Whitehaven seek to water down noise conditions

Take Action today – Whitehaven Coal have lodged a modification (Mod 4) with the Department of Planning to remove an important noise condition which is critical to lowering cumulative mining noise over the life of opencut coal mining in the region.

The short, 15 page document contains little information other than the proposal that the company wants to delete the sound power clause in Condition 12a of Schedule 3 of the Maules Creek coal mine approval based on its “strong record of compliance”. The sound power clause says the proponent shall;

“ensure that all equipment and noise control measures deliver sound power levels that are equal to or better than the sound power levels identified in the EA*, and correspond to best practice or the application of the best available technology economically achievable;”

* The “EA” is the original Environmental Impact Assessment (EIS)

You can object to this watering down of sound power regulations for the mine by going to the Department of Planning website and filling out their quick and easy online submission form.

You might like to mention that;

1. There has been no public consultation for this proposed modification and no explanation as to why it is sought
2. The company has provided no data to support the proposition that it needn’t maintain or reduce sound power levels for its equipment or noise control measures
3. The company got its approval way back in 2012 and there is no need to shift the goal posts now. This is bad for Planning Integrity in NSW
4. A condition that maintains or reduces sound power levels over time is a good thing as it will foster mine noise improvements over the life of the mine. This is what communities expect – continuous improvement of environmental performance
5. This is a standard “sound power” clause and all other mines in the region have this clause and manage to live with it, setting a consistent regulatory framework across the region.
6. If Whitehaven was successful deleting this clause, others may try their luck to reduce their noise conditions. This would be bad for cumulative noise and bad for local residents
7. That far from a “strong record of compliance”,  the company has a track record of noise non-compliance having had an official warning by the Department of Planning in August 2017 for noise management and recently having its environmental risk rating set at maximum by the EPA – one of only 3 mines in the state.