Council opposes changes to mining approval process
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Council opposes changes to mining approval process
Upper Hunter Shire Council’s Development & Environmental Services Committee has raised serious concerns with proposed changes to the system for approving mining projects and called for them to be abandoned.
The Council submission to the NSW Department of Planning and Infrastructure describes the proposed amendments as biased, unjust, and inconsistent with the Environmental Planning and Assessment (EPA) Act.
Council’s Development and Environmental Committee prepared the submission. Chair of the Committee, Councillor Kiwa Fisher, said the proposed changes were “ill considered”.
“The proposed amendments are a transparent response to the April 2013 Land and Environment Court decision which overturned approval for the expansion of the Warkworth Mine, where the court found the adverse impacts on biodiversity and the amenity of the Bulga community outweighed the economic benefits of the project,” Cr Fisher said.
Council is calling for the draft amendments to the Mining State Environment Planning Policy (SEPP) which emphasise the relative importance of economic benefits over other factors, to be dropped.
“The changes unbalance the approvals process, put the community at further disadvantage and threaten other rural industries such as the equine industry, which is so important to our shire,” Cr Fisher said.
“The Committee is also concerned that the changes would pervert the Objects of the EPA laws.
“The merit of our submission has been recognised by the Association of Mining Related Council,” he said.
Council’s submission includes recommendations on mining proposals assessment including:
- maintaining the triple bottom line approach;
- independent peer review of economic justifications;
- adding an assessment of cumulative impacts;
- and a review of the biodiversity offset system.
Submissions on the draft amendments to the Mining SEPP closed 12 August 2013, with less than 3 weeks from being first announced.
For more information http://upperhunter.local-e.nsw.gov.au/