Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River

Home , Bayswater Power Station, Glenbawn Dam, Glennies Creek Dam, Hunter Region, The Newcastle Herald, Wollombi

by Hydrocology Consulting July 2014 The largest coal mine in Australia, BHP Billiton’s Mt Arthur complex, neighbouring Muswellbrook, Dean Sewell

This report was commissioned by the Lock the Gate Alliance and written by Hydrocology Consulting. Acknowledgement and thanks to Dr Gavid Mudd for review and feedback. Thanks to all photo contributors, in particular Dean Sewell for aerial images.

Cover Photos: Top & Middle: Hunter valley coal mines, Dean Sewell Bottom: Site of the proposed Rocky Hill coal mine, adjacent to the town of Gloucester, Di Montague

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 2 Contents

Executive Summary ...... 4

Recommendations ...... 7

Introduction ...... 8

Hunter Valley Employment: the Switch to Mining ...... 8

Agriculture Eclipsed ...... 11

Coal Mining: Bigger, Deeper, Faster ...... 14

The Hunter River Valley: History and Management ...... 18

Water Availability: the Last Big Drought ...... 20

Mine Voids: Draining the Valley ...... 23

Groundwater Drought Refuge ...... 24

Salinity Just Gets Worse ...... 25

Toxic Mine Discharge ...... 28

Coal Mines’ Water “Entitlements” ...... 31

Hunter Regulated River WSP ...... 32

Hard Rock Aquifers ...... 38

Harvestable Rights ...... 39

Hunter Valley Water Trading ...... 39

Coal mines’ Water Use ...... 41

Water Use Projections ...... 46

Conclusion...... 48

References and Bibliography ...... 50

Appendix 1 Water Access Licenses owned by Hunter Coal Companies ...... 56

Mangoola mine, Dean Sewell

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 3 Executive Summary

The expansion of coal mining in the Hunter Valley and the increase in the number, area and depth of surface mines has changed the landscape as well as the economic and social character of the region. Given the extent of new mining still proposed for the Valley, the impact of land loss and fragmentation will be exacerbated by the coal industry’s domination of the Hunter water market. Decades of aquifer interference by open-cut coal mining has led to the loss and increasing salinisation of ground and surface water in the region.

Since 1981, the area of the Valley cut open by mines has increased from 1,724ha to more than 31,500ha, or over 16 per cent of the upper Hunter Valley floor. The 26 coal mines and mine complexes currently operating in the Hunter comprise 42 open cuts pits and 15 underground works and produce about 142 million tonnes of saleable coal. To run these operations, large volumes of water are needed to wash and prepare the coal and suppress the dust that impacts on the towns and villages of the region.

In order to understand the threat that expanded mining poses to other users of the Hunter’s water, this report identifies the scale of Water Access Licences and other water entitlements held by coal mining companies and the risk this may present for sustainable water supply. It explores the limitations and failures of the current regulatory approach to interference with groundwater and the contribution coal mining makes to elevated salinity levels. We then project the impact that reduced allocations in forthcoming droughts would have on the river and its users, given the number and scale of new mines and mine expansion proposals currently seeking approval from the NSW government and the extent of Hunter water being used and kept available for mining. Crucially, NSW planning processes do not require mining companies to demonstrate that there will be water available for their production needs, and our findings demonstrate that this is a major flaw in the assessment process.

Hunter coal companies mine the Permian coal seams, which are generally saline aquifers. The increasing connectivity between these formations and the productive freshwater alluvial aquifers of the river system as a result of the extensive open cut coal mining has increased the salinity of groundwater sources. Mining is also contributing directly to salinity with discharges of mine- affected water into the River and its tributaries. The reduction in available volume and quality of both groundwater and surface water in the Hunter is having a significant impact on sustainable rural industries of the region.

There are major omissions in the planning processes for new mines and mine expansions in the region that can only be addressed by state-wide legislative or regulatory reform that addresses the cumulative impact of the growing water demand of mining and its legacy impacts on ground and surface water. Agricultural water users in the Valley have identified fracturing of highly saline rock during open cut mining as one of the main causes of rising background salinity in the River system, even while point sources of salinity have been brought under control.

The Water Management Act 2000 Water Sharing Plans introduced extraction limits for surface and alluvial groundwater sources in the Hunter, but not for the hard rock aquifers that are heavily drawn down by coal mining. As the Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme is under review, the contribution that interference with and fracturing of hard rock aquifers is making to salinity levels in the Hunter

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 4 River system must be addressed.

Similarly, the current Water Sharing Plan arrangements and the Aquifer Interference Policy do not adequately address the impacts already occurring in the Hunter system as a result of the connectivity of ground and surface water, and the major interference with aquifers that coal mining causes. Coal mines dewater substantial volumes of saline groundwater and discharge it into surface water sources, but this mine dewatering is increasingly being found to be drawing water from alluvial aquifers and surface water sources which are now flowing into some mines. Available water under Hunter Water Sharing Plans is thus being lost to mine seepage and hard rock aquifer dewatering licensed under the old Water Act 1912. This unaccounted loss of surface and alluvial groundwater compounds the poor quality of these water sources as it reduces base flows, which would otherwise dilute the Permian aquifer saline discharge.

Of particular concern is the failure of the NSW Government regulators to prevent coal mines leaving final voids dotted throughout the Valley, bestowing on the region a legacy of salinity and groundwater drawdown that continues for centuries after exploitation of the coal seams is finished. Final voids draw groundwater from surrounding aquifers and evaporation of this water renders it increasingly saline. Research has already found that Hunter mine voids are reducing the base flow of the Hunter River. Voids in the Hunter Valley alluvium, in particular, will continue to reduce base flow for centuries, placing even greater pressure on water storages to satisfy increasing water demands.

Mine industry ownership of water is uneven along the Valley. Coal companies now hold water access licences comprising 23 per cent of all available water in the Hunter Regulated River Water Sharing Plan, including 55 percent of available high security water and 26 per cent of general security water. However, in the zones of the River where mining is concentrated, coal mine ownership of high security water is similarly concentrated. In the Hunter River upstream of the Glennies Creek confluence and below Lake Glenbawn, mining companies own 76 per cent of high security water access licences. In the Glennies Creek zone, below Glennies Creek dam to the confluence with the Hunter River, the mines own 95 per cent of high security water access licences.

Coal mining companies in the Hunter Valley are licensed to extract a total of 143,000MLpa of water from groundwater and surface water sources. This is equivalent to 16 percent of the Hunter River’s average annual end of system base flow. Some 62,000MLpa is held in Water Management Act 2000 entitlements and another 81,000MLpa is held in Part 5 licences under the Water Act 1912. These latter entitlements are mostly for mine dewatering from hard rock aquifers.

The actual water consumed by Hunter coal mines is generally less than their total entitlements, and in 2013 the amount consumed was estimated as 88,498ML. For the purposes of this report, we constructed a Hunter Valley coal mine water balance and identified the direct water inputs to Hunter coal mines from all sources. According to our research, 48 percent of this inflow was from hard rock and alluvial aquifers, 36 from rainfall runoff and 19 percent from surface water extraction. The total water inputs were estimated to be 85,646ML, which is less than the total amount consumed in 2013, indicating that additional water beyond direct inputs is required for the operation of the mines, even during relatively wet climatic conditions.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 5 The water management strategies of Hunter Valley coal mines differ, with some being heavily reliant on surface water extraction and others making use of huge volumes of groundwater that flow into their pits and workings, extensive on-site storages and water sharing schemes with other mines. Despite these differences, taken as a whole, we conclude that the industry is dependent on rainfall and surface water to meet its water needs, and is therefore vulnerable to drought when direct rainfall harvest, surface water flows, dam storages and groundwater recharge are reduced.

At the height of the last major drought, in 2007, high security allocations were reduced to 75 percent and general security allocations reduced to zero. The Bureau of Meteorology is predicting a likely return to El Niño conditions this year, which is strongly associated with drought conditions. We conclude that under current water sharing arrangements, many Hunter mines would be unable to maintain production levels and dust suppression responsibilities during a prolonged drought, such as occurred in the first decade of this century. To deliver on coal production commitments, Hunter coal mines may need more high security water access licences than current sharing arrangements can provide. Whenever the next drought occurs, there is no doubt that the massive thirst for water by Hunter Valley coal mines will result in direct competition for water with other users and, given the resources available to the mining industry and the historical trends, it is other users who will lose out again.

In 2013, Hunter coal mines produced about 71 million tonnes less than their approved collective capacity. If the proposed mine expansions and new mine applications before the NSW Department of Planning were to be approved, and latent capacity utilised, annual saleable coal production could reach 260 million tonnes per annum. We estimate this would require the consumption of about 133,120MLpa of water, almost twice the volume of water currently used by Hunter coal mines.

In a system already under stress, and with the possibility of approaching drought and flow- reduction, further mining approvals that contribute to increased salinity levels or impact on existing Hunter Valley water users should not be contemplated.

Irrigated Hunter Valley farmland at Jerrys Plains, Boudicca Cerese

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 6 Recommendations

1. All licences to extract water in the Hunter Valley under the old Water Act 1912 should be converted to Water Access Licences and incorporated into Water Sharing Plans, with the number of shares calculated based on estimated recharge. A comprehensive monitoring program should evaluate the scale of alluvial groundwater flow into mine works and hard rock aquifers and shares in all linked sources be adjusted to ensure sustainability of supply.

2. No-go zones need to be established that excludes coal mining within 2 kilometres of fourth order streams, in productive groundwater sources and on productive agricultural land.

3. No approvals should be granted to coal mines unless operators provide evidence of sufficient water entitlements to cover estimated water use for effective dust suppression during conditions of the worst drought on record.

4. Coal mine rehabilitation bonds held by the NSW Government must be equal to the estimated full cost of mine site rehabilitation including the infilling of mine voids and replication of original land contours. Bonds should not be refunded until full rehabilitation of the mine site has been completed and monitoring programs undertaken by coal mine operators providing strong evidence that no ongoing environmental issues are likely to occur.

5. Standard reporting formats must be imposed on all coal mine operators and these must be published in annual environmental management reports and made available on a searchable public register administrated by relevant government agencies. Reporting must include all water entitlements and a detailed breakdown of all extracted water sources, onsite water use, discharge and storage and include time series of all groundwater and surface water monitoring data.

6. No approvals for new mine or mine expansions should be granted if the mine will increase or exacerbate salinity levels in Hunter water sources.

7. The Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme must cover all saline inputs of coal mines to all Hunter water sources and credits must be required to be used for the disposal of all salt into any Hunter water source, including during floods.

8. The EPA must require coal mine operators to monitor all water discharge and on-site tailings disposal for heavy metals and other toxics likely to be present and publish the results in their annual environmental management report and the EPL public register.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 7 “The valley of the Hunter River and the fertile lands along its tributaries are among the most closely settled and scientifically cultivated agricultural districts in the country, producing some of the nation’s best wines, dairy produce, wheat, lucerne, sheep and cattle, fruit and vegetables…In a single year the great co-operative butter factory at Hexham 10 miles from the city, produced 2,322 tons of butter, 200 tons of cheese, and 5,300,000 gallons of milk for the city of Newcastle. It derives its supplies from more than 1,000 dairy farms.” Sydney Morning Herald, 1945.[1]

Introduction

The Hunter Valley is the centre of coal production and power generation in NSW. These activities compete for resources with long-standing agricultural, horticultural and livestock production that depend on a reliable water supply and access to alluvial soils.

Cattle grazing remains the most extensive land use in the Hunter Valley, with a concentration of thoroughbred horse studs, wine grape production, dairy farming, pastures, cropping and market gardening along the extensive floodplains of the Hunter River and its tributaries.

The Hunter Valley lowlands also overlie extensive deposits of Permian coal that has been mined since colonial times. The introduction in the 1970-80s of extensive surface excavation technologies saw the removal of considerably larger volumes of topsoil and overburden and the degradation of thousands of hectares of productive lowlands.[2] Accordingly, the volume of intercepted groundwater has increased, as has water demand for dust suppression and coal handling and preparation for export.

The expansion of coal mining and the increase in the area and depth of surface mines in the Upper Hunter lowlands, coupled with a long history of complex and fragmented planning responses by dozens of state agencies, has resulted in the loss of a significant proportion of highly productive Hunter agricultural land. It has also led to a multitude of water allocation and environmental management problems. Exacerbating these historic failures, coal mining expansion continues to encroach on productive Hunter Valley agricultural land and rural communities to the north and west where rainfall is lowest and access to reliable surface and groundwater more critical.

This report identifies Water Access Licences (WALs) held by coal mining companies, explores the increasing domination of the water market by those companies and examines the risk this may present for reliable sustainable water supply in the Hunter Valley.

Hunter Valley Employment: the Switch to Mining

The Hunter region has a population of about 500,000, over half of which live in metropolitan Newcastle. The Hunter usually refers to the local government areas of the ‘Upper Hunter’ (Singleton, Muswellbrook, Upper Hunter) and the ‘Lower Hunter’ (Maitland, Dungog, Cessnock, and metropolitan centres of Newcastle, and Lake Macquarie). This report will refer to the six non-metropolitan local government areas, home to approximately 243,200 people, as the Hunter Valley.[3]

1 The Sydney Morning Herald, 1947. p.20 2 Day, 1988. 3 ABS, 2011.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 8

FIGURE 1: Hunter River catchment and its main towns, waterways and dams etc.

Figure 1 shows the catchment of the Hunter River and its major tributaries, the Goulburn, Williams Rivers, and the Wollombi Brook. In this report, Hunter catchment refers to this area, which does not precisely align with the local government areas described above.

ABS figures suggest that in 2011 around 107,300 people were employed in the rural Hunter Valley, making up 3 per cent of total employment in New South Wales. In the decade ending 2011, employment in coal mining in this area doubled and employment in agriculture almost halved.[4] In 2011, the Hunter Valley’s agriculture sector employed about 3,300 people and an estimated 1,600 were employed in food product manufacturing.[5] By comparison, mining in the region employed 9,826 and 9,187 were employed in non- food product manufacturing.[6] Though mining has long been a part of the social and economic fabric of the region, the switch to mining as the dominant industry has only really occurred in the last decade.

The forgone revenue and industry development that would have been viable but for Hunter coal’s increasing hegemony is never adequately considered when coal mines are assessed and, invariably, approved. Employment in mining has been described as redistribution of labour, rather than job creation, with other industries again losing out.[7] Coal mines do not recruit the unemployed, but skilled workers who

4 Wilkinson, 2011. 5 Binks et al, 2013. p.1 6 ibid 7 Gruen, 2012. p.17

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 9 Mt.Thorley- Warkworth mine encroaching onto agricultural land, near Bulga, Boudicca Cerese

Jerrys Plains farmers whose livelihoods are under threat from proposed coal mines, Boudicca Cerese are generally already employed.[8]

Agriculture Eclipsed

Hunter agriculture has experienced the same contractions that agriculture has seen elsewhere in the country. This is in spite of the productive soils, easy access to domestic and export markets and infrastructure, and the most reliable water in the country which should have made the Hunter Valley one of the few regions where agriculture succeeded in maintaining the high production rates seen in the mid-20th century.

In the 1940s, more than 1,000 Hunter dairy farms produced 2,106 tonnes of butter, 181 tonnes of cheese, and over 20 million litres of milk a year.[9] In 2005-06, 199 Hunter Valley dairy farmers contributed $117 million to the NSW economy.[10] Significant changes in farm numbers have occurred since then,[11] but dairy farming remains one of the top five farm enterprises in each LGA in the Upper Hunter region. Today, many dairy farms are either owned by coal mining companies for public relations purposes[12] or are under threat of acquisition for the continued expansion of mining.[13] Nevertheless, in 2011, 125 dairy farms remained in the Upper Hunter region producing 16% of NSW milk, worth $170m to the NSW economy.[14]

In 2010-11, the gross value of Hunter Valley agricultural production was $331 million from 2,559 farms covering an estimated total area of almost 1 million hectares. Of this, 928,766ha was used for grazing and 60,736ha for cropping.[15] In 2010-11, the most important Hunter Valley agricultural commodity by value was cattle and calves, contributing 36 per cent ($119 million) of the total gross value of agricultural production. Poultry accounted for 25 per cent ($83 million), milk 18 per cent ($60 million), pasture and crops cut for hay 5 per cent ($16 million), eggs 2 per cent ($8 million) and vegetables 2 per cent ($8 million).[16]

The Upper Hunter has the second largest concentration of horse studs in the world, after Kentucky in the USA, with 77 studs.[17] In 2006, Upper Hunter thoroughbred breeding had an annual expenditure of $270 million and employed over 1,000 people.[18]

The Hunter is also one of only two internationally recognised wine production areas in Australia. In 2009- 2010, the Hunter Valley was estimated to have 3,537ha of wine grapes planted, or just over 8% of NSW’s wine grapes, and more than 120 wineries,[19] producing quality award-winning wines, valued at more than $210 million.[20] In total, Hunter vineyard and tourism industries jointly inject $1.8 billion annually into the NSW economy.[21] The total value of investment by viticultural and wine-making enterprises in the region exceeds $450 million, and these businesses directly employ over 7,000 people, with an additional 10,000 indirectly employed.[22] In addition, wine tourism employs an additional 30,000 people directly and indirectly, servicing more than 2.8 million visitors annually who spent over $1 billion in the Hunter Valley every year.[23]

8 Campbell and Grudnoff, 2013. p.10 9 The Sydney Morning Herald, 1947. p.20. NB: we have converted empirical measures in this article to metric for this report. 10 ABS, 2006. 11 Davidson, 2001. 12 McManus & Connor, 2013. 13 The Australian, 2011. 14 DPI, 2013. 15 Binks et al, 2013. 16 ibid 17 Upper Hunter Thoroughbred Breeders Association, 2007. 18 HVRF, 2008. 19 Hunter Valley Wine Industry Association and the Hunter Valley Protection Alliance, 2012. p.9 20 DPI, 2013. 21 ibid 22 ibid 23 DPI, 2013

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 11 FIGURE 2: Hunter Strategic Agricultural Land and Coal Mine Leases

Figure 2 shows the concentration of coal mines and leases in the productive lowlands of the Valley, pressed in amongst, and over the top of, the mapped Strategic Agricultural Lands of the Strategic Agricultural Land Use Plan. There is not much more room to move. Much of the Hunter’s current agriculture, livestock production and tourism revenue is now threatened by the further expansion of coal mining. The coexistence of agriculture and mining is not tenable when the balance is so skewed, and is successful only on demonstration farms owned or operated by coal companies themselves.[24]

24 NSW Mining, 2013.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 12 Rio Tinto’s Warkworth coal mine, near the community of Bulga, Dean Sewell Coal Mining: Bigger, Deeper, Faster

Since 1960, coal mining in the Hunter Valley has experienced almost uninterrupted growth. Increased production to supply growing export markets drove changes in the size and capacity of surface mining equipment. This has made much larger open cut operations feasible, with consequential increases in the depth at which open cut mining could be carried out and the ratio of overburden to coal profitably worked.[25] Open-cut mines are also favoured as they enjoy labour productivity gains of two to four times compared to underground mines.[26] Hunter Valley coal operations are now predominantly circular open- cut pits with terraces “corkscrewing” to the bottom, significantly deeper than open-cut mines of the past.[27]

In 1981, coal output in the upper Hunter was 18.5 million tonnes. Thirteen surface mines at that time accounted for about 70 percent of production and an accumulated open cut area of 1,724ha with another 463ha impacted by overburden and soil dumps.[28]

In 2006-07, there were 18 open cut and 16 underground mines producing over 130 million tonnes of raw coal and 98 million tonnes of saleable coal, representing 76 per cent of NSW production.[29]

In 2012, open cut coal mines occupied an estimated 31,500ha, or 16 per cent of the upper Hunter Valley floor, and mining exploration leases cover a further 128,000ha, 64 per cent of the entire area.[30] The extent of different mining leases is shown in Figure 3.

FIGURE 3: Mine leases and exploration licences

25 Rutledge and Wright, 1985. p.306 26 Lucarelli, 2011. 27 Lucarelli, 2011. 28 Dragun, 1984. 29 HVRF, 2008. p.7 30 Connor and Mcmanus, 2012.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 14 Table 1 lists the 26 coal mines and mine complexes currently operating in the Hunter Valley. These mines operate 42 open cuts pits and 15 underground works with an approved annual maximum production capacity of about 213Mtpa of saleable coal.[31] It is estimated from analysis of annual environmental management reports that almost 142Mt was produced by Hunter mines in 2013, leaving 71Mt of latent saleable coal production capacity in the ground.

Hunter Valley mines also supplied 13 million tonnes of run-of mine (ROM) coal per year to the two major Hunter Valley power stations, Bayswater and Liddell, operated by Macquarie Generation.[32] A further 2.7 and 1.1Mtpa was delivered to Eraring and Vales Point Power Stations in Lake Macquarie.[33]

A recent development is the agglomeration of mine complexes with multiple pits and underground operations, huge production levels and intensely concentrated impacts in parts of the Valley. The Hunter Valley now has 10 mines with approved capacity of over 10Mtpa ROM coal and four of more than 20Mtpa, each capable of operating 24 hour a day, 365 days a year. Over the past three decades, many coal mines in the Hunter have continually expanded, swallowing up smaller mining operations to form very large mining complexes, comprising super pits and sometimes also underground works. Table 1 provides the production details of the currently operating mines in the Hunter Valley. The biggest is BHP Billiton’s Mount Arthur mine complex, comprising three super pits with a maximum approved capacity of 32Mtpa ROM. Rio Tinto’s Hunter Valley Operations complex has a maximum approved capacity of 28Mtpa ROM coal a year from five open cut pits. Glencore Xstrata’s Ravensworth mine complex operates three pits and one underground mine with an approved capacity of 23Mtpa ROM.

Camberwell-Ashton mine, Dean Sewell

31 Some mines operate open cut and underground mines at the same site. 32 See http://www.macgen.com.au/Generation-Portfolio/Bayswater-Power-Station.aspx and http://www.macgen.com.au/Generation-Portfolio/ 33 Centennial Coal, 2014. p.14

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 15 TABLE 1: Hunter mine* production for 2013

RoM Saleable Approved Approved Mine Operator Pits UG (Mtpa) (Mtpa) RoM Saleable (Mtpa) (Mtpa)

Abel Yancoal 1 2.3 1.6 4.5 4.5

Ashton Yancoal 1 2.8 1.3 5.45 3.9

Austar Yancoal 1 1.4 1.4 3.6 3.6

Bengalla Rio Tinto 2 6.9 5.5 9.3 7.4

Bloomfield Idemitsu 2 1.0 0.7 1.3 1.0

Bulga Complex Glencore 1 1 8.5 5.6 16 10.5

Camberwell Integra 2 1 5.1 2.5 0 7.3

Donaldson Yancoal 1 0.6 0.4 1.5 1.0

Drayton Anglo American 3 5.5 4.2 6.5 6

Hunter Valley Op. Rio Tinto 5 18.1 13.6 28 21

Liddell Glencore 1 7.13 4.7 8 5.3

Mandalong Centennial 1 4.9 4.8 6 5.9

Mangoola Glencore 1 10.5 8.2 10.5 8.2

Moolarben Yangcoal 2 1 7.9 5.8 12 10

Mount Arthur BHP Billiton 3 22.7 19 32 26.8

Mount Owen complex Xstrata 3 13 9.5 18.5 13.5

Mt Thorley Warkworth Rio 2 16.8 10.8 28 18

Muswellbrook Idemitsu 2 1.2 0.9 2 1.5

Newstan Centennial 1 0.5 3.0 4 3.0

Ravensworth Complex Glencore 3 1 11.8 8.6 23 16.7

Rix’s Creek Bloomfield Group 1 1.9 1.4 1.9 1.1

Tasman Yancoal 1 0.3 0.2 1.5 1.1

Ulan Xstrata 1 2 7.2 6.15 12 10

Wambo complex Peabody 2 2 9.6 6.2 14.1 9.1

West Wallsend Glencore 1 3.8 3.2 5.5 3.7

Wilpinjong Peabody 5 15.7 12.7 15 12.5

TOTAL 42 15 187 142 270 213

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 16 Table 2 details four approved coal mines awaiting construction with combined production capacity of about 13.46Mtpa. Two of these approved mines, Xstrata’s Mitchells Flat and Rio Tinto’s Mt Pleasant mine were given development approval in 1991 and 1999 respectively.

TABLE 2: Undeveloped but approved Hunter mines and their production capacity

Name Approved Operator Location RoM Saleable Method Mtpa Mtpa

Mitchells Flat Project 1991 Xstrata Singleton 3 3.3 UG

Mt Pleasant Project 1999 Rio Tinto Muswellbrook 10.5 6.9 OC

Tasman Extension Project 2013 Yancoal Lake Macquarie 1.5 1.26 UG

Mangoola Modification 6 2014 Xstrata Muswellbrook 3 2 OC

Total 18 13.46

Table 3 details the 13 proposals currently lodged with the Department of Planning for mine expansions, with a combined additional production capacity of 13Mtpa of saleable coal.

TABLE 3: Department of Planning applications for Hunter mine* extensions

Name Operator LGA ROM Saleable Method Mtpa Mtpa

Bengalla Continuation Project Rio Tinto Muswellbrook 4.3 2.8 OC

Bulga Optimisation Project Xstrata Singleton/Broke 0 0

Integra Modification 4 Vale Singleton 0 0 OC/UG

Liddell Modification 5 Xstrata Singleton 0 0 OC

Moolarben Stage 1 mod 9 Yancoal Midwestern 0 0 OC/UG

Moolarben Stage 2 Yancoal Midwestern 5 3 OC/UG

Mt Arthur Extension Project (Modification 1) BHPB Muswellbrook 0 0 OC/UG

Mt Owen Continued Operations Project Xstrata Singleton 2 1.5 OC

Mt Thorley Continuation Project Rio Tinto Singleton 0 0

Newstan Extension Project Centennial Lake Macquarie 4.5 3.78 UG

Rix’s Creek Extension Bloomfield Singleton 3 2

Wambo modification 12 Peabody Singleton 0 0 UG

Warkworth Continuation Project Rio Tinto Singleton 0 0 OC

TOTAL 18.8 13.08

Projects with production values of zero are extensions in time and expansions that do not increase production levels. Projects listed here were not approved by 15 June 2014.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 17 Table 4 sets out four new mine applications awaiting determination, with production capacity of an additional 20.4Mtpa of saleable coal.

TABLE 4: Department of Planning applications for new Hunter mines*

Name Operator LGA ROM Saleable Method Mtpa Mtpa

Bylong Project KEPCO/Cockatoo Midwestern 8 6 OC/UG

Drayton South (Saddlers Creek) Anglo American Muswellbrook 7 5.3 OC/UG

South East Open Cut (Ashton)** Yancoal Australia Muswellbrook 3.6 2.4 OC

Spur Hill Project Malabar Coal Muswellbrook 8 6.7 UG

TOTAL 26.6 20.4

*For the purposes of this report “Hunter mines” are defined as those which depend on water from or operate within areas covered by the Hunter Regulated River WSP, the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvium WSP or the Wybong Creek WSP. This does not include mines in the Central Coals and Gloucester, but does include Lake Macquarie. Italicised production numbers are estimates. Projects listed here were not approved by 15 June 2014. ** This project is approved, but that approval is under challenge in the NSW Land and Environment Court.

In all, the Hunter faces an additional 47Mtpa of saleable coal production if these 21 mines and mine extension reach full production.

The Hunter River Valley: History and Management

The Hunter catchment extends furthest inland of any coastal catchment in NSW. Rainfall varies from 1800mm per year in the far northeast to less than 500mm per year in the west with high evaporation in a reverse trend. The Hunter River flows south-west from the Barrington Tops before being joined by the Goulburn River south of Denman. It then flows south-east to enter the Pacific Ocean at Newcastle.

Hunter River flows have been recorded at Muswellbrook, Singleton and Maitland for over a century. The long term average yearly flow of the Hunter River is 400,000ML at Muswellbrook, 875,000ML at Singleton and 900,000ML at Maitland. Yearly flows vary greatly from the average.[34]

Four water storages, Glenbawn, Glennies Creek, Lostock and Chichester dams, along with the ability to transmit water of the Manning Catchment through the Macquarie Generation operated Barnard scheme, provide the Hunter with the most reliable water in NSW.[35] The two largest storages, the enlarged Glenbawn Dam on the upper Hunter River (870,000ML with an additional 14% flood mitigation) and Glennies Creek Dam (284,000ML), regulate the Hunter River flow to Maitland, below which there is tidal influence from the Hunter estuary.

Including unregulated and alluvial sources, available Hunter Valley water totals 754,312MLpa. This includes 240,217MLpa that falls under the Hunter Regulated River Water Sharing Plan (WSP) and 514,095MLpa under the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvium WSP, which includes potable water supply for Newcastle of 339,000MLpa. These licences are summarised in Table 5.

34 Scott, 1983. 35 DPI, 2013.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 18 TABLE 5: Total Hunter Valley Water Sharing Plan Water Access Licences

Unregulated Regulated Total Category MLpa MLpa MLpa

Local Utility 5,597 10,832 16,429

Major Utility 346,700* 36,000 382,700

Stock and Domestic 737 1,013 1,750

River/ General Security 80,619 128,163 208,782

High Security 0 22,159 22,159

High Flow/Supplementary 42 37,250** 37,292

Aquifer 80,400 0 80,400

Total 514,095 240,217 754,312

Total Less Newcastle potable 175,095 415,312

*Potable water extracted by the Hunter Water Corporation from the Paterson and Williams River for Greater Newcastle.

**Macquarie Generation hold a 36,000MLpa water licence for supplementary flow.

In 1981, in response to the 1979-83 drought, a moratorium was placed on new irrigation entitlements and a volumetric water allocation scheme was introduced for agricultural crops.[36] Surface water diversions are now capped for all rivers in New South Wales as most sources are at or beyond their extraction limit and no additional entitlements can be issued for commercial purposes. A cap is also in place for Hunter alluvial groundwater sources, but not for hard rock aquifers in the Hunter and elsewhere. The introduction of the NSW Water Management Act 2000 split land ownership from water rights, allowing water to be bought and sold separately from the land to which it was once tied.

The scope of this report covers mining operations under three different Water Sharing Plans under the Water Management Act 2000, the Hunter Regulated River WSP, the Wybong Creek WSP and the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvial WSP. The Hunter Regulated River Water Sharing Plan 2004 was gazetted for the regulated segments of the Hunter River below Glenbawn and Glennies Creek Dams to Maitland. The Plan was due to expire in July this year, but was extended by twelve months by a notice in May 2014. It is currently under review by the NSW Office of Water (NOW).

The Hunter Unregulated and Alluvial WSP commenced in 2009, covering 39 of the 40 Hunter River tributaries and highly connected alluvial water sources. The Wybong Creek WSP for the unregulated Wybong Creek was gazetted in 2003. In 2014, the Wybong Creek Water Sharing Plan was to be merged with the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvial plan resulting in a single water sharing plan covering the unregulated water sources in the catchment, but this deadline has also been extended to July 2015.[37]

A long-term average annual extraction limit is set for the unregulated Goulburn and Hunter as well as the Hunter Regulated River Alluvium.[38] Water in the Hunter Regulated River is allocated to users on the

36 New South Wales, Water Resources Commission, 1982. p.8 37 http://www.water.nsw.gov.au/Water-management/Water-sharing-plans/Plans-commenced/Water-source/Hunter-Unregulated-and-Alluvial/ default.aspx 38 NSW Department of Water and Energy, 2009.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 19 basis of a graded licensing system of ‘general security’ and ‘high security’ entitlements, with differentiated privileges.[39] High security WALs have priority over general security and supplementary WALs, but lower priority than local water utility, major utility and domestic and stock licences. Under the Act, if water allocations have to be reduced, the water allocations of the higher priority licence are to be reduced at a lesser rate or later than the water allocations of the lower priority licence.

Allocations of all or some of water entitlements for each category are announced at the start of each water year, corresponding to the level of dam storage and climactic factors. Hunter storages are managed to ensure that at least 75 percent of high security licence allocations are available during the worst inflows on record.[40]

Water Availability: the Last Big Drought

The experiences of irrigators and coal mines during the last major drought in 2003-07, which coincided with a major expansion of coal mining, provides some insight into the dynamics of water sharing between the coal industry and other users in the Valley in times of water scarcity.

The water sharing rules ensure that the risk of less-than full allocation to high security licence holders is reduced compared to general security licences. During the last major drought, even high security allocations in the Hunter fell to 75 percent of the licensed volume. The allocations for general and high security water access licences in the Hunter during the last ten years, shown in Figure 4, indicate the dramatic drop in water availability precipitated by the drought, despite the extensive water storages in the system. Nevertheless, as intended, high security licences provided significantly greater security during the drought.

The height of the drought between 2006 and 2007 was described by irrigators in the Hunter as among the worst they had experienced. By 13 August 2007, Glenbawn dam was at 34.5 percent of its capacity and Glennies Creek Dam at 33.4 percent.[41] While sufficient water was available to meet town water supply, major utility (power generation), and domestic and stock requirements for 2007-2008, Hunter Valley towns were on restrictions and allocations for both high and general security WALs were affected.[42]

In August 2006, the rules of distribution under the Wybong Creek Water Sharing Plan were suspended because of severe water shortages.[43] Four months later, water shortages also prompted the suspension of the rules of distribution under the Hunter Regulated River WSP,[44] and this suspension remained in place until February 2009.[45] Suspension of a WSP allows NSW Cabinet to determine water allocations.

Water allocations under general security WALs were significantly reduced for the two years between July 2006 and July 2008, with a short reduction to 94 per cent for a month in July 2005. In July 2006, an 8 percent allocation was announced for general security WALs, which was incrementally increased to 35 percent from April to July 2007. In July 2007, a zero general security allocation was announced which was incrementally increased to 100 percent by February 2008.

During the drought, allocations under high security WALs were also reduced, but to a much lesser extent. In July 2006, high security allocations were reduced to 79 percent and then incrementally increased to 92 percent from April to July 2007. In July 2007, high security allocations were then reduce to 75 percent, incrementally increasing to 100 percent by January 2008.

39 Connor et al, 2008. 40 Pers. Comm. Eddy Harris, Senior Policy Officer, NSW Office of Water, Newcastle. 12 June 2014. 41 NSW Department of Water and Energy, 2007. 42 ibid 43 NSW Gazette notice http://www.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/pdfs/2006/18th_August.pdf#page=115 44 NSW Government Gazette No 192 of 29 December 2006. p.11979 45 NSW Government Gazette No 38 of 20 February 2009. p.1081

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 20 FIGURE 4: Announced Hunter high and general security percentage allocations 2004-2014

In response to drought and reduced allocations, Hunter Valley farmers adopt measures such as subdividing land, selling off stock, buying in feed, and not planting crops.[46]

Despite Hunter coal mines generally having extensive storage capacity in mine voids and other on-site storages, they have accumulated water entitlements far in excess of their requirements during years of average rainfall, presumably in an attempt to buffer themselves against droughts when water allocations are tightened and storages reduced. Nevertheless, during the 2003-07 drought at least one mine near Muswellbrook was reported to have “briefly stopped production due to a water shortage, while another placed the workforce on notice of potential stoppage unless rain was forthcoming.”[47] It’s not clear how widespread the impact on the coal mines was, but Anglo American’s Water Management Plan for the Drayton mine obliquely refers to the “excessively dry period between 2003 to 2007, when other coal mines in the region were experiencing the effects which resulted in reduction in production levels.”[48]

The most severe droughts on record for eastern Australia, in terms of rainfall deficits, have been those of 1901–02, 1982–83, 1994–95, 2002–03 and 2006–07, all of which were associated with El Niño.[49] Occasionally, severe droughts are embedded within more extensive dry periods; the 1901–02 drought was contained within a persistently dry period from 1895–1903 (the so-called ‘Federation Drought’).[50]

Drought-dominated regimes do not consist solely of drought years, but are characterised by periods of low flow activity.[51] Such low flow patterns prevailed in NSW between 1820-21 and 1856-63, and between 1901 and 1946-49.[52]

The lowest inflows recorded in the Hunter were experienced between 1940 and 1950. NOW modelling suggests that under conditions experienced during this period, Hunter storages would have been in the order of 40 percent of the levels experienced in the so-called “Millennium Drought” of 2003 to 2007.

46 Connor et al, 2008. 47 ibid 48 Anglo Coal (Drayton Management) Pty Ltd, 2010. p.11 49 ABS, 2012. 50 ibid 51 Warner, 1987. 52 Kirkup et al, 1998.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 21 Mine-affected water in a dam at the Mount Thorley Warkworth mine, Dean Sewell Mine Voids: Draining the Valley

Following the closure of an open cut mine, a void is generally left in the final landform. Attempts by Government agencies and community groups to require these voids to be filled have been resisted by mining companies who object to paying the cost of refilling them.[53] While still operating, mines utilise voids as water storage for dust suppression and to control runoff and site discharge.

Fifteen years ago, The Coal Industry 1999 Synoptic Plan identified that then-planned final mine voids would cover 1,272ha of the Hunter Valley and that these would likely become saline water sinks.[54] At around that time, the Hunter supported 22 coal operations and another 17 mines were planned or in development.[55] There is no publicly-available information about the area of the Valley that is currently occupied by open voids, but analysis of recent environmental management reports indicates that at least 22 mine voids are currently being used as mine water storages, substantially contributing to about 106,000ML of Hunter mine water storage capacity.

Long-term water quality is a significant issue for final voids. Groundwater within coal seams and associated rocks can be highly saline, and it is drawn to and will collect in the final void.[56] Hancock et al 2005[57] modelled water quality and mine void dynamics of the Mount Arthur North mine complex near Muswellbrook, which was to become the largest coal mine in New South Wales with a producing capacity of 32Mtpa run-of-mine coal annually. The results of the study demonstrated a steady increase in salinity of the void water through time and found that:

…the two major influences on salt load in the void were groundwater inflow and evaporation from the void water body surface, and that the size of the void water body surface controls evaporative loss … Modelled equilibrium of void water volume occurred at approximately 250 years, with the void being filled to approximately 50% of its volume.[58]

In other words, the distorting hydrological effects of mine voids continue for hundreds of years after mining ceases, and water continues to flow in, evaporate and become saline over that time. Evaporation rates increase as void water levels rise in mines with voids that have sloping walls, such as Mount Arthur North. This concentrates the salts held in solution in the void, which will peak at 13grams per litre, where seawater is about 35grams per litre.[59]

If the void is large enough, evaporation will continue to drive the groundwater flow into the void and the local and regional groundwater may never fully return to pre-mining conditions.[60] Water quality and its maintenance in post-mining voids have long-term implications for the entire community and ecosystem.[61]

When the Hunter’s biggest mine complex, Mount Arthur, finally ceases operation, the final void will be 4 kilometres long, 680 metres wide at its broadest point, and about 180 metres deep. [62] The water will reach 120 metres deep, 60m below the surface. Hancock and others have concluded that, “it is likely that the void will continue to be a net sink for groundwater in the long-term and will impact upon the Hunter River by reducing the annual flow.”[63]

53 Hancock et al, 2005. 54 New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources, 1999a; New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources, 1999b. 55 New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources, 2001. 56 Hancock et al, 2005. 57 ibid 58 Hancock et al, 2005. 59 Eary, 1999. 60 Mackie, 1999. 61 Hancock et al, 2005. 62 McCarthy, 2013. 63 McCarthy, 2013.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 23 Hunter mine voids are already reducing base flow of the Hunter River. Voids in the Hunter Valley alluvium will continue to reduce base flow for centuries, placing even greater pressure on water storages to satisfy increasing water demands.

So far, little attention has been paid to the burden these legacy pits will place on communities and government agencies into the decades after the coal industry has exhausted its resources here. There are currently no regulatory arrangements to address the hydrological impacts of coal mining’s void legacy. Unless conditions of consent ensure that final voids are rehabilitated and mining companies are required to maintain extraction licences for as long as these voids lose water to evaporation, this problem will continue to intensify.

Groundwater Drought Refuge

When faced with surface water restrictions, water users fall back on groundwater resources. In response to the last drought, NSW metered groundwater use spiked in 2006–07 and then fell by more than 200,000ML over the subsequent three years.[64] Information on metered groundwater use for 2011-12 and 2012-13 is not available, but indications are that it has declined significantly thanks to the availability of surface water.[65]

The 80,400MLpa of alluvial groundwater shares under the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvium WSP is about 16 percent of the total unregulated shares and 46 percent after Newcastle’s potable water supply component is deducted. Alluvial groundwater comprises 21 percent of the water shares by volume in the regulated and unregulated Hunter Valley systems after the Newcastle unregulated potable supply is subtracted.

A risk assessment in 1998 found that the Hunter River Alluvium, Goulburn River Alluvium, Wollombi Alluvium and Kingdom Ponds Alluvium were among the highest risk aquifers in NSW, based on multiple criteria that included the number of entitlements, sustainable yield, interference from pumping, land use threats and the proximity of poorer quality aquifers that could be drawn in by over pumping.[66]

Surface and groundwater sources in the Hunter are connected, and feed each other. Stream flow and water quantity are influenced by groundwater discharge and groundwater monitoring bores show that the Hunter alluvium is influenced by both the water level in the Hunter River and local rainfall, indicating it is recharging from both sources.[67]

The groundwater impact assessment for the latest modification of the Mt Thorley Warkworth mine showed that mining is gradually depressurising the Permian aquifer, reducing the flow of groundwater from the Permian to the alluvium, and that this will eventually reverse the direction of flow so that the alluvial aquifers will begin flowing into the underlying Permian coal seams.[68]

This is a significant admission, since the loss of base flow from the Hunter surface and alluvium sources to mining operations has been an ongoing source of conflict between miners and farmers for decades. As yet, governments have failed to resolve this conflict. The problem cannot be addressed at the planning phase for individual mines but requires legislative intervention that protects the alluvial aquifer from mining, and requires mining companies to account for water drained away from it by open cut pits.

64 National Water Commission, 2013. p.176 65 ibid 66 DLWC, 1998. 67 Bengalla Mining Company, 2012. p.32 68 Emga Mitchell Mclennan, 2013.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 24 The interrelationship between surface and groundwater has implications for the sustainability of Hunter Valley water users, as Hunter Valley alluvial groundwater supplies up to 21 percent of all Hunter Valley water use and up to 46 percent of Hunter Valley unregulated water use.

FIGURE 5: Pathways for groundwater inflow into open cut mines from NSW Department of Planning, 2005.[69]

Figure 5 is drawn from a NSW Department of Planning report on the Hunter and depicts the potential flow of water from the River and the alluvium into the open cut pits of coal mines.

Salinity Just Gets Worse

It is widely known that the Hunter River system has a major salinity issue. A scheme is operating that manages the surface discharge of saline water into the river by coal mines and caps salinity in the Regulated River. What is less well known is that coal mining affects the salinity of the Hunter River in more fundamental and long-term ways. The dewatering of the highly saline Permian aquifers for large scale open cut mining increases saline discharge into productive surface water and alluvial aquifers of the Hunter. Mining depressurises the coal seam, changing the direction of flow of groundwater and reducing the base flows of streams and alluvial sources, which further concentrates saline inflows.

The salinity of both surface and groundwater in the Hunter Valley is influenced by the seepage of saline water to the surface from the coal rich Permian aquifers.[70] Salinity in catchments in the upper Hunter is also influenced by mineral weathering – the action of water on rock in the ranges, wearing it away and bringing minerals down river.[71] Saline groundwater from the Permian coal layers in the Hunter can discharge into the creeks and rivers, and unconfined alluvial aquifers, especially during low flow periods. Extraction of water from the river and the unconfined alluvial and Triassic aquifers could also result in saline ground

69 Department of Planning, 2005. p.128 70 Kellett et al, 1989. 71 Somervillea et al, 2009.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 25 discharge from the Permian geology into aquifers used by irrigators and other water users.[72] Extraction of water from shallow, fresh alluvial groundwater systems overlying saline groundwater can exacerbate the region’s salinity problems.[73]

Hunter mines target Permian aquifers for the coal they contain and discharge large volumes of untreated saline mine water into the Hunter River and its tributaries, exacerbating the naturally varying stream salt loads that respond to prolonged long-term wet and dry periods.[74] The salinity of discharged water is further elevated as a result of run-off from overburden and evaporation.

The Hunter Valley Salinity Trading scheme (HRSTS)[75] was introduced to regulate salt discharges from mining sites in the lower Hunter Valley and to monitor salt flows in the Hunter River. The Protection of the Environment Operations (Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme) Regulation 2002 is currently being reviewed.[76]

The Hunter Water Users Association has warned that:

Whilst the HRSTS scheme appears to be reducing the point source salinity issues caused by mines, … background salinity is continuing to rise and at times is well in excess of the boundaries set under the Salinity Trading Scheme. It is most likely one of the main causes of increased back ground or diffuse salinity is a result of continued fracturing of highly saline rock during open cut mining. Similarly the complete destruction of shallow alluviums by open cut mining and the loss of their input into Hunter Base flows should not be ignored. It is essential that mines be fully accountable for usage and contamination of water supplies prior to, during and after production for as long as it takes. This in some cases may be centuries with highly saline voids and sinks being left as a time bomb. It is essential that all WSP rules be strictly enforced on this industry and if full compliance cannot be approved then licences should not be granted.”[77]

The NSW Environmental Protection Authority recently reported that the contribution by Hunter coal mines to total salt load in the Hunter River at Singleton has increased from 10 percent to about 13 to 20 percent – an increase of 30-100 per cent. Utilisation of the mines’ “total allowable discharge” has increased from 25 per cent a year to 40–50 per cent a year.[78]

72 Macdonald et al, 2009. 73 Somervillea et al, 2009. 74 ibid 75 http://waterinfo.nsw.gov.au/hunter/trading.shtml 76 http://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/licensing/hrsts/ 77 Burns, 2014. 78 Krogh et al, 2013.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 26 FIGURE 6: Electrical conductivity (EC) values upstream of Singleton pre-HRSTS (dark blue) and under HRSTS (Light Blue).[79]

Figure 6 shows electrical conductivity values for the NOW operated Hunter Integrated Telemetry Scheme (HITS) salinity monitoring station upstream of Singleton from 1993 to 2011 and demonstrates the trending rise of salinity levels, expressed in Electrical Conductivity (EC), since the introduction of the Hunter Salinity Trading Scheme.[80] The graph also depicts spikes in salinity levels in the aftermath of floods, when the scheme allows mines to dump saline water without having to use credits. The report from which this graph is drawn argues that increasing salinity trend since the HRSTS can be attributed to natural saline inflow and negative trends prior to the scheme is most likely due to the initial unregulated version of HRSTS from 1995 to 2002. Hunter River salinity levels are nevertheless often above the goal of 900us/cm, and the graph indicates that this may be directly attributed to the dumping of salty water during floods, which the scheme encourages.

Additional demand for saline discharge is also coming from new and expanded mining operations with increased daily discharge volumes being proposed for various parts of the Hunter River catchment.

In the recent court challenge Hunter Environment Lobby Inc v Minister for Planning and Infrastructure and Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd, expert evidence was presented that showed that the construction of the South East Open Cut project, near Camberwell, would increase the discharge of salt into Glennies Creek and thus into the Hunter River through changes in groundwater composition. This discharge would not be licenced under either the HRSTS or an Environmental Protection Licence but would contribute to increases in the base load of salt in the Hunter River.[81]

As the HRSTS is under review, the opportunity is now available to address the mounting contribution that

79 Thomas, 2011. p. 25. 80 ibid 81 EDO, 2014.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 27 interference with and fracturing of hard rock aquifers is making to salinity levels in the Hunter River system. Salinity management should be extended to the entire Hunter River catchment, including the Goulburn River and tributaries of the Hunter River.

Under the HRSTS rules, salinity credits are used to discharge saline water between low flows and floods. In low flow conditions no discharge is allowed and during floods there are no limitations on the salt discharge. Natural elevation in salinity can be exacerbated by introducing unlimited volumes of highly saline water during floods. The exemption to having to use credits during floods should, therefore, be removed as it adds considerably to the salt load of the River.

All sources of saline water leaving a site, whether through controlled releases, leakage or changes to groundwater systems, should be accounted for in all operations generating such discharges.[82] Further mining should not be contemplated where it will contribute to increased salinity levels, whether due to direct discharge, aquifer interference, or seepage.

Toxic Mine Discharge

In addition to salt, coal mines produce small but significant quantities of more toxic contaminants. The National Pollution Inventory lists 45 substances emitted by coal mines, including the metals and metallic compounds. [83]

Table 6 is drawn from the National Pollution Inventory and shows the estimated kilograms per annum of heavy metals discharged into the Hunter water sources by coal mines. Taken in isolation, most of these discharge estimates are minor, but the cumulative effect of decades of such discharge by dozens of mines may be having a significant impact on riverine ecosystems.

Water in mine pits at Camberwell-Ashton mine, Dean Sewell

82 EDO, 2014. 83 http://www.npi.gov.au/npidata/action/load/summary-result/criteria/anzsic-division/B/anzsic-sub-division/06/anzsic-group/060/industry- source/060/destination/ALL/source-type/INDUSTRY/subthreshold-data/Yes/substance-name/All/year/2013

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 28 TABLE 6: National Pollution Inventory Hunter coal mine heavy metal discharge into water (total kilograms)

Arsenic Cadmium Chromium Cobalt Fluoride Lead Manganese Mercury Nickel Selenium (III)

Austar 0.021 0.166 0.173 0.00005 0.017

Bloomfield 2.6 24 96

Newstan 23 23 500 0.017

Bengalla 0.0023 0.0039 0.057 0.002

Hunter Valley 6.4 0.085 3.8 2.2 1,500 2.8 110 0.085 7.6 Operations

Mt Thorley/ 18 0.059 0.59 3.7 3.5 2 30 0.059 6 14 Warkworth

West 0.0019 0.028 0.006 0.22 0.01 0.23 0.022 0.001 Wallsend

Ulan 0.043 0.002 0.64 0.14 5.1 0.24 5.3 0.001 0.51 0.016

Wambo 0.022 0.0013 0.26 0.03 0.73 0.13 3.7 0.0002 0.18

Wilpinjong 0.0034 0.00015 0.0046 1.9 99 0.008 420 0.00002 3.6

Ravensworth 0.036 0.001 0.22 0.04 1.3 0.12 1.9 0.001 0.14 0.008

TOTAL 27 0.2 6 8 1633 28 1095 0.2 114 14

Only two Hunter mines, Newstan and Rix’s Creek, have NSW Environmental Protection Licences (EPLs) that permit the discharge of the metals listed in Table 6 into Hunter waterways and limit the concentrations of these contaminants in the waters they discharge. These limits are listed in Table 7. One mine, Abel, is required by its EPL to monitor metal concentrations, but does not specify concentration limits for the emission of these substances. Most Hunter mines have EPLs that permit the discharge of maximum daily volumes of mine water and impose limits on the pH and total suspended solids in this water. Since the mercury discharge, for example, of Newstan last year was less than the mercury discharge reported for Hunter Valley Operations and Mount Thorley-Warkworth, it seems curious, to say the least, that these discharges are not licenced, monitored and regulated by the EPA.

TABLE 7: Hunter mines holding NSW EPL licences to discharge heavy metals into Hunter waterways.

Mine Mercury Lead Arsenic Cadmium Chromium

Newstan (ug/L) 0.06 23 42 0.4 6

Rix’s Creek (ppm) 100 5 2 10

Abel Monitor Monitor Monitor Monitor Monitor

The ongoing discharge of toxic material into Hunter waterways is a problem that needs to be addressed by government regulators. Monitoring of mine discharge must be undertaken to quantify the scale of toxic discharge. If the issue is as severe as it appears, mine discharge must be restricted.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 29 In the central part of the river system, where mining is concentrated, coal companies own up to 95% of the high security water, and have encircled or annihilated small former dairy communities like Camberwell, now fighting for its existence, Dean Sewell Coal Mines’ Water “Entitlements”

NSW Land and Property Information records reveal that coal companies hold at least 420 water access licences (WALs) under Hunter Valley water sharing plans, entitling their holders to extract up to 60,554ML of water a year from the unregulated and regulated systems, or 15 percent of the Hunter Valley’s total available water, not including Hunter Water’s extraction for Newcastle potable supply.[84]

TABLE 8: Hunter Regulated River WALs held by mining companies

Category Unregulated Mines Regulated Mines Total Mines Mine % MLpa MLpa MLpa MLpa MLpa MLpa Total

Local Utility 5,597 0 10,832 0 16,429 0 0

Major Utility 346,700 0 36,000 0 382,700 0 0

Stock and Domestic 737 108 1,738 313 2475 421 14%

Unregulated River 80,619 5,324 - - 80,619 5,432 7%

General Security - - 128,163 32,86 128,163 32,862 26%

High Security - - 22,159 12,126 22,159 12,126 55%

High Flow/Supplementary 42 0 49,000 2,157 5,119 2,157 4%

Unregulated Aquifer 80,400 9,031 - - 80,400 9,031 11%

Total 514,095 14,463 247,892 47,358 761,987 61,821 8%

Total Less Newcastle 175,095 14,463 247,892 47,358 415,287 61,821 15% potable

Camberwell resident Wendy Bowman on her farm which is the site of Yancoal’s proposed South East Open Cut coal mine, Steve Philips

84 Less the unregulated water supply to Newcastle and Lake Macquarie.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 31 Hunter Regulated River WSP

Coal companies now hold WALs comprising 23 per cent of all available water in the Hunter Regulated River WSP, including 55 percent of available high security water and 26 per cent of general security water, as shown in Table 8. The concentration of mining company ownership of water rights is much higher in the zones of the Hunter River with the greatest concentration of coal mines, as Table 9 demonstrates. In Zone 1, covering the section of the River from Glenbawn Dam to the confluence with Glennies Creek, mining companies hold 76 per cent of high security licences. Even more intensely, in Zone 3, which covers Glennies Creek between Glennies Creek dam and the Hunter confluence, coal mining companies own 95 per cent of high security water access licences.

FIGURE 7: Hunter Regulated River Extraction Zones.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 32 TABLE 9: Hunter Regulated River WALs held by mining companies

Hunter Regulated Zone 1 Zone 2 Zone 3 Total Available* % of MLpa % MLpa % MLpa % MLpa MLpa Available

High Security 7,917 76% 2,503 25% 1,706 95% 12,126 22,159 55%

General Security 27,135 36% 3,070 7% 2,455 41% 32,862 128,163 26%

Supplementary 1,783 - 325.4 - 48 - 2,157 49,000 4%

Stock and Domestic 192 26% 24 3% 97 52% 313 1,738 18%

TOTAL 37,027 5,906 4,306 47,358 201,060 23%

*Available water does not include Local Utility and Major Utility water see Table6 for these details.

FIGURE 8: Mining held High Security WALs FIGURE 9: Mining held General Security WALs

Hunter Valley vineyards are one of only two internationally recognised wine production areas in Australia, Kate Ausburn

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 33 Drayton Mine: Many coal mines have licences to discharge saline water, but discharges into tributaries of the main river are not included in the Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme, Dean Sewell Hunter Unregulated and Alluvium WSP

Coal companies also hold a substantial number of water access licences in 11 of the 40 unregulated systems in Hunter Unregulated River and Alluvium WSP. Coal companies currently hold WALs for 7.5 percent of all unregulated surface water and groundwater in the Hunter Valley. As for the regulated system, the concentration of ownership is far greater where the mines are concentrated. Table 10 shows that coal companies hold access to 36 per cent of extracted Upper Goulburn surface water, 27 percent of Muswellbrook surface water, 20 per cent of Lower Wollombi surface water and 17 percent of Jerry’s Plain surface water. Indeed, in the 11 Hunter Valley sub-catchments where there are coal mines, coal companies hold 27 and 18 percent of the extracted surface and groundwater.

FIGURE 10: Hunter Unregulated River extraction.

Figure 10 shows the unregulated river water sources affected by coal mining water entitlements.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 35 TABLE 10: Hunter Unregulated River WALs held by mining companies

Mine Total Mine Mine Total Mine Water Source surface water surface water % groundwater groundwater % MLpa MLpa MLpa MLpa

Bylong River - - - 1,954 5,843 33

Dart Brook 85 1,538 6 950 28,051 3

Glendon Brook 35 1,547 2 - - -

Jerry’s 1,735 10,278 17 358 358 100

Lower Wollombi Brook 1,511 6,663 20 906 5,071 18

Muswellbrook 367 598 61 184 184 100

Singleton 60 968 5 225 225 100

Regulated Alluvium - - - 4,097 29,055 14

Upper Goulburn River 600 1,661 36 - - -

Upper Wollombi 10 3,127 0.4 - - -

Wybong Creek 1,029 7,942 12 357 357 100

TOTAL 5,432 34,322 16 9,031 68,960 13

Groundwater extraction by coal companies probably has the greatest potential impact on water availability for agriculture production in the Hunter Valley. At the extreme of the industry’s domination, coal companies extract all the licensed groundwater in the Muswellbrook, Wybong, Singleton and Jerry’s groundwater sources as shown in Table 10. In other areas, coal mining companies hold smaller but significant quantities of alluvial groundwater water – 33 percent in the Bylong Valley, 18 percent in the Lower Wollombi Valley and 14 percent of extracted groundwater in the Hunter Regulated Alluvium.

Coal companies that rely on alluvial groundwater may face production shut-downs as water sources are drawn down. The application made by Korean miner KEPCO and their Australian partner Cockatoo Coal for the Bylong Project in the upper reaches of the Valley, in the Goulburn catchment, admitted that there would not be sufficient surface water to always meet demand during mining and post-mining, with the deficit predicted to peak at over 730ML per year. KEPCO have purchased Bylong alluvial groundwater WALs to extract almost 2,000ML per year from existing farm bores,[85] but the NSW Office of Water recommended to the Gateway Panel that the company make contingency plans, as “sufficient access to alluvial groundwater may not be available to meet the indicated mine water requirements.”[86]

85 Bylong Coal Project Gateway Certificate Application, 2013. 86 NSW Office of Water, 2014.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 36 Groundwater seeps into open cut pits and has to be pumped out and stored on site, as evident here, at the controversial Mangoola mine, which has been fined for uncontrolled release of water into local creeks Hard Rock Aquifers

Much of the deeper groundwater associated with coal seams and other “hard rock” is saline and not suitable for irrigation. Other Hunter groundwater, such as the Triassic sandstone aquifers of the Wollombi and Goulburn catchments are used extensively for irrigation, particularly during drought when surface water supplies are reduced.

This hard rock groundwater is not subject to water sharing plans but is instead regulated under Part 5 of the Water Act 1912. Most Hunter mines hold Part 5 bore licences for mine dewatering. This water is utilised for dust suppression and coal processing or is discharged under the Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme (HRSTS).

Substantial volumes of water are therefore available to mines without the need to access WALs under the Water Management Act 2000. Hunter coal mines’ annual environmental management reports indicate that mines hold Part 5 Water Act 1912 licences for about 81,000MLpa of groundwater,[87] mostly for mine dewatering. The most recent annual environmental management reports reveal that recent annual groundwater seepage into Hunter mines was about 25,093ML and about 15,794ML was discharged into rivers and streams of the Hunter Valley under the HRSTS. Another 16,612ML of groundwater was extracted and lost to water entrainment with coal. However, it is unclear what proportion of this groundwater extraction is from hard rock aquifers and alluvial groundwater as old Water Act 1912 licences are not available on the NOW public register.

The saline groundwater associated with the Permian coal strata in the Hunter can also discharge naturally into streams and unconfined alluvial aquifers, especially during low flow periods and after floods. However, most of the time a balance is reached between saline water in hard rock aquifers and that of overlying freshwater alluvial and surface water due to hydraulic pressure in the aquifer. As discussed above, mining fractures and depressurises these aquifers, breaching shale and mudstone aquitards and increases the migration of water between fresh alluvial and surface water sources and the more saline coal seam aquifers.[88]

When aquifer levels are drawn down their pressure is reduced, allowing alluvial groundwater or stream flows that may overlie and connect to these aquifers to migrate into them. The water from nearby freshwater connected sources can thereby be rendered useless for other uses due to the increased salinity or lost to depressurised hard rock aquifers and coal seams due to evaporation.

The boundary between hard rock aquifers, alluvium and surface water is unclear. Modelling shows, for example, Hunter River and Wollombi Brook water has been flowing into open cut pits at Rio Tinto’s Hunter Valley Operation (HVO).[89] The recent discovery of seepage from the Wollombi Brook into the South Lemington pit at HVO meant that an application to convert a Water Act Licence to a WAL was needed.[90]

The current Water Sharing Plan arrangements and the Aquifer Interference Policy do not adequately address the impacts already occurring in the Hunter system as a result of the connectivity of ground and surface water, and the major interference with aquifers that mining causes. Significant environmental impacts result from coal mining’s dewatering of substantial volumes of saline groundwater and discharge of this water into surface water sources, but long-term unquantified impacts also result from the flow of water

87 Water Act 1912 Licence volumes were identified in annual environmental management reports, water reports and assessment documents for most mines. For some mines, such as Mt Owen, Hunter Valley Operation, Rix’s Creek, Bloomfield, Donaldson and Tasman mines, estimates were made based on stated groundwater inflows to average Part 5 Water Act 1912 licensed volumes. 88 Macdonald et al, 2009. 89 Rio Tinto, 2014. p.89 90 ibid

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 38 from alluvial aquifers and surface water sources into mines. Water shared under the Hunter WSPs is being lost as a result of dewatering of hard rock aquifers licenced under the old Water Act. There is currently no mechanism for accounting for this loss as there are no water sharing plans for hard rock aquifers and water extraction licences not listed on the NOW public register.

Our investigations reveal that Hunter mines are licensed to extract at least 81,000ML from hard rock aquifers. This volume is equivalent to all available alluvial groundwater under the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvium WSP.

Much of the hard rock groundwater intercepted is known to be linked to surface water and the alluvium, but current regulatory arrangements do not reflect this and are not capable of protecting the groundwater resources that irrigators rely on during drought. It is therefore essential to the reliability and sustainability of Hunter water sources that all Water Act 1912 Licences be incorporated into the Water Management Act 2000 under WSPs as soon as possible and that holders of Water Act licences to extract water from sources likely to be hydraulically connection to WAL sources be required to purchase WALs in those sources.

Harvestable Rights

Another major source of water for Hunter Valley mines is rainfall runoff regulated under the Water Management Act 2000. Harvestable Rights allow a landholder to harvest up to 10 per cent of the average regional runoff on the property.[91]

Analysis of Hunter coal mine annual environmental management reports indicates that last year about 27,900MLpa was captured as rainfall runoff by Hunter coal mines. With the enormous volumes of water storage that many mines possess, it is possible that much more than the allowable 10 percent of runoff is being captured and used by mines in the Hunter reducing base flows of the Hunter River Valley.

More research is needed to determine whether the 10 percent harvest limit is being adhered to and the quantity of surface water that is being harvested by large scale mining, which dramatically alters local catchment topography, is allowed under current legislation.

Very little consistent information is currently required to be published by mining companies about the quantity of water they use, its sources, and the volume and quality of water they hold in storage. Reform of the reporting requirements, so that such information is made available on a public register, will help inform community engagement with protection of the River that supports this productive valley.

Hunter Valley Water Trading

The available data on water trading[92] suggests that since trading began in NSW, Hunter Valley WALs have consistently traded for over $2,000 a megalitre, making it the most expensive water in the NSW.[93] A summary of average annual prices per megalitre in water trading across eight systems and the state average is shown in Figure 9. Coal companies have been responsible for 58 percent of the 600 or so water trades listed on the NSW Office of Water Public Register for the Hunter Valley since trading began in 2005. These transactions have traded at least 36,389ML of water at a cost of $26.2 million.

91 http://www.water.nsw.gov.au/Water-licensing/Basic-water-rights/Harvesting-runoff/Calculator/Calculator 92 Price data for water licence markets in New South Wales in 2012–13 was sourced from NOW and collected by the Bureau of Meteorology. It is not a comprehensive dataset. There is currently no legal requirement for entities involved in the sale or purchase of water to report the sale price to NOW or to Land and Property Information, and not all price data provided to NOW is verified. 93 National Water Commission, 2013. pp. 181 - 186

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 39 FIGURE 11: Average annual water trades in dollars per ML for permanent transfers in major NSW Regulated Rivers

It is clear that coal mining is driving the water market in the Hunter Valley.

The Upper Hunter region, where several new coal mines are proposed, has the second largest concentration of horse studs in the world, Dean Sewell

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 40 Coal Mines’ Water Use

Hunter mines’ most recent annual environmental management reports and water management plans reveal that in 2013 Hunter coal mines consumed almost 88,500ML of water. This breaks down to 35 percent (31,217ML) used for coal handling and processing plants (CHPP), 24 percent (21,446ML) lost to evaporation and entrainment, 19 percent (16,500ML) for dust suppression and similar activities and 18 percent (16,000ML) in saline discharge. Table 11 presents our estimated mine water balance for all Hunter Valley coal mines, based on information available in Hunter mine annual environment reports and water management plans.

Despite mine companies holding WALs entitling them to almost 62,000ML, Hunter mines extracted only about 13,325ML in 2013, or 21 percent of the volume they are licenced to extract.

Hunter mines also hold Water Act 1912 bore licences to extract in excess of 81,000MLpa of hard rock aquifer water, mostly associated with mine dewatering.[94] In 2013, Hunter mines reported that about 41,705ML was accessed, 25,093ML seeping into pits and mine workings and about 16,612ML extracted.

In addition, 30,616ML of rainfall runoff was caught by Hunter mine water storages capacity, which was almost 30 percent of total storage capacity of almost 106,244ML.

The estimated 2013 water balance for Hunter mines shown in Table 11 is almost 3,000ML in deficit. Hunter mines, taken as a whole, could not have operated without access to WALs under WSPs and rainfall.

During drought, evaporation would increase and rainfall run-off decrease, leaving mines with a far greater reliance on water extraction and groundwater seepage. However, even these sources may not be available to satisfy demand. As groundwater sources of the Hunter are reliant on rainfall recharge, over extraction of aquifers during extended periods of drought will have a detrimental impact on groundwater availability.

Much of the Hunter’s current agriculture and livestock production is now threatened by the further expansion of coal mining, Steve Philips

94 Water Act Licence volumes were identified in annual environmental management reports, water reports and assessment documents for most mines.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 41 TABLE 11: Estimated 2013 water balance for Hunter coal mines

Inflows ML %

Rainfall runoff 30,616 36

Groundwater seepage 25,093 29

*Groundwater extraction/entrainment 16,612 19

**Surface water extraction 13,325 16

Transfers - not in totals 5,131 6

Total 85,646

Outflows ML

Coal handling and preparation 31,217 35

Evaporation/entrainment 21,446 24

Dust suppression 16,536 19

Discharge 15,794 18

Industrial and losses 3505 4

Transfers (not in totals) 5,131 6

(Gross) (88,498)

Total (Net***) 72,704

Balance (-2,852)

Storages 106,244

* Water Act 1912 and Water Management Act 2000. There was no way of distinguishing between groundwater sources and mine extraction figures contained in mine reports and plans **Water Management Act 2000 ***uses and losses less discharge

In all but the driest years, most Hunter mines discharge untreated mine water into waterways under Environmental Protection Licences (EPLs) using salt credits under the HRSTS. Hunter mines are licensed to discharge a maximum of about 584,455MLpa or about 1,600ML a day into the Hunter River, creeks and streams. In 2013 Hunter mines discharged 15,794 ML, just 2 .7 percent of their combined licensed discharge volume.

Water management strategies differ substantially among Hunter mines, the main difference being the volume of intercepted groundwater that flows into the pits and workings. Some mines are dependent on surface water extraction to fulfil their water demand, but those that intercept large volumes of groundwater can generally supply their water needs on site from either mine seepage or groundwater extraction.

An example of a mine that is highly dependent on surface water extraction and licences under the Water Sharing Plans is Rio Tinto’s Bengalla mine. In 2012, the Bengalla mine had on-site storage capacity of only 670.6ML and captured only 51ML of groundwater inflow. With projected annual water demand of up to 2,805ML,[95] and only 1,471ML of high security water access licences, Bengalla risks major disruptions to dust suppression and coal processing during prolonged drought when general security allocations are

95 Bengalla Mining Company Pty Limited, 2012. p.20

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 42 reduced or suspended. Rio Tinto is currently seeking approval to expand their operations at Bengalla.

Similarly, Xstrata’s Mangoola mine, which is also expanding, has a projected on-site water deficit ranging from approximately 1,800ML per year to 2,300ML per year for the majority of the life of mine, increasing to between 2,450 and 2,950ML in dry years.[96] Land and Property information searches reveal that Xstrata Mangoola holds at least 75 WALs for a maximum entitlement of 6,717ML pa, comprised of 3,737ML from the Regulated River WSP, 1,436ML under the Wybong WSP and 501ML under the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvium WSP. However, the mine has WALs for only 20MLpa of High Security water. During a prolonged drought the mine would face serious water stress and may need to substantially reduce production or dust suppression.

Hunter mines without adequate groundwater and who have no access to Hunter Regulated River water have little choice but to face the risk of reduced production or shut downs during extended periods of drought.

In a submission to the NSW Planning Assessment Commission (PAC) for its recently approved Mangoola mine extension, Xstrata suggested that it, “would be required to adjust the scale of its operation to match the availability of water supply in the event it is unable to secure the water required.”[97] Though satisfied with this approach, the PAC wanted it made clear that “dust suppression measures must not be compromised by potential water shortages at the mine” and recommended a condition be imposed requiring Mangoola Coal “to ensure it has sufficient water for all stages of the project and adjust the scale of the operation to match the available water.”[98]

Other Hunter mines, such as Anglo American’s Drayton mine, source their water needs from within the mine site, with little need to extract surface water. Anglo American claims that it has an excess of groundwater water in Drayton, even “throughout the excessively dry period between 2003 to 2007, when other coal mines in the region were experiencing the effects which resulted in reduction in production levels.”[99] Drayton holds eight Water Act Bore Licences and at the end of 2013, approximately 824ML was being stored in established dams, with a further 5,738ML of water in pit voids. Drayton does not possess a discharge licence but has a water sharing arrangement which allows it to transfer up to 600MLpa of excess saline mine water to the neighbouring Mt Arthur mine.[100] Mount Arthur is licensed to discharge an astounding 164,250ML of saline water into the system per annum. This is the largest discharge of any Hunter mine and amounts to almost 30 percent of total licensed mine discharge water volume in the Hunter.

Many Hunter mines have these water sharing systems with neighbouring mines or mines with common ownership. The Ulan mine, for example, has a water sharing agreement with the Moolarben mine and a heads of agreement with Wilpinjong mine for water transferred via pipeline between them. The Greater Ravensworth Water Sharing System shares water between several Xstrata-owned mines linked through a range of water transfer and storage infrastructure, including pipelines, surface storages, mining voids and former underground mine workings.[101]

These water sharing arrangements rely on very large storage capacities, such as mine voids, which store both rainfall runoff and mine water. Hunter mine storage capacity is about 106,000ML and storageis generally kept as low as possible in order to manage high rainfall events. Such large storage capacities

96 Xstrata Mangoola, 2013. p.20 97 PAC, 2014. p.14 98 ibid 99 Anglo Coal (Drayton Management) Pty Ltd, 2010. p.11 100 Anglo Coal (Drayton Management) Pty Ltd, 2013. p.15 101 Xstrata, 2013, p.12

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 43 have implications for the salinity load discharged into the Hunter catchment. The salinity of stored water increases over time and with each reuse to a point where it becomes unusable even for dust suppression and coal handling and processing. Highly saline discharges therefore become necessary for the mines to maintain on-site water at a useable salinity level.

Four Hunter mines do not possess EPLs that enable saline discharge. Yancoal’s Ashton, Anglo American’s Drayton, Integra’s Camberwell and Glencore’s Mangoola mine produce coal without a licence to discharge water. In 2013, seven Hunter mines that do have discharge licences did not discharge any water. As shown in Table 12, these mines had about 9,717ML of saline water flow into their working. Rather than discharging this water into surface water sources, these mines held the water in storage for use in dust suppression and coal processing. The storage of saline mine water during periods of low rainfall may assist in reducing salt load in surface water sources, but to do so for extended periods can result in the production and storage of very large quantities of raw salt and its necessary disposal into final voids and other completed coal workings. The implication for long-term on-site salt disposal has not been quantified, but it likely to have impacts over time if the storage is not adequately sealed and impervious to water flow. As has been touched upon above, mine water may also contain toxic heavy metals. The concentration and on-site disposal of evaporated mine tailings may therefore be leading to an unquantified toxic legacy of Hunter coal mining.

TABLE 12: Hunter coal mines that did not discharge water in 2013, their licensed discharge and water storage

Licensed Groundwater Storage Operator Mine discharge Inflow ML ML MLpa

Yancoal Ashton 0 421 140

Rio Tinto Bengalla 73,000 120 671

Integra Camberwell (Integra) 0 1,762 6,562

Anglo American Drayton 0 1,232 7,135

Rio Tinto Hunter Valley Operations 47,540 1,365 32,571

Glencore Mangoola 0 657 4,150

BHP Billiton Mount Arthur Operations 164,250 501 4,040

Xstrata Mount Owen complex 24,090 1,280 3,200

Idemitsu Muswellbrook 365 1,486 260

Yancoal Abel ? 349 1,950

Yangcoal Moolarben 3,650 613 1372

Total 312,895 9,717 62,050

At least four Hunter mines have desalinisation capacity that provides additional flexibility for water use and discharge. Ulan, Austar, Wilpinjong and Moolarben mines all have varying desalinisation capacity. The capacity to remove salt from water provides additional flexibility in how the mines manage their water balance, but does not resolve the problem of salt waste or relieve mines from the need to either discharging saline water or extract surface water under conditions when water management systems are under strain.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 44 The Bylong Valley has not yet been subject to coal mining, but plans are underway to open this upper reach of the Goulburn-Hunter catchment to mining, Dean Sewell Water Use Projections

In 1982, the NSW Water Resources Commission projected that low-growth water use by electricity generation and coal mining in the central Hunter would be around 77,000ML by 1990 and 120,000ML by 2005.[102] The shares in the regulated flow inHunter Regulated River Water Sharing Plan held by electricity generation and coal mining now total over 138,000MLpa, but our research indicates that the water entitlements held by the industry are actually far greater than this due to bore licences and other Water Act 1912 entitlements held by coal companies. We estimate that the total volumes of water licences held by coal mine and power stations is now over 220,000MLpa (see Table 13 for breakdown).

Coal mining companies hold licences to about 143,000MLpa. Well under half of this, or 62,000ML is held in the Water Management Act 2000 water access licences, the management of which is transparent and subject to water sharing plans. Coal mines also hold in excess of 81,000ML worth of entitlements under Part 5 of the Water Act 1912, [103] over which there is no public scrutiny.

TABLE 13: Total Hunter Valley water access under the Water Management Act 2000

Unregulated Regulated % Total % Water user WSPs % Total WSP Total MLpa Total MLpa MLpa

Hunter Water Corp. 346,700 67 0 0 346,767 46

Macquarie Generation 5 0 76,643 32 76,648 10

Hunter towns 5,597 1 10,832 5 16,429 2

Coal mines 14,463 3 47,358 20 61,821 8

Agriculture and non-mining industry 147,514 29 105,349 44 253,946 34

Total 514,095 100 240,217 100 754,379 100

After Newcastle’s water and Hunter towns’ water is deducted, agriculture and non-mining industrial use must compete for what is left – about 34 percent of total Hunter WALs, 44 percent of Regulated WSP water and 29 percent of unregulated WSP water.

Hunter mines extracted an estimated 142Mt of coal in 2013 and consumed approximately 72,704ML not including saline discharge. This equates to about 512 litres of water consumed for every tonne of saleable coal produced (360 litres per tonne if evaporation/entrainment is not included). Based on estimates by Mudd (2008), black coal mining operations in Australia use an average of 300 litres of water for every tonne of coal extracted.[104]

There are four Hunter mine approvals that have yet to begin production, 13 mine extensions and four new mine proposals lodged with the Department of Planning for an additional production capacity of 47Mtpa of saleable coal. This would bring approved capacity of Hunter Region mining production to about 260Mtpa of saleable coal.

102 New South Wales, Water Resources Commission, 1982. 103 Water Act Licence volumes were identified in annual environmental management reports, water reports and assessment documents for most mines. For some mines such as Mt Owen, Hunter Valley Operation, Rix’s Creek, Bloomfield, Donaldson and Tasman mines, estimates were made based on stated groundwater inflows to average Part 5 Water Act Licensed volumes. 104 Mudd, 2008.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 46 Should existing mines ramp up to full capacity and the proposed new mines and mine extensions currently before the NSW Department of Planning be approved, an estimated 133,120MLpa of water would need to be used, almost twice the volume of water currently used by Hunter coal mines.

Under current water sharing arrangements, many Hunter mines would be unable to maintain production levels during a prolonged drought, and that is before water demand is doubled for unused approved capacity and proposed new coal mines and mine extensions.

The Hunter Regulated River WSP was suspended during the last major drought, giving the Minister discretion to alter sharing arrangements. Without the suspension, Macquarie Generation was facing the need to reduced electricity production at the power stations that supply the equivalent of 40% of NSW’s electricity demand. Such arrangements will likely be repeated in response to any future drought, as the Government of the day will be under enormous pressure to ensure coal production and electricity generation is maintained.

Hunter Valley coal mine, Dean Sewell

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 47 Conclusion

Much has been written about the impacts of Hunter coal mining and its relentless unchecked expansion, yet Governments appear unable or unwilling to confront the industry with the sensible restrictions that are being sought by competing industries, community and environmental advocates. Although community opposition inspired the State Government to effectively stymie development of the Bickham open cut mine in the Upper Hunter and the Awaba open cut mine in Lake Macquarie in 2007, as far as we know, the NSW Government has never refused a Hunter coal mine development application.

After many years of complaints by the Hunter irrigators, the Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme was introduced to alleviate some of the salinity burden in the Hunter River. That scheme does not cover mine discharge into all tributaries and does not address the salinity load of the Hunter alluvium and the interactions between hard rock aquifers, alluvial and surface water. More fundamentally, the scheme does not address the elevated salinity that results from Hunter coal mining’s massive extraction of groundwater from relatively unregulated hard rock aquifers, and associated loss of flow in the alluvium and surface water. It is unclear whether salinity trading can be extended to cover these sources, but far closer scrutiny is required to reduce the frequency and severity of salinity spikes from tributary and groundwater inflows.

The NSW Government has not addressed toxic discharge from coal mines into Hunter waterways, which needs extensive monitoring to identify the scale and severity of the issue. If the issue is as severe as it appears, limits must be imposed on mine discharge and on-site tailings disposal.

The State Government also seems unwilling to impose sensible rehabilitation requirements that address the long-term geochemical and hydrological impacts associated with Hunter coal’s legacy voids that are multiplying in the Hunter at an alarming rate. These voids will continue to impact on alluvial and surface flows in the Hunter for centuries to come and coal mining companies must be made to rehabilitate them fully. If, as the industry argues, rehabilitating final mine voids is too expensive, the mines are clearly uneconomic and should not continue to be subsidised by the state nor should communities and non-mining industries of the Hunter be burdened with their impacts.

Exacerbating these historic failures, coal mining continues to encroach on productive Hunter Valley agricultural land and rural communities to the north and west where rainfall is lowest and access to reliable surface and groundwater more critical.

The forgone revenue and industry development that would have been viable but for Hunter coal’s hegemony is never adequately considered when coal mines are assessed and, invariably, approved. Employment in Hunter coal mining has doubled and employment in agriculture almost halved over the last decade with Hunter coal now employing in the order of 10,000 people. Yet this is redistribution of employment as much as it is job creation, with other industries again losing out.[105]

The industries that are facing uncertainty as a direct result of bloated dominance of coal mining in the Hunter are fighting back and in some areas appear to be having an effect. These industries continue to make large contributions to the NSW economy despite the impacts that coal has on them. Hunter farmers, thoroughbred breeders, wine producers and wine tourism operators inject over $1.8 billion into the NSW economy and employ over 41,000 people: the share of land and water being consumed by coal mining must be balanced to protect these industries.

The Hunter’s 26 coal mines and mine complexes operate 42 open cuts pits and 15 underground works.

105 Gruen, 2012. p.17

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 48 There is around 70Mt of latent approved saleable coal production capacity, as well as four approved but undeveloped mines and extensions, development applications for another four new mines and 13 mine expansions for another 47Mtpa of production. In total the Hunter is faced with potential production of almost 260Mtpa, almost double current production levels.

Hunter coal mines are already dominating the water market and hold licences to extract 62,000MLpa under water sharing plans and another 81,000MLpa under old Water Act licences. The further expansion of mining in the region will inevitably continue to force up water prices for the remaining water dependant industries, who are already burdened by the most costly water in NSW.

With currently approved capacity added to the production of coal mine applications under consideration by the State Government, Hunter coal’s water consumption could climb to an estimated 133,120MLpa from current usage of about 72,704MLpa, not including discharged water. Under drought conditions, this figure would likely increase, due to elevated evaporation. And yet, assessment processes for coal mines rarely ask whether water will be available to meet the needs of the excessive production levels now proposed.

Almost half of the current water extraction by coal mines is drawn from hard rock aquifers as part of the mine dewatering process. This extraction is not regulated under Water Sharing Plans. Groundwater monitoring indicates that many fractured rock aquifers connect with alluvial and surface water sources. Until all extracted water is included in Water Sharing Plans, there can be no assurance of long-term water security or sustainability.

While some Hunter mines make use of huge volumes of groundwater that flows into their pits and workings, extensive on-site storages and sharing systems for the bulk of their water use, most are heavily reliant on surface water extraction. Hunter coal companies now hold water access licences for about 23 per cent of all available water in the Hunter Regulated River Water Sharing Plan, including 55 percent of available high security water and 26 per cent of general security water. However, in the zones of the river where mining in concentrated, coal mine ownership reaches near monopoly levels. In the Hunter River upstream of the Glennies Creek confluence and below Lake Glenbawn, mining companies own 76 per cent of high security water access licences. In the Glennies Creek zone below Glennies Creek dam to the confluence with the Hunter River, the mines 95 per cent of high security water access licences.

Despite Hunter coal’s dominance of the Hunter water market, we conclude that under current water sharing arrangements, many Hunter mines will be unable to maintain production levels or dust suppression responsibilities during a prolonged drought. To feed their thirst, Hunter coal mines need many more high security water access licences than current sharing arrangements can provide.

With water use for dust suppression comprising almost 20 percent of all Hunter coal mine annual water use, it is essential that mines have enough water to operate within their conditions of consent. What is even more important, however, is adequate water of sufficient quality to maintain the Hunter’s non-mining industries to ensure an economic future after coal is exhausted or there is an end to the demand for Hunter’s coal.

In a system already under stress, further mining approvals should not be contemplated where it will contribute to increased salinity levels or impact on existing water users.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 49 References and Bibliography

ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics), 2006. Small Area Data, Australia 2005-06. Accessed from http://www.abs.gov.au/ ausstats/[email protected]/Products/7125.0~2005-06+%28Reissue%29~Main+Features~New+South+Wales?OpenDocument.

ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics). 2011, Census of Population and Housing, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra.

ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics). 2012. Australia’s Climate Yearbook. Accessed 13/6/14. http://www.abs.gov.au/ ausstats/[email protected]/Lookup/by%20Subject/1301.0~2012~Main%20Features~Australia’s%20climate~143

Anglo Coal (Drayton Management) Pty Ltd, 2010. Water Management Plan. Accessed 13.5.14. http://www. angloamerican.com.au/~/media/Files/A/Anglo-American-Australia-V2/Attachments/environment/drayton-mine-water- management-plan.pdf.

Anglo Coal (Drayton Management) Pty Ltd, 2013. Annual Environmental Management Report 2013 Drayton Mine. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.angloamerican.com.au/~/media/Files/A/Anglo-American-Australia-V2/Attachments/ environment/Drayton-AEMR-2013.pdf.

Ashton Coal P/L, 2013. Ashton Coal Project Annual Environmental Management Report 2013. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.ashtoncoal.com.au/Reports--Publications/Environmental/Annual-Environmental-Management- Report/2013-Annual-Environmental-Management-Report.aspx.

Austar Coal Mine Pty Ltd, 2014. Annual Environmental Management Report July 2012 – June 2013. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.austarcoalmine.com.au/Portals/3/pdfs/environment/AEMR_2012-2013/Austar_AEMR_2012-2013_Final_ MainTextOnly.pdf

Austar Coal Mine Pty Ltd, 2009. Austar Coal Mine Site Water Management Plan March 2009. http://www. austarcoalmine.com.au/Portals/3/pdfs/environment/EnvironmentalManagementPlans/SWMP2009/Austar_SWMP_ March2009.pdf.

Binks B, Martin P, Mazur K, 2013. Agriculture and Fisheries in the Hunter Valley excluding Newcastle region of New South Wales 2013 13.6, ABARES About my region, Canberra, accessed 28 April 2013. http://data.daff.gov.au/data/ warehouse/9aa/regionalReports/201302/pb_regnrd9aa__0302013021Hunter1.0.0.pdf.

Bengalla Mining Company Pty Limited, 2012a. Bengalla Water Management Plan. Accessed 15/5/14. http:// www.riotintocoalaustralia.com.au/documents/2012_Bengalla_Water_Management_Plan.pdf.Bengalla Mining Company, 2012. Annual Environmental Management Report and Annual Review. Accessed 15 May 14. http://www. riotintocoalaustralia.com.au/documents/2012_Bengalla_Annual_Environmental_Management_Report_and_Annual_ Review.

Bengalla Mining Company Pty Limited, 2012b. Annual Environmental Management Report

(Annual Review) January – December 2013. Accessed 11/6/14. file:///C:/Users/User/Documents/HUNTER%20RIVER/ Environmental%20reports/Bengalla_Annual_Environmental_Management_Report_and_Annual_Review_2013.pdf

Bloomfield Collieries Pty Limited, 2013. Bloomfield Colliery Annual Environmental Management Report 2013. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.bloomcoll.com.au/Portals/5/Files/AEMR%202013_Final.pdf.

Bulga Coal, 2014. Annual Environmental Management Report 2013. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.bulgacoal.com.au/ EN/Publications/AEMR/Annual%20Environmental%20Management%20Report%202013.pdf.

Bulga Coal, 2013. Site Water Management Plan. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.bulgacoal.com.au/EN/Publications/ Management%20Plans/Site%20Water%20Management%20Plan.pdf.

Burns, A., 2014. Submission on Review of 2004 Hunter Regulated River Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter Water Users Association Inc. Accessed 1/6/14. http://www.nrc.nsw.gov.au/content/documents/WSP%20submission%20-%20 Hunter%20Valley%20Water%20Users%20Association%204.pdf.

Bylong Coal Project, 2013. Gateway Certificate Application. Appendix F Preliminary Water Balance. December 2013.

Campbell, R., Grudnoff, M., 2013. Economic assessment of environmentally damaging mining and gas developments in New South Wales, a report for the Nature Conservation Council of NSW, prepared by Economists at Large,

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 50 Melbourne and The Australia Institute, Canberra.

Centennial Coal, 2014. Annual Environmental Management Report 2013. Mandalong. Accessed 31/5/14.http://www. centennialcoal.com.au/~/media/Files/Mandalong%20documents/Environmental%20Management%20Reports/ Annual%20Environment%20Management%20Report%20%20DoPI%202013.ashx.

Centennial Newstan Pty Ltd, 2014a. Annual Environmental Management Report Newstan Colliery January 2013 to December 2013. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.centennialcoal.com.au/~/media/Files/Newstan%20Documents/ Environment%20Management%20Plans%20Documents/Environment%20Management%20Plans/Newstan%20 Water%20Management%20Plan.ashx.

Centennial Newstan Pty Ltd, 2014b. Water Management Plan Newstan Colliery January 2013 to December 2013. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.centennialcoal.com.au/~/media/Files/Newstan%20Documents/Environment%20 Management%20Plans%20Documents/Environment%20Management%20Plans/Newstan%20Water%20 Management%20Plan.ashx.

Connor, L., Albrecht, G., Higginbotham, N., Freeman, S., & Smith, W., 2004. Environmental change and human health in Upper Hunter communities of New South Wales, Australia. EcoHealth. 1 (2).

Connor, L., Higginbotham, N., Freeman, S., & Albrecht, G., 2008. Watercourses and Discourses: Coalmining in the Upper Hunter Valley, New South Wales. Oceania. 78 (1), 76-90.

Connor, L and Mcmanus, P., 2012. “Farmers, Residents Fight Back Over Coal.” Newcastle Herald 30 November 2012, 9:54 P.M. http://www.theherald.com.au/story/1157436/opinion-farmers-residents-fight-back-over-coal/.

Davidson, A., 2001. Dairy deregulation and the demise of dairying in New South Wales. Rural Society. 11(1), 23–37.

Day, D. G., 1988. Evolutionary or fragmented environmental policy making? Coal, power, and agriculture in the Hunter Valley, Australia. Environmental management. 12 (3), 297-310.

Department of Planning, 2005. Coal mine potential in the Upper Hunter Valley – Strategic Assessment. file:///C:/ Users/User/Documents/HUNTER%20RIVER/Research%20and%20Govt%20publications/final-draft1_5.pdf

Dragun, A. K. 1984. The environmental impacts of surface mine development in the Hunter region of New South Wales. International Journal of Environmental Studies. 23, 3-4, 179-189.

Dragovich, D. and Patterson, J., 1995. Condition of rehabilitated coal mines in the Hunter Valley, Australia. Land Degrad. Dev. 6, 29–39.

Donaldson Coal P/L, 2013. Annual Environmental Management Report for the Abel underground mine.

Eary L.E. 1999. Geochemical and equilibrium trends in mine pit lakes. Applied Geochemistry 14, 963–988.

EDO, Environmental Defenders Office, 2014. Submission to the review of the Protection of the Environment Operations (Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme) Regulation 2002.

Gibson, K., 1990. Internationalization and the spatial restructuring of black coal production in Australia. In R. Hayter, & P. D. Wilde (Eds.), Industrial transformation and challenge in Australia and Canada (pp. 159–173). Ottawa, ON: Carleton University Press.

Glencore, 2014. Ravensworth Complex Annual Review. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.ravensworthoperations.com.au/ EN/Publications/AEMRs/140320_Rav_Complex_Annual_Review_2013_vFinal_signed[1].pdf.

Gruen, D, 2012. Head of Macroeconomics at the Commonwealth Treasury to a Federal Government Senate economics committee in 2012. Transcript of evidence to senate economics committee 16 Feb 2012.

Hancock, G. R. Wright, A. and De Silva, H., 2005. Long-term final void salinity prediction for a post-mining landscape in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia. Hydrol. Process. 19, 387–401.

HVRF - Hunter Valley Research Foundation, 2008. “Newcastle and the Hunter Region 2008 – 2009.” Accessed19/5/14. http://hvrf.com.au/download-publications/newcastle-and-the-hunter-region.

Hunter Valley Wine Industry Association and the Hunter Valley Protection Alliance, 2012. Protecting the Hunter Valley

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 51 from CSG mining. White Paper, Hunter Valley, NSW. Accessed 3/6/14. http://huntervalleyprotectionalliance.com/ hghome101.html.

Hunter Valley Energy Coal Pty Ltd, 2012. Site Water Management Plan Mt Arthur Coal. http://www.bhpbilliton.com/ home/aboutus/regulatory/Documents/Mt%20Arthur%20Coal%202012/Site%20Water%20Management%20Plan.pdf.

Hunter Valley Energy Coal Pty Ltd, 2013. Mt Arthur Coal Annual Environmental Management Report Fy13. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.bhpbilliton.com/home/aboutus/regulatory/Documents/_coal/nswec/mtarthur/130926_coal_ nswec_mtarthur_AnnualEnvironmentalManagementReportFY13.pdf.

Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd, 2012. Water Management Plan 2012-2015. http://www.vale.com/australia/ EN/aboutvale/regulatory-reports/integra-complex-regulatory-information/Management%20Plans/Integra%20 Complex%20-%20Water%20Management%20Plan%20Volume%202.pdf.

Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd, 2014. Annual Review. Accessed 5/6/14. http://c.cld.pw/127/cms/files/2014AnnualRe viewFinalDB31-3-14.pdf

Investek, October 2011. NuCoal Resources Coal – Speculative Risk. Accessed 23/5/14. http://www.nucoal.com.au/wp- content/uploads/2011/10/Research-Report-by-Investec-October-2011.pdf.

Kellett. JR, Williams BG and Ward JK. 1989. Hydro geochemistry of the upper Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics Bulletin, 221, Government Publishing Service, Department of Primary Industries and Energy, Canberra.

Kirkup, Helen, Gary Brierley, Andrew Brooks & Andrew Pitman, 1998. Temporal variability of climate in south‐eastern Australia: a reassessment of flood‐ and drought‐dominated regimes. Australian Geographer. 29 (2), 241-255Krogh,

M., Dorani, F., Foulsham, E., McSorley, A. and Hoey, D., 2013. Hunter Catchment Salinity Assessment. Report prepared by the Office of Environment and Heritage for the NSW Environment Protection Authority. Accessed 11/6/14. http:// www.epa.nsw.gov.au/resources/licensing/hrsts/130787hcsalinityassfull.pdf

Liddell Coal Operations Pty Ltd, 2014. Liddell Coal Annual Environmental Management Report January - December 2013. Accessed 28/5/14. http://www.liddellcoal.com.au/EN/ReportsandPublications/Annual%20Environmental%20 Management%20Report/31032014_Liddell_Coal_Operations_2013_AEMR_Final-Darren’s%20Final.pdf.

Lucarelli, B, 2011. Australia’s Black Coal Industry: Past Achievements and Future Challenges. Program on Energy and Sustainable Development. Working Paper #101 March 2011. Stanford University.

McCarthy, J. 2013. “The hole truth after the coal is gone.” The Newcastle Herald, 18 January 2013, 10 p.m. Accessed 3/6/14. http://www.theherald.com.au/story/1242461/hole-truth-after-the-coal-is-gone/.

McManus, P., & Connor, L. H., 2013. “What’s mine is mine (d): Contests over marginalisation of rural life in the Upper Hunter, NSW.” Rural Society. 22 (2), 166-183.

Macdonald, B.C.T., Yates, G., White, I., Somerville, P. Jasonsmith, J. Biswas, F., 2009. Surface and groundwater interactions and salinity dynamics in the Wollombi Brook, Hunter River Catchment. AH NSW, Groundwater in the Sydney Basin Symposium, Sydney, NSW, Australia, 4-5 Aug. 2009, W.A. Milne-Home (Ed).

Mackie CD. 1999. Groundwater management studies. In Mount Arthur North Environmental Impact Statement. URS Australia Pty Ltd, Brisbane, Queensland.

Mount Thorley Warkworth Operations Pty Ltd, 2013a. Mount Thorley Warkworth 2012 Annual Review 28 March 2013. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.riotintocoalaustralia.com.au/documents/Annual_Environmental_Management_ Report_-_MTW_-_2012.pdf.

Mount Thorley Warkworth Operations Pty Ltd, 2013b. Water Management Plan. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www. riotintocoalaustralia.com.au/documents/MTW_Water_Management_Plan_(Approved_31Jan2013).pdf

Mudd, G.M., 2008. Sustainability Reporting and Water Resources: a Preliminary Assessment of Embodied Water and Sustainable Mining. Mine Water and the Environment. 27 (3), 136-144.

Mitchell, B., & Pigram, J. J., 1989. Integrated resource management and the Hunter Valley conservation trust, NSW, Australia. Applied Geography. 9 (3), 196-211.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 52 Moolarben Coal Operations P/L, 2013. Annual Environmental Management Report 2012-2013. Accessed 28/5/14. http://www.moolarbencoal.com.au/__documents/major-project-approvals/environmental-managment-plans/annual- environmental-management-report/mco-aemr-2012-2013-main-doc.pdf.

Moolarben Coal Operations P/L, 2013. Water Management Plan. http://www.moolarbencoal.com.au/__documents/ major-project-approvals/environmental-managment-plans/mco_env_pln_0028_water-management-plan_version-2- approved.pdf

Muswellbrook Coal Company Limited, 2011. No.1 Open Cut Extension Final Site Water Management Plan and Surface and Groundwater Monitoring Plan. Rev June 2011. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.idemitsu.com.au/uploads/files/ Mccenviro/Mgmt_Plan/Site_Water_Mgmt_Plan_2010___Rev_June_2011_FINAL.pdf.

Muswellbrook Coal Company Limited, 2014. Annual Environmental Management Report 2012-2013. https://www. idemitsu.com.au/uploads/files/Mccenviro/Env_Reports/2012_13_AEMR_FINAL.pdf.

National Water Commission, 2013. Australian water markets report 2012-13. Accessed 0/5/14. http://www.nwc.gov. au/publications/topic/water-industry/australian-water-markets-report-2012-13/4.4-new-south-wales

NSW Department of Land and Water Conservation, 1998. Aquifer Risk Assessment Report. p 6. file:///C:/Users/User/ Downloads/aquifer_risk_assessment_report.pdf.

New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources. 2001. Coal industry profile, incorporating the Joint Coal Board Statistical Supplement, New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources, Sydney.

New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources. 1999a. Synoptic plan for integrated landscapes for coal mine rehabilitation in the Hunter Valley. New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources, Sydney.

New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources. 1999b. Strategic study of northern New South Wales coalfields. Produced by Minerals Consultative Committee, New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources, Sydney.

NSW Department of Primary Industries, 2013. Upper Hunter Region Viticulture Profile. Fact Sheet No. 5. Accessed 19/5/14.http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/471029/viticulture-profile-upper-hunter-region.pdf.

NSW Department of Primary Industries, 2013. Upper Hunter Region Dairy Profile. Fact Sheet 3. Accessed 19/5/14. http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/471026/dairy-profile-upper-hunter-region.pdf.

NSW Department of Primary Industries, 2013. Upper Hunter Region Agricultural Profile. Fact Sheet No.1. Accessed 2/5/14. http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/471024/Upper-hunter-region-agricultural-profile.pdf

NSW Department of Water and Energy, 2007. Critical water planning for the Hunter Valley Issue 2, 15 August 2007. Accessed 25/5/14. file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/critical_water_no2_hunter_150807.pdf.

NSW Department of Water and Energy, 2009. Water Sharing Plan – Hunter unregulated and alluvial water sources: Guide. Accessed 2/5/14. file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/wsp_hunter_guide.pdf.

NSW Gazette 18 August 2006. p116 http://www.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/pdfs/2006/18th_August. pdf#page=115.

NSW Government Gazette No 192 of 29 December 2006 p11979.

NSW Government Gazette No 38 of 20 February 2009 p1081.

NSW Government Gazette No 81 of 2 July 2008 p 6521.

NSW Office of Water. 2014. Advice for the Minister for Primary Industries on the Bylong Coal Project Application for Gateway Certificate.

NSW Mining, 2013. Webpage. “Over 200,000 litres of milk produced on coal mine land each week.” Accessed 19/6/14. http://www.worldclassminers.com.au/news/environment/over-200,000-litres-of-milk-produced-on-coal-mine/

New South Wales Water Resources Commission, 1982. Hunter region water requirements and storage proposals: 1982 Review. Sydney.

NSW Planning Assessment Commission, 2014. Moolarben Coal Mine Stage 2 Project and Stage 1 Modification 3

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 53 Review Report

Rutledge I, Wright P, 1985. “Coal worldwide: the international context of the British miners’ strike” Cambridge Journal of Economics 9 303-326.

Ravensworth Operations Pty Limited, 2014. Annual Review. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.ravensworthoperations. com.au/EN/Publications/AEMRs/140320_Rav_Complex_Annual_Review_2013_vFinal_signed[1].pdf.

Ravensworth Operations Pty Limited, 2014. Ravensworth Mine Complex Water Management Plan. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.ravensworthoperations.com.au/EN/Publications/Management%20Plans%20Actual/Water%20 Management%20Plan%20Approved%20130423.pdf.

Rio Tinto, 2014. Hunter Valley Operations Annual Environmental Review March 2014. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www. riotintocoalaustralia.com.au/documents/2013_HVO_Annual_Review_(Part_1).pdf; http://www.riotintocoalaustralia. com.au/documents/2013_HVO_Annual_Review_Appendices_(Part_2).pdf.

Scott, M.A, 1983. Water for the Hunter Valley. The Engineering Conference, Newcastle, 18-22 April 1983

Somervillea, P.D., I.C. White, B.C.T. Macdonald, R. Bush, J. Jasonsmith, 2009. Surface and groundwater connectivity and salinity in the upper Hunter Valley, New South Wales. IAH NSW, Groundwater in the Sydney Basin Symposium, Sydney, NSW, Australia, 4-5 Aug. 2009, W.A. Milne-Home (Ed).

The Australian, 2011. “Hunter Valley farmer fears time’s up as coal encroaches.” Mitchell Nadin, 15 August 2011. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/hunter-valley-farmer-fears-times-up-as-coal-encroaches/story- e6frg6nf-1226114830132

The Sydney Morning Herald, 1947. “Pioneers of the Rich Hunter Valley.” Friday 5 September 1947. http://trove.nla. gov.au/ndp/del/page/1009037?zoomLevel=1.

Thomas, T., 2011. The Hunter Valley Coal Province and its link with the Hunter River: Has the Hunter Valley Salinity Trading Scheme (HRSTS) made an environmental impact on the river? ENE4603 Environmental Project 20668945. Monash University.

Ulan Coal Mines Limited, 2013. Annual Environment Review 1st January 2012 – 31st December 2012. Accessed 5/6/14. http://www.ulancoal.com.au/EN/ReportsandPublications/AER%202012/2012%20Annual%20 Environmental%20Review.pdf.

Upper Hunter Thoroughbred Breeders Association, Thoroughbred Breeders Australia Ltd and Aushorse, 2007. The Upper Hunter thoroughbred horse industry: Jeopardised by coalmining. Randwick, NSW.

Warner, R.F., 1987. The impacts of alternating flood and drought-dominated regimes on channel morphology at Penrith, New South Wales, Australia, International Association of Hydrological Sciences

Publication 168, pp. 327-38.

Wilkinson, J., 2011. The Hunter Region: An Economic Profile. NSW Parliamentary Library e-brief 16/2011.http:// www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/publications.nsf/key/TheHunterRegion:AnEconomicProfile/$File/ Newcastle+and+the+Hunter+GG+2.pdf.

Wilpinjong Coal P/L, 2006a. Wilpinjong Coal Project, site water balance. Accessed 28/5/14. http://www. peabodyenergy.com/mm/files/operations/australia/wilpinjong/management-plans/Wilpinjong_33_swb-r02-b.pdf.

Wilpinjong Coal P/L, 2006b, Site Water Management Plan. Accessed 28/5/14. http://www.peabodyenergy.com/mm/ files/operations/australia/wilpinjong/management-plans/Wilpinjong_32_swmp-r02-a.pdf.

Wilpinjong Coal P/L, 2014. 2013 Annual Review and Environmental Management Report. Accessed 28/5/14.http:// www.peabodyenergy.com/mm/files/Operations/Australia/Wilpinjong/EnvironmentalReporting/2014/Updated%20 Annual%20Review%20and%20Environmental%20Management%20Report_March%202014%20Signed%20Copy.pdf.

Xstrata Mangoola Pty. Ltd, 2013a. Mangoola Coal Annual Environmental Management Report: 1 January to 31 December 2013. Accessed 28/5/14. http://www.mangoolamine.com.au/EN/Publications/AEMR/140328_REP_ Mangoola_2013_AEMR_Fnl2.pdf.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 54 Xstrata Mangoola Pty. Ltd, 2013b. Mangoola Coal Groundwater Monitoring Plan Approved 11th September 2013.http://www.mangoolamine.com.au/EN/Publications/ManagementPlans/A4%202013%20Groundwater%20 Monitoring%20Plan%20-%20APPROVED.pdf.

Xstrata Mt Owen Pty Limited, 2013. Mt Owen Complex Annual Environmental Management Report, 1 January 2012 – 31 December 2012.http://www.mtowencomplex.com.au/EN/ReportsandPublications/AEMR%202012/XMOC%20 AEMR%202012.pdf.

Xstrata Mt Owen Pty Limited, 2012. Mt Owen Complex Water Management Plan November 2012. http://www. mtowencomplex.com.au/EN/ReportsandPublications/AEMR%202012/XMOC%20AEMR%202012.pdf.

Xstrata, 2013. Ravensworth Mine Complex Water Management. Accessed 20/5/14. http://www. ravensworthoperations.com.au/EN/Publications/Management%20Plans%20Actual/Water%20Management%20 Plan%20Approved%20130423.pdf.

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 55 Appendix 1 Water Access Licenses owned by Hunter Coal Companies

Licensee WAL No. Water Source Category ML

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 17781 Dart Brook Aquifer 278

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 17790 Dart Brook Aquifer 228

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 23875 Dart Brook Aquifer 50

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 17797 Dart Brook Unregulated River 68

Hunter Regulated River Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 18126 Aquifer 98 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 18174 Aquifer 37 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 18210 Aquifer 235 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 18225 Aquifer 121 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 18239 Aquifer 371 Alluvial

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 838 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1026 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 5

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 506 Hunter Regulated River General Security 261

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 759 Hunter Regulated River General Security 24

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 956 Hunter Regulated River General Security 176

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 996 Hunter Regulated River General Security 120

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1005 Hunter Regulated River General Security 171

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1021 Hunter Regulated River General Security 480

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1022 Hunter Regulated River General Security 264

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1024 Hunter Regulated River General Security 228

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1025 Hunter Regulated River General Security 3

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1027 Hunter Regulated River General Security 63

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1235 Hunter Regulated River General Security 270

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 13386 Hunter Regulated River General Security 270

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 955 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1023 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1267 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 6

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1313 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 30.2

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1316 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 10

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1317 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 42.1

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 1318 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 23.8

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 9055 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 35

Anglo Coal ( Dartbrook ) Pty Limited 13336 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 18.7

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) 17739 Dart Brook Aquifer 30 Pty Limited

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 56 Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) 17762 Dart Brook Aquifer 254 Pty Limited

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) 17863 Dart Brook Aquifer 5 Pty Limited

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) 30213 Dart Brook Aquifer 105 Pty Limited

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) 17889 Dart Brook Unregulated River 17 Pty Limited

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) Hunter Regulated River 18134 Aquifer 297 Pty Limited Alluvial

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) Hunter Regulated River 18228 Aquifer 90 Pty Limited Alluvial

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) 14609 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 5 Pty Limited

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) 9048 Hunter Regulated River General Security 0 Pty Limited

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) 14607 Hunter Regulated River General Security 328 Pty Limited

Anglo Coal (Dartbrook Management) 14605 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 89 Pty Limited

Anglo Coal Australia Pty Limited 1066 Hunter Regulated River General Security 99

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 654 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 660 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 6

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 665 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 3

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 738 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 3

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 811 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 3

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 873 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 896 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 3

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 985 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 1157 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 3

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 1190 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 1

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 9515 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 12

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 10532 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 3

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 872 Hunter Regulated River General Security 12

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 984 Hunter Regulated River General Security 9

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 1121 Hunter Regulated River General Security 335

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 15583 Hunter Regulated River General Security 354

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 997 Hunter Regulated River High Security 11

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 1120 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 8404 Hunter Regulated River High Security 80

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 1358 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 4

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 6346 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 15.5

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 19510 Hunter Regulated River Unregulated River 130

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 57 Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 29566 Jerrys Aquifer 358

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 23912 Jerrys Unregulated River 14

Ashton Coal Operations Pty Ltd 29565 Jerrys Unregulated River 266

Austar Coal Mine Pty Ltd 19181 Upper Wollombi Brook High Security 10

Bengalla Mining Company Pty Limited 914 Hunter Regulated River General Security 97

Bengalla Mining Company Pty Limited 498 Hunter Regulated River High Security 16

Bengalla Mining Company Pty Limited 1106 Hunter Regulated River High Security 1449

Bengalla Mining Company Pty Limited 1293 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 3

Hunter Regulated River Bulga Coal Management Pty Ltd 18180 Aquifer 282 Alluvial

Bulga Coal Management Pty Ltd 27869 Hunter Regulated River High Security 141

Bulga Coal Management Pty Ltd 18443 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 150

Bulga Coal Management Pty Ltd 18459 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 96

Bulga Coal Management Pty Ltd 18466 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 125

Bulga Coal Management Pty Ltd 18511 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 84

Camberwell Coal Pty Ltd 10095 Hunter Regulated River High Security 230

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18060 Aquifer 7 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18070 Aquifer 184 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18122 Aquifer 33 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18127 Aquifer 383 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18131 Aquifer 60 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18158 Aquifer 65 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18199 Aquifer 5 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18206 Aquifer 24 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18253 Aquifer 74 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 18266 Aquifer 68 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 21503 Aquifer 21 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Coal And Allied 36190 Aquifer 120 Alluvial

Coal And Allied 605 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Coal And Allied 677 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 24

Coal And Allied 756 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Coal And Allied 947 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 58 Coal And Allied 975 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Coal And Allied 989 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Coal And Allied 1230 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Coal And Allied 974 Hunter Regulated River General Security 210

Coal And Allied 969 Hunter Regulated River General Security 39

Coal And Allied 13387 Hunter Regulated River General Security 20

Coal And Allied 13391 Hunter Regulated River General Security 420

Coal And Allied 604 Hunter Regulated River General Security 183

Coal And Allied 662 Hunter Regulated River General Security 9

Coal And Allied 663 Hunter Regulated River General Security 9

Coal And Allied 702 Hunter Regulated River General Security 267

Coal And Allied 755 Hunter Regulated River General Security 20

Coal And Allied 867 Hunter Regulated River General Security 486

Coal And Allied 894 Hunter Regulated River General Security 444

Coal And Allied 900 Hunter Regulated River General Security 402

Coal And Allied 941 Hunter Regulated River General Security 99

Coal And Allied 945 Hunter Regulated River General Security 240

Coal And Allied 946 Hunter Regulated River General Security 681

Coal And Allied 964 Hunter Regulated River General Security 243

Coal And Allied 965 Hunter Regulated River General Security 51

Coal And Allied 976 Hunter Regulated River General Security 216

Coal And Allied 977 Hunter Regulated River General Security 180

Coal And Allied 979 Hunter Regulated River General Security 3

Coal And Allied 988 Hunter Regulated River General Security 156

Coal And Allied 991 Hunter Regulated River General Security 888

Coal And Allied 992 Hunter Regulated River General Security 75

Coal And Allied 993 Hunter Regulated River General Security 265

Coal And Allied 1142 Hunter Regulated River General Security 59

Coal And Allied 1227 Hunter Regulated River General Security 99

Coal And Allied 1228 Hunter Regulated River General Security 159

Coal And Allied 1229 Hunter Regulated River General Security 480

Coal And Allied 7808 Hunter Regulated River General Security 36

Coal And Allied 8965 Hunter Regulated River General Security 95

Coal And Allied 9054 Hunter Regulated River General Security 541

Coal And Allied 11933 Hunter Regulated River General Security 207

Coal And Allied 962 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3165

Coal And Allied 970 Hunter Regulated River High Security 500

Coal And Allied 1006 Hunter Regulated River High Security 500

Coal And Allied 866 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 59 Coal And Allied 879 Hunter Regulated River High Security 224

Coal And Allied 880 Hunter Regulated River High Security 124

Coal And Allied 944 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Coal And Allied 973 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Coal And Allied 990 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Coal And Allied 1070 Hunter Regulated River High Security 110

Coal And Allied 1113 Hunter Regulated River High Security 366

Coal And Allied 9053 Hunter Regulated River High Security 6

Coal And Allied 9056 Hunter Regulated River High Security 24

Coal And Allied 1258 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 5

Coal And Allied 1259 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 33.2

Coal And Allied 1260 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 4.8

Coal And Allied 1288 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 98.4

Coal And Allied 1289 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 62

Coal And Allied 1302 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 30

Coal And Allied 1307 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 37.5

Coal And Allied 1308 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 15.1

Coal And Allied 1338 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 17.5

Coal And Allied 1372 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 12

Coal And Allied 18307 Jerrys Unregulated River 500

Coal And Allied 18327 Jerrys Unregulated River 150

Coal And Allied 23889 Lower Wollombi Brook Aquifer 144

Coal And Allied 18483 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 32

Coal And Allied 18560 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 56

Coal And Allied 23935 Muswellbrook Unregulated River 41

Coal And Allied 19019 Singleton Aquifer 225

Cumnock 9050 Hunter Regulated River General Security 500

Cumnock 9049 Hunter Regulated River High Security 0

Doyles Creek 8847 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Doyles Creek 10473 Hunter Regulated River General Security 20

Doyles Creek 27387 Hunter Regulated River General Security 250

Doyles Creek 30008 Hunter Regulated River General Security 92

Doyles Creek 27880 Hunter Regulated River High Security 30

Doyles Creek 18323 Jerrys Aquifer 31

Doyles Creek 18308 Jerrys Unregulated River 16

Doyles Creek 18319 Jerrys Unregulated River 3

Endevour Coal 30154 Hunter Regulated River General Security 5

Enex Foydell Pty Ltd 18320 Jerrys Unregulated River 50

Enex Foydell Pty Ltd 18304 Jerrys Unregulated River 32

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 60 Glendell Tenements 706 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Glendell Tenements 1218 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 3

Glendell Tenements 612 Hunter Regulated River General Security 147

Glendell Tenements 637 Hunter Regulated River General Security 384

Glendell Tenements 705 Hunter Regulated River General Security 27

Glendell Tenements 1119 Hunter Regulated River General Security 60

Glendell Tenements 1215 Hunter Regulated River General Security 48

Glendell Tenements 704 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Glendell Tenements 1118 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Glendell Tenements 9521 Hunter Regulated River High Security 50

Glendell Tenements 1364 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 2.2

Glendell Tenements 1420 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 29

Hunter Regulated River Hunter Valley Energy Coal 18141 Aquifer 104 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Hunter Valley Energy Coal 18175 Aquifer 13 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Hunter Valley Energy Coal 18247 Aquifer 247 Alluvial

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 578 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 829 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 863 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1085 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 918 Hunter Regulated River General Security 4122

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 524 Hunter Regulated River General Security 390

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 533 Hunter Regulated River General Security 30

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 651 Hunter Regulated River General Security 18

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 828 Hunter Regulated River General Security 220

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 919 Hunter Regulated River General Security 240

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 935 Hunter Regulated River General Security 150

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 936 Hunter Regulated River General Security 0

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 937 Hunter Regulated River General Security 159

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1012 Hunter Regulated River General Security 183

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1041 Hunter Regulated River General Security 8

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1075 Hunter Regulated River General Security 0

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1081 Hunter Regulated River General Security 0

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1082 Hunter Regulated River General Security 0

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1092 Hunter Regulated River General Security 270

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1108 Hunter Regulated River General Security 360

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1185 Hunter Regulated River General Security 198

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1187 Hunter Regulated River General Security 204

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 61 Hunter Valley Energy Coal 8416 Hunter Regulated River General Security 60

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 13084 Hunter Regulated River General Security 293

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 15495 Hunter Regulated River General Security 25

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 15496 Hunter Regulated River General Security 25

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 15497 Hunter Regulated River General Security 20

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 15498 Hunter Regulated River General Security 90

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 16138 Hunter Regulated River General Security 100

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 16139 Hunter Regulated River General Security 63

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 577 Hunter Regulated River High Security 490

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 827 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 917 Hunter Regulated River High Security 700

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 934 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1080 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1083 Hunter Regulated River High Security 800

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1107 Hunter Regulated River High Security 192

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1184 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1186 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1247 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 87.2

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1248 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 48

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1277 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 3.2

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1296 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 152.6

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1297 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 0

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1331 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 10

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1355 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 0

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 1357 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 0

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 8446 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 0

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 23917 Muswellbrook Unregulated River 36

Hunter Valley Energy Coal 23944 Muswellbrook Unregulated River 18

Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd 672 Hunter Regulated River General Security 102

Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd 797 Hunter Regulated River General Security 14

Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd 833 Hunter Regulated River General Security 54

Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd 874 Hunter Regulated River General Security 240

Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd 785 Hunter Regulated River High Security 23

Integra Coal Operations Pty Ltd 1273 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 1.2

KEPCO Bylong Australia Pty Ltd 17709 Bylong River Aquifer 494

KEPCO Bylong Australia Pty Ltd 17711 Bylong River Aquifer 248

KEPCO Bylong Australia Pty Ltd 17716 Bylong River Aquifer 240

KEPCO Bylong Australia Pty Ltd 17729 Bylong River Aquifer 486

KEPCO Bylong Australia Pty Ltd 17731 Bylong River Aquifer 486

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 62 KEPCO Bylong Australia Pty Ltd 17732 Bylong River Aquifer 5

Liddell Tenements Pty Ltd 7815 Hunter Regulated River General Security 20

Maitland Main Collieries Pty Limited 484 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Maitland Main Collieries Pty Limited/ 485 Hunter Regulated River General Security 99 Integra

Maitland Main Collieries/Integra 1173 Hunter Regulated River General Security 303

Maitland Main Collieries/Integra 960 Hunter Regulated River High Security 50

Maitland Main Collieries/Integra 961 Hunter Regulated River High Security 150

Maitland Main Collieries/Integra 1172 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Maitland Main Collieries/Integra 1242 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 13

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 910 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 913 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1116 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1132 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 494 Hunter Regulated River General Security 99 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 906 Hunter Regulated River General Security 342 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 907 Hunter Regulated River General Security 243 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 909 Hunter Regulated River General Security 426 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 912 Hunter Regulated River General Security 243 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 915 Hunter Regulated River General Security 231 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 916 Hunter Regulated River General Security 147 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 949 Hunter Regulated River General Security 258 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1073 Hunter Regulated River General Security 110 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1104 Hunter Regulated River General Security 306 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1105 Hunter Regulated River General Security 195 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1128 Hunter Regulated River General Security 247 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1129 Hunter Regulated River General Security 75 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1130 Hunter Regulated River General Security Limited

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 63 Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1131 Hunter Regulated River General Security 318 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1133 Hunter Regulated River General Security 207 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1226 Hunter Regulated River General Security 147 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 908 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 911 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1257 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 59 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1290 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 160 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1291 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 74.4 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1292 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 97 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1294 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 38.7 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1295 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 27.3 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1361 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 50 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1365 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 62 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1366 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 0.5 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1367 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 88.4 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1368 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 3 Limited

Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty 1384 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 28 Limited

Mitsushima Australia Pty Ltd 18306 Jerrys Unregulated River 100

Moolarben Coal Operations Pty Ltd 36340 Wollar Creek Aquifer 218

Mt Owen Pty Ltd 754 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 16

Mt Owen Pty Ltd 7817 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 3

Mt Owen Pty Ltd 7823 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 9

Mt Owen Pty Ltd 613 Hunter Regulated River General Security 192

Mt Owen Pty Ltd 825 Hunter Regulated River General Security 110

Mt Owen Pty Ltd 7814 Hunter Regulated River High Security 1000

Muswellbrook Coal Company Limited 851 Hunter Regulated River General Security 366

Muswellbrook Coal Company Limited 1138 Hunter Regulated River High Security 25

Muswellbrook Coal Company Limited 18692 Muswellbrook Unregulated River 39

Muswellbrook Coal Company Limited 18721 Muswellbrook Unregulated River 14

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 64 Novacoal Australia Pty Ltd 1007 Hunter Regulated River General Security 99

Novacoal Australia Pty Ltd 13387 Hunter Regulated River General Security 20

Novacoal Australia Pty Ltd 18318 Jerrys Domestic And Stock 55

Novacoal Australia Pty Ltd 18307 Jerrys Unregulated River 500

Oceanic Coal Australia Limited 17967 Glendon Brook Unregulated River 9

Oceanic Coal Australia Limited 17980 Glendon Brook Unregulated River 26

Ravensworth Operations Pty Ltd 816 Hunter Regulated River General Security 20

Ravensworth Operations Pty Ltd 10771 Hunter Regulated River High Security 25

Resource Pacific Pty Limited 8964 Hunter Regulated River General Security 1590

Resource Pacific Pty Limited 1046 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Resource Pacific Pty Limited 13102 Hunter Regulated River High Security 15

Resource Pacific Pty Limited 1325 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 13

Resource Pacific Pty Limited 13225 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 13

Saxonvale Coal Pty Limited 18537 Lower Wollombi Brook Aquifer 290

Saxonvale Coal Pty Limited 21507 Lower Wollombi Brook Aquifer 22

Saxonvale Coal Pty Limited 23896 Lower Wollombi Brook Aquifer 80

Saxonvale Coal Pty Limited 36221 Lower Wollombi Brook Aquifer 300

Saxonvale Coal Pty Limited 18436 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 188

Saxonvale Coal Pty Limited 18491 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 66

Saxonvale Coal Pty Limited 18533 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 9

Saxonvale Coal Pty Limited 18537 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 290

Saxonvale Coal Pty Limited 18542 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 365

Ulan Coal Mines Limited 19047 Upper Goulburn River Unregulated River 600

Warkworth Mining Limited 972 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Warkworth Mining Limited 1010 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Warkworth Mining Limited 963 Hunter Regulated River General Security 243

Warkworth Mining Limited 971 Hunter Regulated River General Security 270

Warkworth Mining Limited 994 Hunter Regulated River General Security 243

Warkworth Mining Limited 995 Hunter Regulated River General Security 243

Warkworth Mining Limited 1008 Hunter Regulated River General Security 243

Warkworth Mining Limited 1009 Hunter Regulated River General Security 435

Warkworth Mining Limited 9800 Hunter Regulated River General Security 195

Warkworth Mining Limited 1309 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 4

Warkworth Mining Limited 1310 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 92

Warkworth Mining Limited 1314 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 10

Warkworth Mining Limited 9807 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 91

Warkworth Mining Limited 18558 Lower Wollombi Brook Unregulated River 50

Warkworth Mining Limited 19022 Singleton Unregulated River 60

Wambo Coal Pty Limited 8600 Hunter Regulated River General Security 868

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 65 Wambo Coal Pty Limited 718 Hunter Regulated River High Security 1000

Wambo Coal Pty Limited 8599 Hunter Regulated River High Security 6

Wambo Coal Pty Limited 8604 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 240

Wambo Coal Pty Limited 23897 Lower Wollombi Brook Aquifer 70

Hunter Regulated River Warkworth Mining Limited 18269 Aquifer 110 Alluvial

Wilpinjong Coal Pty Ltd 21499 Wollar Creek Aquifer 474

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 9062 Hunter Regulated River Unregulated River 18

Hunter Regulated River Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18068 Aquifer 5 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18136 Aquifer 596 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18170 Aquifer 219 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18214 Aquifer 218 Alluvial

Hunter Regulated River Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18219 Aquifer 5 Alluvial

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 692 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 831 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 895 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 898 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6572 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6577 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 9988 Hunter Regulated River Domestic And Stock 8

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 503 Hunter Regulated River General Security 159

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 645 Hunter Regulated River General Security 432

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 691 Hunter Regulated River General Security 50

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 735 Hunter Regulated River General Security 72

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 823 Hunter Regulated River General Security 310

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 824 Hunter Regulated River General Security 175

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 830 Hunter Regulated River General Security 306

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 897 Hunter Regulated River General Security 55

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 933 Hunter Regulated River General Security 43

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 1001 Hunter Regulated River General Security 334

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 1057 Hunter Regulated River General Security 509

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 1159 Hunter Regulated River General Security 159

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6571 Hunter Regulated River General Security 111

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6576 Hunter Regulated River General Security 100

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 9061 Hunter Regulated River General Security 6

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 9987 Hunter Regulated River General Security 82

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 66 Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 11216 Hunter Regulated River General Security 86

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 644 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 822 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 1000 Hunter Regulated River High Security 3

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 9986 Hunter Regulated River High Security 5

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 13083 Hunter Regulated River General Security 100

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 1349 Hunter Regulated River Supplementary 36

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18310 Jerrys Unregulated River 200

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18695 Muswellbrook Aquifer 131

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18696 Muswellbrook Aquifer 53

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 30247 Muswellbrook Aquifer 98

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18701 Muswellbrook Domestic And Stock 28

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18712 Muswellbrook Domestic And Stock 5

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18690 Muswellbrook Unregulated River 10

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18718 Muswellbrook Unregulated River 151

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18686 Muswellbrook Unregulated River 5

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 18689 Muswellbrook Unregulated River 15

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6316 Wybong Creek Aquifer 175

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6317 Wybong Creek Aquifer 19

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6322 Wybong Creek Aquifer 5

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6327 Wybong Creek Aquifer 30

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 11085 Wybong Creek Aquifer 128

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6275 Wybong Creek Domestic And Stock 5

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6300 Wybong Creek Domestic And Stock 5

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6304 Wybong Creek Domestic And Stock 5

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6260 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 36

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6261 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 1

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6262 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 8

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6264 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 30

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6270 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 30

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6272 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 50

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6276 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 12

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6278 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 117

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6294 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 39

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6296 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 86

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6298 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 39

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6305 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 74

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 67 Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6306 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 52

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 6308 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 96

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 7291 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 63

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 7292 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 44

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 9343 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 25

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 9344 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 164

Xstrata Mangoola Pty Limited 20343 Wybong Creek Unregulated River 48

TOTAL 61974

Hunter Valley coal mine, Dean Sewell

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 68 Back Cover Photos: Top: Bulga farmland under threat, John Krey Middle: Hunter coal mine, Dean Sewell Bottom: Mt. Thorley-Warkworth mine, Dean Sewell

Unfair Shares: How Coal Mines Bought the Hunter River 69