it had keep our whole family awake at night, where we rang the Mangoola Community Hotline several times and there were no measures put in place to make the noise better until the EPA was call and within 10 minutes the operation was shut down. In my personal opinion I do not think that these complaints made to this hotline are taken seriously.

• Our underground water source will be effected by the proposed mine extension, as a young farming family struggling to make ends meet within the worst drought in Australia we have continued to establish a profitable farming business that will now be effected by Mangoola and we will potentially loose our water source we have paid many thousands of dollars for as you could imagine this is hard to come to terms with as this will then be dramatically effecting our business and our income. Mangoola do offer bore monitoring for private landholders but with the figures of the noise testing being so suss I find it hard to believe the figures will not be made to accommodate the mine not us. They have told us they will affect ground water but seem unless I can prove it was them affecting it; it’s just bad luck- another case of guilty until you can prove yourself innocent. Not to mention Mangoola hold most of the water licences within the area which makes it extremely hard for people to expand their enterprises when there are no water allocations available and they are not willing to give them up. How can farmers running a business compete with a multi-million dollar business???
• Within the biodiversity offset areas the proposed offset areas that are outlined, seems strange to want to purchase properties that will not even slightly be affected by the operations of the mine and purchase more farming land from the community rather than purchasing properties that are closely impacted and suffer from the coal mine every day which could be used as the same thing.

• The impact that we experience from the dust is that unbearable it is almost impossible to have the windows and door open in our house to get fresh air, the impact of this dust cannot be good for our health and the state it leaves our house in at times is embarrassing, but as we have been told before from Mangoola Employees the dust does not come from Mangoola and good luck proving it.

• I feel being 1 of the 2 privately owned bore holders within this operation I will be dramatically impacted by this and be substantially left out of pocket. I then in turn will not be able to make my farm a sustainable or have a profitable business and my crops, cattle and family will be sadly impacted. Water NSW has informed me that my bore quality and flow rate will be affected if this operation is approved.

It is of large concern that there is not much of the Wybong Community left as Mangoola has already affected the community once and it is nearly making it impossible for people to be able to move on from the project without being severely impacted, the amount of stress and worry that the MCCO project puts on families is not fair and people should not have to be put in these difficult situations within their own home and community, people love the rural lifestyle for the serenity and it seems that more and more it is sadly disappearing within this area.

I object to the Mangoola Coal Continued Operations Project because of the following concerns;

My family and I have saved up for several years to purchase our farm where were we can make a profitable business to support our family, which will now be worth a substantial amount less if the MCCO Project is approved and out property will be unsaleable.

• Information provided by comprehensive Social Impact Assessment identified property devaluation as the biggest concern, yet their mitigation measure is to develop a community enhancement program which is not a helpful source as this is not going to help my property value that will decrease by hundreds of thousands of dollars (which has been advised by a real estate agent that have valued our property twice within the last 4 years, and also have been advised by an independent property evaluator that our house will be unsaleable and stale within the market if the MCCO project is approved) Mangoola has not helped, nor have they seemed to care about our decreasing property value.

• When confronted about the 38dB (A) noise line shown on figure 3 in the combined noise contours all year all time period map in the summary booklet the contour line follows our whole property boundary fence, even as far as following the dips and corners which seem unlikely that noise will follow a boundary line, but seems convenient that Mangoola Coal Operations owns the property next to us and both properties are completely flat with no hills or rises within the contour of the land. Being able to hear the mine, inside our home and continuously getting worse and they are mining in their current mine plans how can they move over 3 kilometres closer and the noise levels not raise substantially, we have already had incidence when the noise levels are unbearable at night to the point it had keep our whole family awake at night, where we rang the Mangoola Community Hotline several times and there were no measures put in place to make the noise better until the EPA was call and within 10 minutes the operation was shut down. In my personal opinion I do not think that these complaints made to this hotline are taken seriously.

• Our underground water source will be effected by the proposed mine extension, as a young farming family struggling to make ends meet within the worst drought in Australia we have continued to establish a profitable farming business that will now be effected by Mangoola and we will potentially loose our water source we have paid many thousands of dollars for as you could imagine this is hard to come to terms with as this will then be dramatically effecting our business and our income. Mangoola do offer bore monitoring for private landholders but with the figures of the noise testing being so suss I find it hard to believe the figures will not be made to accommodate the mine not us. They have told us they will affect ground water but seem unless I can prove it was them affecting it; it’s just bad luck- another case of guilty until you can prove yourself innocent. Not to mention Mangoola hold most of the water licences within the area which makes it extremely hard for people to expand their enterprises when there are no water allocations available and they are not willing to give them up. How can farmers running a business compete with a multi-million dollar business???

• Within the biodiversity offset areas the proposed offset areas that are outlined, seems strange to want to purchase properties that will not even slightly be affected by the operations of the mine and purchase more farming land from the community rather than purchasing properties that are closely impacted and suffer from the coal mine every day which could be used as the same thing.

• The impact that we experience from the dust is that unbearable it is almost impossible to have the windows and door open in our house to get fresh air, the impact of this dust cannot be good for our health and the state it leaves our house in at times is embarrassing, but as we have been told before from Mangoola Employees the dust does not come from Mangoola and good luck proving it.

• I feel being 1 of the 2 privately owned bore holders within this operation I will be dramatically impacted by this and be substantially left out of pocket. I then in turn will not be able to make my farm a sustainable or have a profitable business and my crops, cattle and family will be sadly impacted. Water NSW has informed me that my bore quality and flow rate will be affected if this operation is approved.

It is of large concern that there is not much of the Wybong Community left as Mangoola has already affected the community once and it is nearly making it impossible for people to be able to move on from the project without being severely impacted, the amount of stress and worry that the MCCO project puts on families is not fair and people should not have to be put in these difficult situations within their own home and community, people love the rural lifestyle for the serenity and it seems that more and more it is sadly disappearing within this area.

I believe the Mangoola Coal continued operations Project will only stand to benefit the local community by continuing to support the workers and families of those workers who a majority of live in the local area, which in turn provides support for local businesses, this project will bring increased job opportunities helping even further with local families.
The passion Mangoola Coal's team have the environment i believe is shown in there industry leading rehabilitation program meaning minimal impacts on the area during and after operations.

My Family and I support the project application as the site appears to be one of the best within the hunter valley in regards to its rehabilitation efforts in regards to bringing the land back similar to its pre-mined natural platform.

Benefits they provide within the community are second to none l. Just about any sporting event or other event, You see their name as a major sponsor.

The employment offered to locals which can keep the Muswellbrook and surrounding town's thriving with employees spending but also the company seeking local suppliers before finding places in Newcastle.

Too many more positives to list.

I support this project and any other extension or modification in the future.

Local businesses require local workers. Good practices leading Australia in the way on land rehabilitation. A tribute to all who work and support in the local community .

Mangoola coal supports a lot of jobs and charities through out the hunter valley, and for the mine not to get the extension would be a big lose for the local community and the work force for all suppliers, this would be a big in packed on a lose of jobs.

I am currently employed at Mangoola Coal and live locally in the region. The benefits I have seen in the local community with donations and the supplying of work for the small businesses in the area is huge. Everyone wants a secure future and approving the Mangoola Coal Continued Operations Projects continues to secure the future of many people for the next 10 years

I have resided in the town of Muswellbrook for the past 9 years. I support the Mangoola Coal Continued Operations Project. I am employed by a local mining contracting company and have other members in my
Family who work in the coal mining industry. The industry is integral to the survival of the town and supports thousands of families in the region.

I fully support the continuation of Mangoola Coal and the associated economic benefit to the local community

This is a very important project for our region. Mangoola Coal are an environmentally responsible Coal Miner. Mangoola Coal contribute to the local economy in a substantial manner and have provided careers for many people within our community. I support this project in every aspect.

I think it would be great for the continual employment of local people and businesses.