Environmental Advocacy in Central Queensland (EnvA) has called on the Federal Environment Minister to refuse the proposed Lake Vermont Mockingbird Metallurgical Coal Project, arguing the proponent has failed to justify why another major coal mine expansion is necessary.
In EnvA’s submission on the referral application under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, the group says the referral application does not provide significant justification for the project.
EnvA Director Dr Coral Rowston said the proposal fails to demonstrate why another expansion should proceed when the proponent is already pursuing the Lake Vermont Meadowbrook Project extension to the Lake Vermont coal mine.
“Before clearing another 1,615 hectares of land, the community deserves to know why this expansion is actually needed,” Dr Rowston said.
“The referral does not explain why another large coal mine expansion is required or why the environmental impacts of two major expansions should be accepted.
“The two extension projects will cover over 2,400ha of land which is the home to many threatened species- including iconic species like koalas and greater gliders.”
EnvA argues that the EPBC Act requires environmental impacts to be avoided wherever possible and that proponents should demonstrate why a project is justified after considering alternatives, including not proceeding with the action.
“Instead, the referral simply states that the project targets an economically recoverable coal resource. That is not, on its own, a sufficient justification for approving another major expansion that will have significant environmental consequences,” Dr Rowston said.
The organisation also points to growing uncertainty surrounding long-term coal markets, with independent economic analysis finding Australia does not need to approve additional coal mines to maintain production and warning that continued expansion increases financial and rehabilitation risks.
EnvA’s submission also raises concerns about incomplete ecological surveys, uncertainty regarding groundwater and surface water impacts, unresolved greenhouse gas emissions estimates and the cumulative impacts of continuing coal mine expansion across the Bowen Basin.
EnvA has recommended that the proposal be refused because it fails to demonstrate that unacceptable impacts on nationally protected environmental values can be avoided or adequately mitigated.
If the Minister does not refuse the project, EnvA says it should undergo a full Environmental Impact Statement with comprehensive scientific assessment and public consultation.
“The question isn’t simply whether more coal can be mined. It’s whether another expansion is genuinely in the public interest once the environmental, social and economic costs are fully considered.
“We don’t believe the proponent has made that case.”
EnvA - CQ 