Ben Bullen State Forest

[DaveNoble]

Its make or break time for the Ben Bullen State Forest. Open cut coal mining will go ahead unless we act now. One way you can help is to send a letter to various ministers that are responsible. You can do this online via this link from Blue Mountains Conservation Society -

http://www.bluemountains.org.au/gc-email001.shtml

Please help!

Dave

[DaveB]

Playing devil's advocate here,who surveyed the residents?I heard the discussion on 2GB a few weeks ago,and the mayor's position was that the town would be essentially ruined if the mine was disallowed-from what the planning minister Brad Hazzard (whose name is not on the letter but should be) implied, the company is using local employment and business prospects as a lever to get their way-many jobs were lost earlier this year when they began closures of current operations in line with that strategy.Not a simple problem.

[melinda]

Hi everyone,
I too urge you to sign the Blue Mountains Conservation Society petition. Link given in Dave Noble's post above.
This area is full of amazing pagodas and hundreds of native plant, bird and animal species!
There are a lot of people fighting for this, but we need your help too!
If we don't stand up for this now, we'll lose this!

Ben Bullen pagodas

Doesn't matter what state you are in, please help!
Melinda

[phan_TOM]

Done

[Wollemi]

...the mayor's position was that the town would be essentially ruined if the mine was disallowed...

What town are you referring to? Ben Bullen is not even a village; more a hamlet, approaching a locality. Are you referring to the 'town' of Lithgow? How would it be ruined? - I have met more than a few blokes that lived in Katoomba or Blackheath, but worked in technical positions in mines off the lower Castlereagh Highway.

But, yes - the pagodas are quite special and ought be preserved if just as a unique landform.

[DaveB]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-03-15/c ... se/4574946
Seems like Coalpac's changed tack to some extent,it's back in Brad Hazzard's court now.

[melinda]

Hi everyone,
Please read the Colong Foundation response to latest changes:
http://www.colongwilderness.org.au/medi ... t-damaging
(Posted: 18 March 2013)
No battles won yet!

[DaveNoble]

Playing devil's advocate here,who surveyed the residents?I heard the discussion on 2GB a few weeks ago,and the mayor's position was that the town would be essentially ruined if the mine was disallowed-from what the planning minister Brad Hazzard (whose name is not on the letter but should be) implied, the company is using local employment and business prospects as a lever to get their way-many jobs were lost earlier this year when they began closures of current operations in line with that strategy.Not a simple problem.

This may help explain the Mayor's views -

http://blogs.abc.net.au/nsw/2013/03/063 ... 32013.html

Dave

[DaveB]

Sorry Dave and Wollemi,
I was relying on fallible memory,the link to the interview I heard is below, and contains a further link to the Minister's response:
http://www.2gb.com/article/invincible-c ... dundancies
I expect Melinda is on the money,this is shaping up to drag on for a while yet.
Coalpac says the contracted project would produce economic benefits of $1.33 billion, which it says "far outweighs" the social and environmental costs."
A surprisingly succinct summary of Coalpac's motivation and moral position.
Dave,I just stumbled on your trip report from 2009,I suggest you put up the link-a picture is worth a thousand words as they say.

[melinda]

Blue Mountains Conservation Society posted this on Facebook today::

Mayor of Lithgow's family directly linked to Coalpac. Mayor seeking legal advice - listen here:

http://blogs.abc.net.au/nsw/2013/03/063 ... 32013.html

This is the same link that Dave Noble gave.

Hhhmmmmh!