Alan Hayes from the Australian Coal Alliance has committed 20 years to campaign to stop longwall coal mining under the Yarramalong and Dooralong Valleys because “it is the right thing to do”.
In the latest Central Coast Newspaper Video News interview, Hayes said “I believe longwall coal mining beneath a major water catchment that supplies the whole Central Coast region is inappropriate. “There are too many ifs, too many buts and the mining company has never been able to establish that they will protect the water catchment,” he said. “It is impossible because wherever you find a longwall coal mine beneath or in close proximity to a riverine system, the water disappears.
“It is a very small catchment and we don’t have the luxury of going over the hill to another one and it is primarily aquifer fed. “Sixty-eight per cent of the water that charges the Wyong Creek and Jilliby Jilliby Creek comes from the aquifer. The cracking caused by longwall coal mining, Hayes contends, would not only result in the loss of the aquifer-fed water but also the surface water coming down the creek.
The video with Hayes includes his detailed arguments about the impact the mine could have on the Central Coast’s water supply, including a proposal to pump treated mine water back into the system.
Source: Video interview