“Biobanking” scheme slammed

1st February 2008

Regional environmentalists have slammed the controversial “Biobanking” biodiversity offsets scheme, saying that it will encourage landclearing in coastal areas and the clearfelling of vulnerable woodlands for mining.

23rd January, 2008

BHP Billiton’s announcement this morning that it will throw $390 million away on a third coal export terminal on Newcastle’s Kooragang Island is nothing more than a political tactic to pressure the State Government into rushing approval for the project, according to the Hunter Community Environment Centre.

Media release 16th October, 2007

The State Government has removed conditions imposed to limit pollution that will seep into the Hunter River following dredging operations to remove contaminated sediment left behind by BHP from their former steelworks site.

The Planning Minister last month approved changes to the conditions imposed on the dredging that were designed to protect public safety and the environment.

Media Release 11th September, 2007

Hunter Community Environment Centre and Friends of the Earth

The Pasha Bulker was the tip of the iceberg...

The Hunter Community Environment Centre and Friends of the Earth Sydney will host a forum tomorrow night called “Greening the World’s Ports and Merchant Fleet”

1st August, 2007

Private forestry code undermined by “seamstress clause”

The Hunter Community Environment Centre is disappointed that the Code of Conduct for logging on private land released this week includes a so-called “seamstress clause,” which allows the Code to be tailored to cut out protected areas for individual landholders if they believe the impact on their logging operations is too great.

Environmentalists are protesting at six offices of the Department of Lands around the State this morning against the sale and commercial development of Crown lands and the Department’s repeated failure to transfer high conservation value public lands to the National Parks estate.

3rd July: Environmentalists call for swift action against land clearing vandals

Environment groups today described the actions by farmers with so-called National Tree Chop Day as self destructive and urged the NSW Government not to give into environmental vandalism and blackmail. The groups will also support community demands for even stronger tree protection laws as a result of these actions.

3rd April, 2007

The Hunter Community Environment Centre has revealed today that coal reserves in NSW could run out in less than four decades, adding to urgent calls to cease coal expansion plans in the Hunter Valley.

Based on current industry growth and production rates, HCEC claims that the 10,600 million tonnes of coal under NSW will be exhausted in just 35 years.

HCEC spokesperson Georgina Woods said, “NSW is currently producing 156 million tonnes of coal per year, most of which is coming out of the Hunter Valley, and 70% of which is being sold for export.”

12th March 2007

Hunter coal squeezing out other industries

Hunter Valley thoroughbred horse breeders have spoken out against the damage being wrought to their industry by coal mining. The move shows that the Hunter Valley is not economically dependent on coal, and in fact that the coal industry is driving out other industries in the region, according to the Hunter Community Environment Centre.

The Hunter Valley Thoroughbred Breeders Association and Aushorse Ltd have now called for a moratorium on new coal mines in the Hunter, and for plans to double Newcastle coal exports to be scrapped. They have also called on the NSW Government to commission a study into the cumulative impacts of the Hunter Valley coal industry on the “environmental, economic, and social sustainability of the Hunter and other industries”, in a statement released last week.

Media Release: 9^th January, 2006

Newcastle Earthquake was caused by coal mining

National Geographic reported on Monday that the Newcastle earthquake was caused by coal mining, and that the human and economic cost of the quake, and the 150 tonnes of water that was removed for each tonne of coal produced under Newcastle, far outweighs the value of the coal extracted.

National Geographic’s Richard Lovett reports that Dr. Christian D. Klose of Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in New York presented his findings at a meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco in California last month. (see http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/01/070103-mine-quake.html)