SW coal mine fuels debate

Margaret River residents have been urged to keep an open mind when considering a proposed coal mine on the outskirts of the wine and tree-change mecca.

Many local residents are bitterly opposed to plans by a private mining consortium to build a major underground coal mine at Treeton, just 15km north-east of the town.

Augusta-Margaret River shire president Ray Colyer said the possible impacts of the project on “Margaret River’s icon brand” and its potential economic benefit needed to be considered fairly.

“I’m open to the proposal subject to more information,” he said.

“We have a dairy industry that is in significant stress, we have tree plantations that are also under stress, and … we have some wineries and growers who are in severe difficulty.

“So you’ve got to understand that this has the potential to bring in good work prospects for people who are unemployed or underemployed – it has to be balanced out.”

Mr Colyer said the shire would be seeking the views of various local groups, such as the Margaret River Wine Growers Association, as well as advice from people in other relevant areas, such as the Hunter Valley in New South Wales, one of Australia’s leading wine and coal producing regions.

LD Operations, the specialist NSW coal mine developer appointed to manage the planning and development of what would be WA’s first major coal exporter, estimates the mine could employ 200 locals directly and create 800 other indirect jobs.

The Vasse coal reserves were identified decades ago, but little happened until Rio Tinto sold the project to international coal miner AMCI Holdings’ Triangle Resources Fund and private Queensland miner Core Resources in 2006.

The partners have since defined resources of 117 million tonnes and expect to produce at least 1.6 million tonnes of premium thermal coal annually. The upfront cost was previously estimated at approximately $100 million.

Project manager Grant Pulworth said LDO was committed to working closely with the local community.

A community consultative committee would be convened shortly, he said, while the project itself would be subject to the Environmental Protection Authority’s stringent Part IV assessment process.

Significantly, three key mining leases were extended for 21 years in March by the state department of mines and petroleum.

The coal is expected to be trucked out via Sue’s Road, which was originally built as a haul road for BHP’s failed Beenup mine over a decade ago, and will be washed and dried at a dedicated industrial site closer to Bunbury, for export to customers overseas.