WILPINJONGACEGIJLNOPRTW WILPINJONGACEGIJLNOPRTW COAL PROJECT ENVIRONMENTALACEILMNOPRSTVceijortvw Project OverviewACEILMNOPRSTVceijortvw IMPACT STATEMENT Wilpinjong CLPWadegijlmnopty Coal Pty Limited Creek RIVER 780 000E 760 000E NEW740 000E RIVER RIVER Creek Sydney Basin COOLAH SOUTH PROJECT Mile 6 460 000N LOCATIONRIVER 6 460 000N WALES TALBRAGAR COOLABURRAGUNDY Newcastle Western Turee RAILWAY Coalfield Sydney MUNMURRA COOLAH RAILWAY Four Creek Cassilis VICTORIA GOLDEN TURILL Melbourne Uarbry STATE FOREST HIGHWAY TALBRAGAR GOLDEN MUNMURRA HIGHWAY Cainbil RIVER Road Creek RIVER Turil CURRYALL DURRIDGERE Cockabutta STATE STATE KRUI FOREST FOREST 6 440 000N GREAT 6 440 000N MERRIWA Ulan - Cassilis RIVER Slapdash DIVIDING Murrumbline Creek MUNMURRA STATE FOREST GOULBURN MUNMURRA RIVER STATE Ulan FOREST Road RIVER RANGE Creek GOULBURN Road Ulan Coal COPE Creek GOULBURN RIVER STATE Mines Creek NATIONAL PARK COPE FOREST Ulan Wilpinjong STATE Ulan - Wollara/Ringwood Merotherie FOREST Road Wollar Creek Murragamba Cope Creek GOULBURN Wilpinjong Wialdra Wollar 6 420 000N Creek GULGONG - SANDY HOLLOW RAILWAY GOULBURN RIVER 6 420 000N Moolarben Creek MLA1 NATIONAL PARK GULGONG - SANDY HOLLOW RAILWAY Project Location Road SANDY HOLLOW RIVER MUNGHORN Cooyal Wollar GAP Wollar - Bylong GULGONG NATURE BYLONG RESERVE Wollar Road Creek Creek Road HIGHWAY Home Rule Bylong Creek MUNGHORN GAP Cumbo NATURE RESERVE Barigan Lindburn Road RIVER Barigan CASTLEREAGH Road Cooyal Creek RIVER Stoney Cooyal Wollar Creek Bylong Valley Way Creek Creek Ulan CUDGEGONG Road Drive 6 400 000N Botobolar 6 400 000N Creek Budgee Creek GREAT Lawson Budgee Road Clay Lee RIVER Pipe DIVIDING Henry RANGE GROWEE Lawsons MID-WESTERN WOLLEMI MUDGEE WALLERAWANG REGIONAL NATIONAL PARK Lue AVISFORD GWABEGAR Creek NATURE RESERVE RAILWAY CASTLEREAGH CUDGEGONG LEGEND Lue Mining Lease Application Boundary Road 6 380 000N HIGHWAY Local Government Boundary RIVER 0 2 10 Kilometres 760 000E 740 000E 780 000E FIGURE 1 WILPINJONG This document provides an WILPINJONG overview of the proposed Wilpinjong Coal Project COAL and accompanying Environmental Impact PROJECT Statement (EIS). Background Wilpinjong Coal Pty Limited (WCPL) (a wholly owned Generation, as the owner and operator of the Bayswater and subsidiary of Excel Coal Limited) proposes to develop the Liddell Power Stations, issued an Invitation to Tender for the Wilpinjong Coal Project (the Project). The Project is located long-term coal supply from the Wilpinjong coal resource. approximately 40 kilometres north-east of Mudgee within the Mid-Western Regional local government area (LGA) in New WCPL was selected as the preferred tenderer and entered into South Wales (NSW) (Figures 1 and 2). a contract with Macquarie Generation for the long-term supply of coal conditional on, among other things, obtaining relevant In December 2002 the Department of Mineral Resources approvals including development consent. In December 2003, initiated an open tender process, on behalf of the NSW the Minister for Mineral Resources granted Exploration Licence Government, seeking tenders for the development of the 6169 to WCPL under theMining Act, 1992 . Wilpinjong coal resource. At the same time, Macquarie FIGURE 2 770 000 E 778 000 E 776 000 E 774 000 E 772 000 E GULGONG - SANDY 768 000 E GOULBURN RIVER NATIONAL PARK HOLLOW RAILWAY 6 422 000 N 6 422 000 N Creek Wilpinjong Planters Creek Creek MLA 11 Wollar 6 420 000 N 6 420 000 N Ulan - GULGONG - SANDY Wollar Road Bungulla Road HOLLOW RAILWAY Mogo Road Bungulla Road Creek Slate Gully Road Araluen Lane Creek 6 418 000 N Spring 6 418 000 N Wollar MUNGHORN GAP Creek NATURE RESERVE Cumbo Road Creek Narrow Creek Wilpinjong 6 416 000 N Bens WOLLAR LEGEND Barigan Road Mining Lease Application Boundary Road Outline of Project Open Cut Mine and Contained Infrastructure 0 1 Wollar Kilometres Upper Cumbo Road 774 000 E 772 000 E 768 000 E 770 000 E 778 000 E 776 000 E Project Overview 1 Project Overview The Project includes the development of an open cut mining operation and the construction and operation of associated infrastructure. Exploration has delineated a coal resource in the order of 523 million tonnes (Mt), including an estimated total open cut run-of-mine (ROM) coal reserve of approximately 251 Mt. Infrastructure required for the Project would include: a Coal Handling and Preparation Plan; water supply bores and associated pump and pipeline system; an on-site temporary construction camp; mine access road; internal access roads; rail spur and rail loop; and coal handling and train loading rate of up to 13 Mt per annum of ROM coal that is expected infrastructure. to produce approximately 147 Mt of product coal for sale to Other activities associated with the Project would include the domestic electricity generators and approximately 33 Mt of closure of Wilpinjong and Bungulla Roads, relocation of product coal to export. Open cut mining operations would Cumbo Creek, transportation of coal to market via train, require the excavation of some 330 million bank cubic rehabilitation and revegetation of areas disturbed by the metres of waste rock. Project, regeneration of areas of WCPL-owned land outside It is anticipated that the Project would require a construction of Project disturbance areas and the establishment of workforce of up to 250 employees with an average of Enhancement and Conservation Areas on areas of WCPL- approximately 200 employees. The operational workforce of owned land which currently contain remnant vegetation and the Project would be in the order of 162 employees at peak grazing land, as well as known and potential Aboriginal production with an average of 100 employees. Nominal shift cultural heritage sites. times during construction would be 7.00 am to 6.00 pm up The Project is scheduled to commence in the first quarter of to seven days per week while the Project would operate 24 2006. A 21 year mine plan has been prepared at a mining hours per day, seven days per week. Environmental AssessmentProcess As required by the provisions of the Environmental Planning Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources and Assessment Act, 1979 (the Act) the development prepared “Director-General's Requirements” for the Project application for the Project is accompanied by an EIS. Under specifying the key study areas to be addressed in the EIS. the provisions of the Act, the Director-General of the 2 Project Overview What is an EIS? An EIS is prepared pursuant to Schedule 2 and clause 72 of theEnvironmental Planning and Assessment Regulation, 2000 (the Regulation). In accordance with Schedule 2 of the Regulation, an EIS must include: + a summary; + a statement of the objectives of the development; + an analysis of any feasible alternatives to the carrying out of the development; + an analysis of the development; + a compilation of the measures proposed to mitigate any adverse effects of the development on the environment; and + the reasons justifying the carrying out of the development in the manner proposed. In accordance with clause 73 of the Regulation and the Director-General's Requirements, the Project EIS must also address key issues relating to surface water, groundwater, noise, blasting and vibration, air quality, Aboriginal heritage, non-Aboriginal heritage, fauna and flora, soil, traffic, transport, utilities and services, hazards, visual impact, waste management and social and economic impacts. Consideration must also be given to relevant planning instruments and State Environmental Planning Policies. WILPINJONG COAL PROJECT WILPINJONG COAL PROJECT Main Report ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT WILPINJONG STATEMENT COAL 1 PROJECT Appendices A to E ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT WILPINJONG STATEMENT COAL 2 PROJECT Wilpinjong Coal Pty Limited Appendices F and G ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT Wilpinjong Coal Pty Limited 3 Appendices HA to HE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT 4 Wilpinjong Coal Pty Limited What Studies were WILPINJONG WilpinjongWILPINJONG Coal Pty Limited COAL Undertaken for the EIS? PROJECT A wide range of supporting, background and assessment studies were undertaken for the Project EIS. Appendices I to O ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT These studies described the character of the background STATEMENT environment, assessed potential environmental, economic and social impacts of the Project and developed management 5 strategies to mitigate and/or offset identified potential impacts. Wilpinjong Coal Pty Limited Project Overview 3 Surface Water The Project lies in the Wilpinjong Creek catchment and is drained by a number of local tributaries of Wilpinjong Creek including Cumbo Creek, Planters Creek, Spring Creek, Narrow Creek and Bens Creek. Wilpinjong Creek flows into Wollar Creek which flows into the Goulburn River. Potential impacts on surface water quality relate to lowering the surface water quality by runoff or release of mine water containing sediments, soluble salts, process reagents (i.e. flocculant/magnetite), fuels, oils and grease. Potential impacts on surface water flows include the potential for the Project to affect flows in Wilpinjong Creek as a result of reductions in overland flow from the Project catchment and indirectly through reductions in the rate of discharge of groundwater to the creek. Project water management strategies include the minimisation of disturbance areas, isolation of runoff from undisturbed areas, containment and recycling of runoff from disturbed areas, progressive stabilisation and revegetation of disturbed areas and erosion and sediment control. The Project