Hunter Valley Operations (HVO) is proposing to continue mining at its HVO South mine until 2045, and its HVO North mine until 2050, and has released an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for public exhibition, where community members can share their thoughts on the proposal.
The proposal is to recover more coal from previously mined or currently approved areas, rather than seeking to increase production rates.
HVO General Manager, Dave Foster, said continuing mining will support around 1,500 ongoing jobs as well as an additional 600 jobs during construction.
‘We’re proud of the contribution we make every year supporting local businesses, delivering royalties to support public infrastructure and services, as well as providing community grants and other charity support.
“In 2021, for example, HVO’s direct economic contribution was $862 million. This included our spend of $537 million on goods and services from 740 businesses, many of which are based in the Hunter.”
Mr Foster said that while some new areas at HVO North will be mined, some areas previously approved for mining at HVO South will not be developed.
“We will continue to implement industry-leading initiatives in managing air quality, noise and water resources and progressive rehabilitation of mined land,” Mr Foster said
“HVO – and this continuation project – will be subject to the Federal Government’s Safeguard Mechanism. It will have a declining emissions baseline and will need to comply with other elements of the proposed Safeguard Mechanism reforms which form part of the government’s measures to achieve the national emission reduction target of 43 per cent by 2030.”
The proposal also includes plans to realign Lemington Road with a new bridge over the Hunter River to replace the flood prone Moses Crossing.
“We plan to spend $80 million on the Lemington Road realignment and new bridge, which will address a long-running issue for local road users,” Mr Foster said.
“Moses Crossing has been underwater for a combined total of more than eleven months since 2010, the majority of that in the last two years. The proposed new bridge would have kept Lemington Road clear of flooding over that period.”
Mr Foster said the local community had provided valuable feedback during the scoping and design of the project.
“We’re continuing to consult with neighbouring residents on specific measures to further minimise impacts,” Mr Foster said.
Mr Foster encourages mine workers who are supportive of the project to make a submission on the EIS. The EIS is on exhibition until 27 February and is available from here.
HVO has produced a project summary and other information about the proposal.
Featured image: HVO General Manager, Dave Foster. Image: BigPond.
