Section 1 – Introduction Mt Arthur Coal Open Cut Modification – Environmental Assessment TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 INTRODUCTION 1-1 LIST OF TABLES 1.1 GENERAL 1-1 1.1.1 Existing Operations Overview 1-1 Table 1 Summary Comparison of Approved and Modified Mt Arthur Coal Mine 1.1.2 Modification Overview 1-1 1.2 LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK 1-5 1.2.1 Environmental Planning and LIST OF FIGURES Assessment Act, 1979 1-5 1.3 CONSULTATION 1-7 Figure 1-1 Regional Location 1.3.1 State Government Agencies 1-7 1.3.2 Local Government Agencies 1-8 Figure 1-2 Mt Arthur Coal Mine Location 1.3.3 Federal Government Figure 1-3 Mt Arthur Coal Open Cut Modification Agencies 1-8 General Arrangement 1.3.4 Infrastructure Owners, Service Figure 1-4a Land Ownership Providers and Other Resource Figure 1-4b Land Ownership – Inset A Companies 1-9 1.3.5 Public Consultation 1-9 Figure 1-4c Landholder List 1.4 PROJECT DESIGN AMENDMENTS IN RESPONSE TO ISSUES RAISED 1-10 1.5 COMMUNITY INITIATIVES AND INVOLVEMENT 1-10 1.6 STRUCTURE OF THIS EA 1-15 1-i Mt Arthur Coal Open Cut Modification – Environmental Assessment 1 INTRODUCTION In March 2006, HVEC lodged an application to extend the Mt Arthur North South Pit. The application was assessed in the Environmental 1.1 GENERAL Assessment Proposed South Pit Extension Project (Umwelt [Australia] Pty Limited [Umwelt], 2007a) This document is an Environmental Assessment and was approved by the Minister for Planning on (EA) for a modification to the Mt Arthur Coal Mine 9 January 2008. Open Cut Consolidation Project Approval 09_0062 granted by the Minister for Planning on Also in March 2006, HVEC lodged an application to 24 September 2010. commence underground mining operations at Mt Arthur Coal Mine. The application was assessed The Mt Arthur Coal Mine is owned and operated by in the Environmental Assessment Proposed Hunter Valley Energy Coal (HVEC), a wholly-owned Mt Arthur Underground Project (Umwelt, 2008a) and subsidiary of BHP Billiton. was approved by the Minister for Planning on 2 December 2008 (Project Approval 06_0091). The This EA has been prepared by HVEC to support a Mt Arthur Underground Project is approved up to request to modify the Project Approval 09_0062 8 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa). under section 75W of the New South Wales (NSW) Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, 1979 In 2009, HVEC lodged an application under Part 3A (EP&A Act) (the Mt Arthur Coal Open Cut of the EP&A Act to extend open cut operations and Modification [the Modification]). The Modification consolidate existing approvals for open cut mining includes the continuation of open cut mining operations and surface infrastructure. The operations at the Mt Arthur Coal Mine for an application was assessed in the Mt Arthur Coal additional operational life of four years. Consolidation Project Environmental Assessment (HVEC, 2009 and was approved by the Minister for A copy of the Project Approval (09_0062) is Planning on 24 September 2010 (Project provided as Attachment 1. Approval 09_0062). The Project Approval 09_0062 permits the extraction of up to 32 Mtpa of ROM coal from the open cut. 1.1.1 Existing Operations Overview In accordance with Project Approval 09_0062, a The Mt Arthur Coal Mine is located approximately number of project approvals were surrendered by 5 kilometres (km) south-west of Muswellbrook within HVEC in 2011 including Mt Arthur North, the Rail the Muswellbrook Shire Local Government Area Loading Facility and the South Pit Extension and the (LGA) in the Upper Hunter Valley of NSW Bayswater Coal Preparation Plant. The Bayswater (Figures 1-1 and 1-2). No. 3 Development Consent is also expected to be surrendered in early 2013. Coal mine development at Mt Arthur Coal Mine commenced in the early 1960s in the Bayswater Although the open cut and underground mining No. 2 Open Cut mining area. Coal production operations are approved to rates of 32 Mtpa and progressively increased and approval to extract coal 8 Mtpa, respectively, the total mine extraction rate is from the Bayswater No. 3 Open Cut was granted in limited to 36 Mtpa of ROM coal by the Project 1994. To support the expanding development at Approval 09_0062. Bayswater No. 3 and cease coal transport by public road, approval was obtained in November 2000 for The current extent of the Mt Arthur Coal Open Cut the construction and operation of the rail loading (as at November 2011) is shown on Figure 1-3. facility and spur line. This allows export coal to be transported directly to the Port of Newcastle via the Main Northern Railway. 1.1.2 Modification Overview In May 2001, the Mt Arthur North Open Cut The Modification includes the following key operation was approved to extract up to 15 million components: tonnes of run-of-mine (ROM) coal per annum. The approval also allowed for the construction and use • a four year continuation of the open cut mine of associated infrastructure and facilities. life from 2022 to 2026 at the currently approved maximum rate of 32 Mtpa; • an increase in open cut disturbance areas; • use of the conveyor corridor for overburden emplacement; 1-1 Mooki NEW Sydney Basin River Lake SOUTH RAILWAY MT ARTHUR Keepit COAL MINE WALES Apsley River MAINMAIN NORTHERN Newcastle Western Coalfield Sydney MUNGINDI TAMWORTH Peel Riv Lake Goran er VICTORIA RAILWAY Melbourne Nowendoc RANGE MAINMAIN Coxs DIVIDING River NORTHERN River BINNAWAY RAILWAY GREAT River CREEK Barnard - WERRIS RAILWAY Coolah Tops Middle Deep Creek River National Mooki NEW Offset Area Park Manning Towarri River RAILWAYRAILWAY National River River River Park murra River Talbragar COOLAHCOOLAH RAILWAY Mun Cassilis Hunter Barrington Tops CRABOON GOLDEN Scone National Park COAST Krui HIGHWAY Merriwa ENGLAND Lake Williams GREAT Glenbawn NORTH Goulbur Manobalai Karuah n Nature Reserve Ulan Muswellbrook Goulburn River National Park Sandy RAILWAY River GULGONG Riv Hollow - er MERRIWA Liddell Lake SANDY Munghorn Gap Power Station River Gulgong Wollar Bylong RAILWAY Liddell Blackwater Denman Cudg Nature Reserve HOLLOW DIVIDING Bayswater egong Growee Mt Arthur PowerPower Station Wollemi Coal Mine SINGLETON National Park Hunter WALLERAWANG RANGE MAIN River Mudgee River Wollemi HIGHWAY HIGHWAY CASTLEREAGHRiver Avisford River National Park GWABEGAR NORTHERN MAITLAND Nature R Reserve A I L WAY PACIFIC Road RAILWAY AND Rylstone MAITLANDMAITL Macdonald Wollemi Putty RAILWAY RAILWAY NEWCASTLE National Park FREEWAY HIGHWAY NORTHERN Caperttee Yengo Turon National MAIN Macquarie River Park River Lake Gardens Of Stone Macquarie National Park NEWCASTLE Colo River Tuggerah River Winburndale River SYDNEY Lake BATHURST Nature Reserve GREAT WESTERN Blue Mountains GOSFORD Lithgow National Park RAILWAY WESTERN MAIN HIGHWAY Broken Bay Nepean RICH MOND RANGE RAILWAY HIGHWAY PACIFIC MAIN Campbells WESTERN RAILWAY Port Jackson SOUTH River DIVIDINGKanangra-Boyd SYDNEY National Park River Abercrombie Blue Mountains HIGHWAY PACIFIC OCEAN National Park Lake Abercrombie River RAILWAY Burragorang Royal National Park GREAT RAILWAY National Park LEGEND River Nattai COAST Mt Arthur Coal Mining & Coal Lease Boundary River National Park SOUTH 0 10 50 HUME Kilometres SOUTHERN WOLLONGONG Source: Geoscience Australia (2009) RAILWAY MT ARTHUR COAL OPEN CUT MODIFICATION VALE UNANDERRA - Lake Illawarra FIGURE 1-1 MOSS MAIN Regional Location Wollondilly HVE-11-01 OCM EA_Section 1_001G Mt Arthur Coal Open Cut Modification – Environmental Assessment • duplication of the existing rail loop; Section 75W of the EP&A Act states: • an increase in the maximum number of train 75W Modification of Minister’s Approval movements per day from 24 to 38; (1) In this section: • the relocation of the load point for the overland conveyor which delivers coal to Macquarie Minister’s approval means an approval to carry Generation’s Bayswater Power Station; out a project under this Part, and includes an approval of a concept plan. • the relocation and upgrade of the explosives Modification of approval means changing the storage, magazine and associated facilities; terms of a Minister’s approval, including: and (a) revoking or varying a condition of the • approval or imposing an additional the construction of additional offices and a condition of the approval, and control room and a small extension to the ROM coal stockpile footprint. (b) changing the terms of any determination made by the Minister under Division 3 in connection with the approval. The proposed changes to the existing and approved Mt Arthur Coal Mine are shown on Figure 1-3. (2) The proponent may request the Minister to modify the Minister’s approval for a project. The Minister’s approval for a modification is Table 1 provides a summary comparison of the not required if the project as modified will be currently approved Mt Arthur Coal Mine and the consistent with the existing approval under this Modification. As shown in Table 1, the Modification Part. does not involve any changes to the operation’s: (3) The request for the Minister’s approval is to be lodged with the Director-General. The • mining tenements; Director-General may notify the proponent of environmental assessment requirements with • annual open cut ROM coal production rate; respect to the proposed modification that the proponent must comply with before the matter • coal processing rate; will be considered by the Minister. • employment levels; or (4) The Minister may modify the approval (with or without conditions) or disapprove of the • hours of operation. modification. A description of the Modification is provided in Although Part 3A was repealed by the Section 3. Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Part 3A Repeal) Act, 2011, Section 4 describes the potential environmental section 75W continues to be the applicable impacts of the Modification and discusses how modification provision for an approval such as the existing environmental management and monitoring Mt Arthur Open Cut Project Approval (09_0062).