Lock the Gate Alliance have welcomed a recommendation by the Department of Planning rejecting the development application for the Rocky Hill coal mine at Gloucester.
In an Environmental Impact Assessment to the Planning Assessment Commission, the Department has listed, the site not being suitable for the project; the impacts to residents due to the proximity to the town of Gloucester; visual and social impacts as well as the project not being in the public interest as reasons why the development application should be refused.
The report concludes that "the Department acknowledges that the amended project would deliver economic and employment benefits to the Gloucester region and State economies for the period that the mine would be operational.
"However, in the Department's view, the amended project is incompatibly located with respect to the southern fringes of the nearby urban area of Gloucester," the Environmental Impact Assessment said.
Lock the Gate Alliance spokesperson Georgina Woods says this is a common sense decision.
"It was never a good idea to dig an open cut coal mine right on Gloucester's doorstep and to subject the people there to air and noise pollution. We welcome it and congratulate the people of Gloucester who have rallied together to protect the quality of life and environment of their community," Ms Woods said.
Although the proposal for the mine has been amended by reducing operating hours as well as a range of other measures, the Department did not provide any recommended conditions of consent.
NSW Greens resources spokesman Jeremy Buckingham said it was time for the Planning Assessment Commission to now reject the mine and the government should cancel the exploration license for the area to give the residents of Gloucester some certainty for the future.
The Planning Assessment Commission has convened and elected a chair to rule on the matter although no deadline for a decision has yet been set.
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| Protesters against Rocky Hill coal mine. Image: Groundswell Gloucester. |
