Sutton Forest Sand Quarry

I object to the development for its damaging effect, particularly on the
Marian orientated Penrose Park and its shrines which are
representative of the many Christian communities celebrating the
multicultural nature of our country.

The industrialisation of the adjoining area is a debasement of the
planning process. Continuous activity generating noise, light,
trucking and major environmental disturbance to water, flora and fauna
destroys the unique character of the area. How can this be justified
particularly when the disturbance is utterly destructive of this
unique property

In line with my training as a valuer I believe no amount of money
could adequately restore the functionality, ambience and aura that is
so much part of this Holy Place which is visited by thousands of
pilgrims from this country and internationally each year.

Each month on the 13th there are major services which draw these
special visitors' who are fed spiritually, but whose presence also
adds to the economy of a widespread area surrounding Penrose Park.
.
In evaluating the sand mining proposal, I as a person familiar with
Penrose Park and its dedicated personnel, urge you to consider the
unique and overriding beneficial effect this property has and
therefore not approve the application.

This sand mine must not go ahead for the following reasons
1, It will take away vast amounts of the nature corridor leaving black
cockatoos vulnerable plus I suspect many other animals
2, you cannot say for sure that water will not be polluted
3, you may gain money in the short term but long term it will effect
farms and tourism, which today and for future generations earn money.
In fact tourism is growing
4 If you look at the devastation caused in the Hunter Valley it is
madness to even consider this
5 The thoroughbred industry is growing here, that will change if the
environment changes ie water/air pollution

I would like to voice my opposal to approve a sand mine at Sutton forest.
I am the CEO of Alka Power, a bottled alkaline water where we have set
up a bottling facility that backs onto the designated site for the
sand mine. Our facility is located on Hanging Rock Road. We draw
natural spring water direct from the source. The EIS report that was
submitted by the mining company is totally floored. I submit this to
voice that if this ever got through the area surrounding this sand
mine would be destroyed forever and i am concerned for my business and
local staff as we would be subjected to blasting, dust and the risk of
this company destroying the natural source of pure spring water

This can not go ahead. It will be detrimental to the state Forrest, local
community and people's health.

I live in the Southern Highlands, enjoying its fresh air and its
accessibility to Sydney, Canberra and Goulburn and beyond.
Unfortunately, I suffer chronic severe respiratory problems (COPD,
Pulmonary Fibrosis and left diaphragm paralysis) such that my
breathing is adversely (and dangerously) affected by even small
amounts of particulate dust in the air.
The proposed sand mine and processing facilities are to the South West
of my home. The prevailing winds are often South Westerly. So I am
concerned that the mine and processing equipment will inevitably
produce large amounts of particulate dust that will reach my home
(even if only in small amounts). I have no confidence that the dust
control measures put forward by the proponents (mostly watering down,
to an unspecified amount) will be effective to guarantee that my
healthy occupation of my home will not be compromised.
I, therefore, oppose the proposal on that ground.
As well, as alluded to above, my wife and I are frequent users of the
Hume Motorway, travelling both North and South (via the Illawarra
Highway at the Hoddle's Crossroad intersection).
We are concerned about the massive increase in heavy vehicle traffic
from the facility, particularly trucks with a Southerly destination
that are planned to do "U" turns at the Hoddle's Crossroad
intersection.
We regularly use the Hoddle's Crossroad exit onto the Illawarra
Highway easterly. It is, at best, a tricky intersection controlled by
a "Stop" sign; moreover, the exit's slip road is not exactly
perpendicular to the Illawarra Highway and there is a rise to the
left, adversely impacting vision to the left.
Similarly, we regularly use the Hoddle's Crossroad entrance to the
Hume Motorway to the South.
It too is tricky; in particular, it is (a) busy (taking a large amount
of traffic from the Illawarra and the Southern Highlands) and (b) near
a right oriented bend in the Hume Motorway travelling South. To
increase the use of this entrance by large sand trucks from the
proposed facility is a recipe for disaster (be it on the heads of
those who are promoting this idea, and anyone who approves it, when
the inevitable fatal accidents occur).
We, also, frequently use the Hume Motorway to travel North, usually
joining at the Alymerton entrance. The Hume Motorway North from there
is already near to what we would judge to be full capacity for heavy
vehicles. It makes no sense to put further pressure on this road,
including in light of the increased traffic it is likely to bear from
the proposed Wilton New Town.
So I also oppose the proposal on the ground of the heavy vehicle
traffic that it envisages.
Those are my particular objections. I also have major concerns about
the impact of the proposal on the use of the Great Western Wildlife
Corridor by vulnerable and threatened species of birdlife. Other
objectors will no doubt spell out the details of the adverse impacts
and the deficiencies in their description in the EIS. But, in
particular, I find the so called onsite, and nearby offsite, 'offset'
proposals so stupid that they are insulting to the intelligence of
anyone with the slightest knowledge of Australian wild life. Does
anyone really believe that wild birds will hang about the perimeter of
somewhere where there will be blasting and noisy and dusty processing?
I object to being treated as such an idiot. The ideas put forward fall
so far short of anything that could be sensibly embraced that they
call the credibility of the whole EIS into question.
The proposal should be rejected completely. We should find somewhere
else, more sensible from, which to source Sydney's and Canberra's
building sand: somewhere less environmentally sensitive; and somewhere
better able to be served by transport (preferably rail).
Graham Kelly

I object to the proposed sand mining at Sutton Forest on two grounds.
Firstly, it would be devastating for the fragile wildlife corridor in
its way and secondly, would be extremely harmful to the air quality in
the Southern Highlands .

I have been going to Penrose Park at least once a week with my family now
for 16 years. It has been a place of peace, quiet and prayer. A solace
from the business of daily life. The number of pilgrims have grown
within this time, with an influx of multi-cultural shrines being
built. This was used as a place of pilgrimage for World Youth Day
pilgrims. As Australia is a relatively new nation there are not many
places for pilgrimage. Please keep the quiet and tranquil nature of
this location without adding the constant noise and disruption from
the mine.

i am very familiar with this area and visit it frequently on our
caravanning trips.

We often stop for a rest break at the Kingsbury VC rest are.

We have been fortunate enough to see a Koala and black cockatoo of
which they will be greatly effected by this proposed sand mine.

I object to the allowance of the sand mine to go ahead.

the impact will be irreversibly significant along with being enormous
in scale.

Please STOP the go ahead of this mine.

I am writing to vehemently oppose the Sand Mine that is planned for
Sutton Forest.

I have lived in the Southern Highlands for nearly 16 years, the first
13 as the proprietor of an historic guesthouse and subsequently as a
retiree.

I was initially attracted to the area after numerous visits and after
reading a tourism brochure that was penned around the war years. In it
my town of Bundanoon was described as a place to visit where the air
and water was clean and where the natural beauty invited you to
refresh your body and revive your spirit in one of the village's 50
guesthouses.

This is as true today as it was then. Our region abounds with a
diverse unspoilt landscape and quant villages to leave you with
lasting memories.And all of this, just 2 short hours drive from
Sydney.

The Highlands can boast the 199,747 hectares of the Morton National
Park in one of the largest in NSW. Rugged sandstone cliffs,
waterfalls, forested valleys, with acres of sedgewood, woodland,
heath, rainforests. the area is the headwaters of the Clyde,
Shoalhaven, Endrick and Kangaroo Rivers . Wildflowers abound and area
is ideal for "twitchers". Hawks, wedge-tailed eagles, parrots,
honeyeaters, lorikeets, crimison rosellas, cuckoos, cormorants,
lyrebirds and the threatened species like the swamp parrot and the
eastern bristle bird. Our unique marsupials - wallabies, kangaroos,
bandicoots, possums, echidna, dingoes and wombats as well as marsupial
mice, snakes and lizards all live in this beautiful area.

Truly, our forebears have been diligent in preserving this treasured
heritage for our generation, and it is our duty to do the same for
generations to come.

"Ecotourism" is ecologically sustainable tourism with a primary focus
on experiencing natural areas that foster environmental and cultural
understanding, appreciation and conservation. It is growing
internationally at a phenominal rate as people travel to the unique
and unspoilt corners of the world. The development of a mine will
change all of this.

Our region is rapidly becoming a dormitory suburb to Sydney. Whilst
tourism remains a key industry, there are 60 farms that grow grapes
and 15 cellar doors, marketing their award winning wines. So to, our
emerging brewers and distillers.
Countless cafes and restaurants (including three hatted
establishments), source their produce locally - berry farms, free
range eggs, local cheeses, olives and honey, as well as organic lamb
and free range pigs.

As we concern ourselves more and more about global warming, we should
remember a key word - "respect". The call to minimize physical,
social, behavioral and the psychological impact on our surroundings.

However, above all of this, is the importance of our water security.
Our aquifers are a vital component in protecting the
Sydney water catchment. Any threat to the quality of the water, and
slash/or the threat to the water table and our ground water reserves
is a highly irresponsible risk to all of the above attributes of the
Southern Highlands, and will place an undue threat to the rapidly
growing city of Sydney and its water security.

Air born pollutants, noise levels, increased industrial activity, and
the burden of traffic on our road infrastructure are major threats to
our fauna and flora and the quality of human habitat in the Highlands.
Not to mention the impact it will have on the peace and tranquility at
the religious shrine of Our Lady of Mercy at Penrose Park which
attract 25,000 international tourists and pilgrims each year.

The Sutton Forest Sand Mine is a stupid and ill conceived proposal
that places a threat on our natural heritage and the health and
wellbeing of inhabitants from as far a field as the city of Sydney.

The adverse health effects of air born dust carried by prevailing
winds on asthma, silicosis, fibrosis, and possibly cancer are likely
to be the precursor to future litigatiion.
A vote to allow this mine to proceed will be a grave error in judgment
and I urge everyone to vehemently oppose its approval.

This project, Sutton Forest Quarry Project: EIS SSD 6334 must be
rejected.

The main reason for any sand quarry is to provide sand for concrete,
which - due to the urbanisation boom all over the world - is in high
demand. However, while it may be benefit the construction companies
involved and in particular, the owners of this mine, this proposal,
(like deforestation, greenhouse gas emissions and marine pollution) is
filled with environmental problems.

The proposed removal of 63 hectares of native bush is an environmental
disaster in itself; and the potential for severe pollution of the
nearby Long Swamp, (a catchment area for Nepean/Sydney water) by
replacing the removed sandstone with toxic backfill, is perhaps an
even greater environmental disaster in the making.

In recent years, the maximum sustained wind speeds in this district
have reached as high as 80+km/h. Sutton Forest and the surronding
towns of Berrima, Medway, Bowral etc are heavily populated with an
elderly and retired population The notion that this mine, plus the 200
trucks, per day, using the district's road systems to transport the
sand out of the district, in gale force winds, is not a happy thought.

I have lived in this district since 1968 and have experienced the
devestation that can come from these high winds. I have already had
two serious cases of pneumonia so I am extremely concerned that the
breathing of silica dust (an unavoidable consequence of this proposal)
will pose a substantial risk to my lungs and my general health.

I therefore urge the Department of Planning and Environment and NSW
Government to reject this flawed proposal.

Strongly object to the proposal due to the number of environmental
impacts - water table and quality issues, disturbances to fauna and
flora, pollution - noise and dust issues.
In addition negative impacts to local communities and residents.

I am very concerned about the proposed Sutton Forest Quarry Project EIS
SSD 6334, and wish to object to it on the following grounds:
My main objection concerns water. It is my understanding that a
project should have a neutral or beneficial effect on water and this
quarry seems like it will negatively impact water for several reasons.
The pollution of the adjacent Long Swamp will no doubt occur many
times during the proposed lifetime of the quarry. This swamp drains
into the Nepean and needs to remain pristine for the water quality of
the Sydney catchment.
The depth of the quarry will be much lower than the water table -
approximately 39 metres below. This will impact on the availability of
water to other established landowners who rely on groundwater.
Secondly clearing the land in the narrow section of the Great Western
Wildlife Corridor should not be done lightly as this area is a link
between larger areas of natural vegetation and animals need the cover
of bushland to migrate from one area to another.
Thirdly I object for the mine's impact on the social environment. Many
people in this area are elderly and retired to the Southern Highlands
for its quite, peaceful ambience and clean air. A 24 hour mine would
spoil any pleasant lifestyle for those living near this site.
I realise that we need sand for construction, but hope that a site in
a more remote area could be found with less impact on water, animals
and nearby residents.

I oppose the application, primarily on the grounds that it significantly
damages and impacts a key part of the Great Western Wildlife Corridor.

http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/topics/animals-and-plants/threatened-species/saving-our-species-program/threatened-species-conservation/featured-projects/glossies-in-the-mist

The Great Western Wildlife Corridor is the only large-scale,
reasonably vegetated corridor of bushland connecting the southern Blue
Mountains National Park and Morton National Park. It is thus a
critical corridor allowing the movement of animals, including
endangered species like the Glossy Black Cockatoo, between larger
areas of protected habitat.

Biodiversity offsets will not help as conserving land elsewhere will
not maintain this corridor.

In addition, there has already been a sand quarry approved at Green
Valley, only 6km away, which will itself impact on the Great Western
Wildlife Corridor. This makes the existing bushland in and around the
Long Swamp area even more critical from a corridor point of view.

In the first instance the time to put in objections is ridiculously short
compared to the time allowed the applicants.
Who benefits from this:
the applicants and their shareholders obviously and who no doubt live
distant from the site, and employees at the project possibly although
mining is of itself dangerous and I doubt that many will be locals.
Who suffers?
1. The locals
They have to put up with the dirt, dust, noise and inconvenience of
extra traffic
2. The public at large
This is an area much visited. A quarry will put off visitors causing
damage to local commerce
We want to put in a bore at great cost. The hole to be excavated will
surely affect the water table and our expense may therefore be at best
a waste and worse case so polluted as to be
unsuitable and probably dangerous to the cattle.
The water supply generally-and I understand that it feeds Sydney- will
equally be deleterious to health with cost of removing pollutants a
factor even after the mining stops since it is unclear how the
applicants intend to infill. The Berrima mine is an example of mining
pollution still causing problems years after termination of the
extrraction.
The damage caused to the local fauna and flora will be substantial.
The noise 24/7 of blasting and grinding and general extraction and
transport will affect the habitat and the Great Western Wildlife
corridor will be critically affected and it is unlikely to recover for
many years after the end of mining if at all.

The applicants in their submission on several issues have stated that
they will attend to and solve any problems that may arise if they are
given consent to start but their application is so devoid of answers
at this time to so many matters particularly environmental that this
ins not he way to proceed. Answers first since after the event it will
all be too late.
It is obvious that this is an application that has so few benefits and
so many disadvantages both locally and nationally that it must not be
allowed to proceed. I strenuously object.

I have been a long time resident of Sutton Forest/ Exeter living in the
Highlands for 39 years. We are not weekend visitors as the EIS states
(this is highly insulting and offensive) but have built up our
property over the years. This project will destroy our lives with
pollution from dust producing silicosis and as with asbestos dust will
cause death. I am very concerned with the effects of water
contamination that this project will cause not only polluting Sydney
Water but lowering the water table which so many properties rely upon.
Our property has a number of creeks and we have a covenant over 3/4 of
our property (80acres) where by we cannot graze animals etc, for fear
of contamination to Sydney Water. This project will definitely
contaminate the water ways and will affect and pollute Sydney Water.
The project is to clear 63 hectaresof bushland destroying flora and
fauna with no regard to the sensitivity of endangered species. The
rules for the individual must apply to a huge development that will
cause maximum damage in so many areas of life. This mine will be
operating 24/7 and not only carcinogenic dust, but noise, light
pollution and with 400 trucks a day will be intolerable. This will
destroy the Highland tourism, property prices will be greatly reduce
families and lives will be destroyed. This project is completely
inappropriate on every level and no action by the developer to
counteract the adverse effects would make this project safe.

I am opposing the Sutton Forest Sand Mine because of the total
devastation it will have on the area .Endangered wild life ,flora ,
people's health and drinking water will all be put at risk. There will
be health problems from airborn dust , noise and light pollution.
The Southern Highlands will become a rubbish tip for Sydney which wont
attract national or international tourists and pilgrims to visit the
area.
Why would anybody want to be responsible for letting any of this
happen.
This application should be thrown out without hesitation.

This proposed 47 hectare mega sand mine would threaten the mainstay
industries within the Southern Highlands, namely agribusiness and
tourism.
It would do this by dramatically reducing water available to
agriculture, disturbing the natural ecology with 24/7 noise, blasting,
and light pollution,creating health hazardous dust (asthma, fibrosis,
cancer), and the addition of over 200 trucks per day making travelling
on the Hume Highway to and from Sydney more perilous and time
consuming for car commuters.
Of serious note also is the pollution that would occur to the local
aquifers which ultimately supply Sydney's Nepean water catchment.

I recently attended a public meeting which was addressed by
independent scientific researchers who indicated that the EIS
submitted by Sutton Forest Quarries Pty Ltd is fundamentally flawed,
the data basically unsubstantiated, and the conclusions somewhat
fabricated (please check Dr Ian Wright's published documents). This
all makes sense to me, lending weight to my own questions and
concerns.

Sydney's ever developing concrete jungle, which requires supply of
sand, is not for discussion within this submission. It does seem
darkly comic though that while some good government initiatives seek
to diffuse the city's over population by making regional NSW more
attractive, that same government may shoot any possibility of healthy
and sustainable livelihood within those regions.

I ask the Minister for Planning to carefully assess the cost and
benefit of this proposed mega sand mine. Profit from a commercial
venture is a good outcome, but if it's attained via a slash and burn
operation (as this would be, despite the pleasant sounding EIS), then
the fruits of this labour would be sour indeed and should be
considered inedible to any homo sapiens.

With great hope and regard for good ethics and common sense,

Alexandra Springett

I am in total opposition to the mining of sand at the proposed site in
the Southern Highlands.

At present the people of this area enjoy quality air in a beautiful
environment. With the introduction of this mine our air quality will
change and we will be affected by the dust which will come from the
daily blasting which is proposed at the site.
In addition the wildlife corridor between the Blue Mountains and the
Morton National Park will be greatly affected, causing the wildlife
species, which are now in abundance, to be either homeless or
destroyed altogether.

Light which will burn brightly all night every night will be very
detrimental to both animal/bird life and also the human population,
particularly those living nearest the mine, namely the shrine and
Monastery of Our Lafy of Mercy which backs directly onto the mine.
This Shrine attracts over 25000 Australian and overseas visitors each
and every year to the Southern Highlands, where they also spend
tourist dollars in shops, cafes, accommodation etc.not to mention the
end of the peaceful, prayerful conditions which exist at present
within the precincts of this beautiful site.
The residents of the Monastery will also be affected by the continuous
noise and polution on their back door step.

The introduction of so many large vehicles transporting sand from the
mine site will have a very detrimental effect on our roads as well as
being traffic and noise pollutants.

Our water catchment areas are at present clean environments, for the
most part, but this will no longer be the case once pollution is
allowed to infiltrate the swamps, which filter our water, and run
directly into the Sydney Water Catchment area.
Again, many species of insect and wildlife exist here at present but
these will be seriously affected and virtually wiped out with the
introduction of the mine

I would therefore ask you to take into consideration the affects on
the people and wildlife of the Southern Highlands, and further to the
north, the quality of Sydney water, which we know from expert studies
already undertaken, will surely change for the worst if this mine is
approved.

I strongly OPPOSE this development. I want this ridiculous Sutton Forest
quarry proposal rejected outright with no chance of resubmission. Many
reasons include the following.

PUBLIC SAFETY

We live on the north bound slipway to the service centre, very close
to the proposed new Sutton Forest over overpass will be built.

A seven year old boy, Rian, was killed here recently in a deadly
accident. Truck driver did not stop and has never been found. We had
to help out as we are the closest to this junction. We have accidents
every week. Cars slowing go into the safety barrels, trunks honking
their horns at cars. We have had several major accidents here such as
a recent one with a car hit by a truck as it entered the freeway.

This project will multiply this problem greatly with trucks trying to
pick up speed and cars and buses and other trucks trying to slow down
and move left to enter the service centre.

The proposed over pass has only one slip road going northbound. That
means all the traffic going southbound will have to go north and then
turn at the Canyonleigh slip road onto the Illawarra Highway, creating
another problem coming back onto the freeway southbound to Canberra
and Goulburn. This will be ignored as they will the route that is 6 km
shorter across the service centre overpass.

WATER

We live very close to the proposed quarry and we only have pure clean
bore water that we drink straight from the ground it is so clean. The
EIS states that the mined quarry will drop the water table only a
small amount. This is not credible. A 47 hectare pit well below the
water line must drop the table. We used to have a permanent spring on
our property that dried up about 15-20 years ago as people took more
water from local bores.

POLLUTION

Long swamp is an environmental treasure with all kinds of flowers,
animals, dragonflies, rare endangered birds and bats.

There is a beautiful stone sand wave on the land where sand this mine
has been proposed. I walk with visitors to the wave and the aboriginal
art work on site. The public would be appalled if these treasures were
destroyed by the mining and blasting.

We and our neighbours would have all the dust and noise from the
quarry seven days a week 24 hours a day. This is a health hazard to
lots of local residents and especially those who have respiratory
problems. I asked one of the Corkery representatives if he would like
this mine near him. "NO!" he replied. What hypocrisy!

After the life of the quarry is over we and our neighbours are dead
and gone our kids and grandkids will have to live here with all the
pollution plus the Sydney backfill and unmonitored waste that will
replace the sandstone that filters the Sydney water supply. This is an
important part of the Sydney catchment area. There is no plan in the
EIS to fill the pit. It is just a promise to fix it in 30 years time.

This quarry is about money only for big business. It's not about the
traveling public being put in danger. It's not about saving our
precious water. These project have to be neutral or beneficial to
water. This one pollutes. It's not about the environment. It's not
about preserving local aboriginal history and artifacts. It's not even
about sand. The value of a big pit to fill in 30 years is greater.

This is about money. If this proposal goes ahead it will be a disaster
for our future generations.

Yours sincerely,

Stephen Leaning

I strongly OPPOSE this development. I want this ridiculous Sutton Forest
quarry proposal rejected outright with no chance of resubmission. Many
reasons include the following.

PUBLIC SAFETY

We live on the north bound slipway to the service centre, very close
to the proposed new Sutton Forest over overpass will be built.

A seven year old boy, Rian, was killed here recently in a deadly
accident. Truck driver did not stop and has never been found. We had
to help out as we are the closest to this junction. We have accidents
every week. Cars slowing go into the safety barrels, trunks honking
their horns at cars. We have had several major accidents here such as
a recent one with a car hit by a truck as it entered the freeway.

This project will multiply this problem greatly with trucks trying to
pick up speed and cars and buses and other trucks trying to slow down
and move left to enter the service centre.

The proposed over pass has only one slip road going northbound. That
means all the traffic going southbound will have to go north and then
turn at the Canyonleigh slip road onto the Illawarra Highway, creating
another problem coming back onto the freeway southbound to Canberra
and Goulburn. This will be ignored as they will the route that is 6 km
shorter across the service centre overpass.

WATER

We live very close to the proposed quarry and we only have pure clean
bore water that we drink straight from the ground it is so clean. The
EIS states that the mined quarry will drop the water table only a
small amount. This is not credible. A 47 hectare pit well below the
water line must drop the table. We used to have a permanent spring on
our property that dried up about 15-20 years ago as people took more
water from local bores.

POLLUTION

Long swamp is an environmental treasure with all kinds of flowers,
animals, dragonflies, rare endangered birds and bats.

There is a beautiful stone sand wave on the land where sand this mine
has been proposed. I walk with visitors to the wave and the aboriginal
art work on site. The public would be appalled if these treasures were
destroyed by the mining and blasting.

We and our neighbours would have all the dust and noise from the
quarry seven days a week 24 hours a day. This is a health hazard to
lots of local residents and especially those who have respiratory
problems. I asked one of the Corkery representatives if he would like
this mine near him. "NO!" he replied. What hypocrisy!

After the life of the quarry is over we and our neighbours are dead
and gone our kids and grandkids will have to live here with all the
pollution plus the Sydney backfill and unmonitored waste that will
replace the sandstone that filters the Sydney water supply. This is an
important part of the Sydney catchment area. There is no plan in the
EIS to fill the pit. It is just a promise to fix it in 30 years time.

This quarry is about money only for big business. It's not about the
traveling public being put in danger. It's not about saving our
precious water. These project have to be neutral or beneficial to
water. This one pollutes. It's not about the environment. It's not
about preserving local aboriginal history and artifacts. It's not even
about sand. The value of a big pit to fill in 30 years is greater.

This is about money. If this proposal goes ahead it will be a disaster
for our future generations.

Yours sincerely,

Stephen Leaning