How corrupt is the system, called NSW Government, when the minister holds the portfolios for: Minister for Primary Industries, Minister for Mineral Resources and Minister for State Development.

“What a joke politics are”.

It is worth noting that Underground Coal Gasification (UCG), is planned for this area, and that it is currently
the least environmentally harmful of all methods of extracting energy from coal.

UCG EXPLAINED (Taken from Cougar Energy website, http://www.cougarenergy.com.au

“Underground coal gasification (UCG) is the process by which coal is converted in situ into a combustible gas that can be used as a fuel or a chemical feedstock. UCG has the potential to exploit coal resources that are either uneconomic to work by conventional open cut or underground coal mining methods, or are inaccessible due to depth, geology or other mining and safety considerations.

The UCG process is initiated by drilling two adjacent boreholes into a coal seam, which is generally at a depth greater than 100 meters. Both vertical and/or deviated drill holes can be utilised to suit the size, shape and depth of the coal seam.

An oxidant such as air or oxygen mixed with steam is then injected under pressure into one of the boreholes (the injection well) and is ignited at the coal seam.The hot combustion gases flow through the coal towards the second borehole, with the resulting chemical reactions convertng the coal to a gas, which is then extracted through the second borehole (the production well).

Expansion of the process is achieved by the addition and linkage of further injection and production wells. The “coal gas” produced (referred to as “syngas”) has a low calorific value, and is a mixture of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, methane, carbon dioxide and higher hydrocarbons, along with nitrogen if air is used as the oxidant. After preparation, this syngas can be used to fuel a gas turbine, or as the feedstock for other chemical processing plant.

With an appropriate UCG technology, the cost of the gas per unit of energy is much lower than natural gas. When compared to current coal-fired power generation, these factors combine to provide a competitive cost of power at a smaller scale, with lower CO2 emissions, and longer term potential for CO2 removal and sequestration.”

There is the smallest footprint of all, almost no disturbance to surface soil or subterranean water table.
There is also no ash or dust, and no transportation.
The Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) process converts coal in situ to a synthetic (syngas) that may be used for a range of downstream processes, including power generation and the production of petrochemical products.

This conversion of coal to gas enables it to be used with reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and for the UCG process to be accepted as a Clean Coal Technology.

Disclosure: I hold shares in Cougar Energy.

With the anticipated rise in temperatures, the areas of growing food will be challenged like never before. We’re the driest inhabited continent in the world; the rain fall in vital areas is already under duress, to make it even worse is just plain stupid. I just marvel with growing anger and sadness, at govts who have this torrid love affair with the mining industry - all they can see is the taxes they’re going to collect, without a thought for now, let alone the future!

We should be taking steps to ensure, that areas that grow our food are protected not placed under worse hardships than already experienced. I don’t want to eat fruit and veg grown in China, or anywhere else for that matter. An isolated country like ours relies heavily on our historical resource - growing nourishing food for its citizens.
My sympathies and support are with the farmers. Keep on fighting the good fight! My grand kids are depending on you! I wish I was financially able to give monetry support - even the pension increase won’t be much help?

However, west of the range the situation is exactly analoguous to that which has been reported above.

Both regions contain acquifers which are at risk and which are not adequately monitored or protected during exploration or operation phases.

Under NSW legislation, the gas companies have very wide reaching power to enter land, drill holes, conduct tests such as noisy seismic tests and further drilling, construct pipelines and other facilities and so forth with little or no notice to the landholder and the local communities.