McPhillamys Gold Project

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I object to this proposed mine for the following reasons:

The vast majority of Australia is in the grip of drought, claimed by some to be the most severe and widespread in recorded history. Most expert opinion is that, due to the now unavoidable climate change caused by global warming, such droughts are going to become the new normal. This will result in reduced rainfall, increased evaporation, and consequent scarcity of water for all purposes, including farming, on which we all depend for food production. Yet this project is seriously proposing to construct a tailings dam, full of potentially toxic sludge, on top of the headwaters of one of the few rivers in the country still in reasonable condition.
Tailings dams have been known to fail, with catastrophic consequences. Destroying this agricultural area for a 15 year project to extract gold at a concentration of perhaps 1.05gm/tonne, producing 60m+ tonnes of waste, and leaving a destroyed landscape and toxic legacy that will last forever just cannot be justified to produce a metal that will likely end up as jewellery, or be locked away as bullion. No doubt the financiers and engineers who are promoting and designing this project are highly skilled, but the risks posed by this project are way out of proportion with the benefit to be gained for the country as a whole.
Some towns in NSW are about to run out of water. It is morally problematic to say the least that water has been turned into a commodity in this country rather than an essential resource to which everybody has a right and human and animal interests are considered higher than the profits of organisations.
The use of cyanide to process the gold from ore and then pumped into the tailings dam. Cyanide has been banned in nine countries, Korea, Ecuador, Argentina, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, Greece, Turkey, Germany and Hungary and some US states and poses a dangerous and toxic threat to the water and land in the region.
Inevitable contamination of the Belubula and Lachlan Rivers, due to seepage through groundwater flows from the tailings dam
Traffic problems and caused by the continuous stream of heavy vehicles, and light vehicles at shift changes
The blot on the landscape caused by the “amenity bunds” and dust
Loss of natural land and environment for wildlife, and the impact of toxicity on surrounding wildlife
Noise, dust, vibrations, particulate pollution from diesel fumes, light pollution 7 days a week and 24 hours a day
The noise, vibrations and risks posed by regular explosions permitted for 12 hours a day. This will impact livestock and domestic animals on neighbouring properties and could damage heritage buildings
Permanent degradation of prime agricultural land and scenery
Loss of trees including high altitude yellow box that may be 200 years old
Impact on bee population due to loss of ground flora and contaminated water
Loss of the forest where the mine is proposed that is considered an ecologically endangered community as defined by the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage
The high probability that the developer will not be willing or able to rehabilitate the site when the mine eventually becomes unviable, as has happened so many times in the history of mining
The whole project proposes less than 1000 short terms jobs. Other industries in this area, with support a more diversified and resilient economy including tourism, renewables and sustainable agriculture offer far more employment.

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I object to this proposed mine for the following reasons:

The vast majority of Australia is in the grip of drought, claimed by some to be the most severe and widespread in recorded history. Most expert opinion is that, due to the now unavoidable climate change caused by global warming, such droughts are going to become the new normal. This will result in reduced rainfall, increased evaporation, and consequent scarcity of water for all purposes, including farming, on which we all depend for food production. Yet this project is seriously proposing to construct a tailings dam, full of potentially toxic sludge, on top of the headwaters of one of the few rivers in the country still in reasonable condition.

Tailings dams have been known to fail, with catastrophic consequences. Destroying this agricultural area for a 15 year project to extract gold at a concentration of perhaps 1.05gm/tonne, producing 60m+ tonnes of waste, and leaving a destroyed landscape and toxic legacy that will last forever just cannot be justified to produce a metal that will likely end up as jewellery, or be locked away as bullion. No doubt the financiers and engineers who are promoting and designing this project are highly skilled, but the risks posed by this project are way out of proportion with the benefit to be gained for the country as a whole.

The use of cyanide to process the gold from ore and then pumped into the tailings dam. Cyanide has been banned in nine countries, Korea, Ecuador, Argentina, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, Greece, Turkey, Germany and Hungary and some US states and poses a dangerous and toxic threat to the water and land in the region.
Inevitable contamination of the Belubula and Lachlan Rivers, due to seepage though groundwater flows from the tailings dam
Traffic problems and caused by the continuous stream of heavy vehicles, and light vehicles at shift changes
The blot on the landscape caused by the “amenity bunds” and dust
Loss of natural land and environment for wildlife, and the impact of toxicity on surrounding wildlife
Noise, dust, vibrations, particulate pollution from diesel fumes, light pollution 7 days a week and 24 hours a day
The noise, vibrations and risks posed by regular explosions permitted for 12 hours a day. This will impact live stock and dometic animals on neighbouring properties and could damange heritage buildings
Permanent degradation of prime agricultural land and scenery
Loss of trees including high altitude yellow box that may be 200 years old
Impact on bee population due to loss of ground flora and contaminated water
Loss of the forest where the mine is proposed that is considered an ecologically endangered community as defined by the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage
The high probability that the developer will not be willing or able to rehabilitate the site when the mine eventually becomes unviable, as has happened so many times in the history of mining
The whole project proposes less than 1000 short terms jobs. Other industries in this area, with support a more diversified and resilient economy including tourism, renewables and sustainable agriculture offer far more employment

The area around the proposed development is fertile and productive farming country. I fear that any mining development will degrade not only the water, and the air quality, but also impact on the living and food producing qualities of the district.
One only has to look at the Hunter Valley to see the devastation caused by the open cut mining operations in that area. On a recent trip to Muswellbrook I was appalled at the dust problem. Driving towards Muswellbrook from Denman I could see a pall of what I thought at first to be smoke from possibly a grass fire, but which as it turned out to be was dust blowing off the ground.
The Mid Western Highway is at present a single lane country road which is marginal for the amount of traffic using it at present, and certainly would not be suitable for an increase in the amount of heavy vehicle use expected by the addition of the development proposed.

I strongly object to the gold mine at Kings Plains.
I am a resident of Bathurst and often work around Kings Plains in ecological education. This is a rare site ecologically and culturally and the proposed mine would destroy this in perpetuity.
Objection 1:
This project is a breach of the NSW State Government's Threatened Species Conservation Act. It is not the type of contravention that is suitable for prescribed offset measures in real terms. This are is habitat the vulnerable squirrel glider and rare White Box Yellow Box and Red Gum woodland. It is also home to critically endangered native grasslands.

Objection 2:
This mine will permanently contaminate surface water and plug natural springs that feed the Belubula river, upon which major communities down stream depend. We are currently in the worst drought on record and water is far more precious than gold. The water will be contaminated into perpetuity, denying future generations of life in this whole region.

Objection 3:
Regis Resources own EIS states that the site will in perpetuity destroy 38 sites of Aboriginal Cultural Heritage. I strongly object to the proposed mine taking away the heritage values of the most ancient civilisation on Earth.

Sally Neaves

This proposed project will create irreparable damage to the ecosystem surrounding the site. It should never be allowed, especially at a time of increasing water scarcity.

I object to the mine, I quite simply do not want it, it will and is already ruining mine and my family’s current and future lives.
I know that you as a government appointed body are here to listen and do what is best for the people of the area and not just a few who will stand to make large profits at our expense.
Firstly I am very disappointed that although apparently it was already known that the proposed mine would be seeking approval to go ahead in this area, it was not disclosed at the time of the sale/Purchase of the property. I believed it was all real estate agents duty to disclose these sorts of things.
Water:
Surely at this time with all draughts and living in the country we do. Water is a much more valuable commodity than a precious ore mined mainly to adorn ourselves and not provide food or some other primary need. There is an incredible amount of water identified to be used by the mine and horrific consequences with the poisoning of these waters.
Blasts/Noise:
We are within 1km of the waste rock emplacement and less than 2km from the pit. Even with any man made buffers I believe the noise will be way to high. We move to this area for the quiet and serenity.
Do we now have to live closed up in our homes with airconditioners on to drown out the noise, drawing more power, more costs to us, windows closed to help reduce noise and air pollution. What is happening to that lovely fresh country air?
If we wanted these sort of noise levels we could stay in the city. The strong winds in this area will quite easily carry their Blast noises and just continual mining traffic noise to us. Not even considering how our Pets already terrified of fireworks and thunder will cope with blasts on a daily a basis. What decibel reading is deemed safe for their much more sensitive hearing? What about the other animals?
Contamination:
Dust floating through the air, chemicals/arsenic used/storage of contaminated waste.
As much man made procedures and structures we put in place to cover any possible forseen accidents. We are not in control of this land/air/water and unforeseen accidents can and do happen enough to warrant NON approval of this project. Only arrogance allows us to think we can cover all the possibilities.
History:
Further to the contamination, history is sadly showing us from other mine projects around the country that our own so called procedures and policies put in place by the regulatory bodies to protect us, to monitor and check that rules are abided by often fail. Greed and lack of care by some of these companies without thorough monitoring by the authorities allows them to get away with things they shouldn’t.


Jobs:
They say they will be creating jobs for the area, but more residents will be moving out of the area.
Their own unions and company will use people from their other mines before they give work to an unemployed local. Meanwhile professional and long term residents are driven out.
Wildlife:
That will be driven out of the area, we have Black cockatoos that I am sure won’t be hanging around or visiting the area with the vegetation that is removed and the noise being created.

Visual:
We love the views here, it’s why we live here. To have waste rock blocking it which I am sorry but how long will it take to revegetate, and where Is the water coming from to do that.
Planting trees, great idea but how many years do they take to grow to substantially block a horrible scene or act as a noise buffer?

Personally:
The stress and continual anxiety this proposal has already put on my life and those I love. Our lives are literally on hold waiting to be able to build and settle for our retirement, meanwhile the money we would be spending here locally to make our home is getting used up in other areas of the country while we take our business to those areas in the consistent hope that this project we not be approved and we can come, join our family and live here in this beautiful scenic country, with the fresh air and serenity afforded to this beautiful place we so want to call home.

Please deeply consider mine and others objections to this proposal, what are we really going to get out of it and is that worth what we will and worse still, could lose.
Thankyou

I would like to record my objection to the proposed mine
If the proposed mine goes ahead my partner and I will have to look elsewhere to spend our final working and retirement years.
I was looking forward to consolidating all my tools and machinery into one place to be finally able to build a shed/workshop and settle here within the kings Plains and Blayney communities.
I have no trust or belief that the mine will not contaminate the air, land and water in our proposed residence and its surrounds.
Our residence is within 1 kilometre of the proposed waste rock emplacement and 2 kilometres of the Pit. I am still stunned that a proposal can even be considered with residences so close.
The noise from the machinery and from the blasts still concerns me even with their various methods to control measures, how do they intend to control the winds in this area which will carry the noise?
As for the controls in place to prevent contamination, with nature’s ability to disrupt all man’s best made plans, living this close to where the wind can blow pollutants through the air to be inhaled and to sink into the ground contaminating our soils, plants and the natural water supply in the area.
I have grave concerns for my and my family’s health if we are to remain in the area if this proposed mine gets approval.
Thank you