New South Wales communities living with concerns about emissions from nearby mines hope a freshly announced state parliamentary inquiry will result in new safeguards.
Key points:
- A parliamentary inquiry will examine potential health and environmental impacts from mining
- It has been triggered by excessive dust pollution at Cadia gold mine near Orange
- The inquiry will report its findings by November 21
Landholders near Cadia Valley Operations near Orange in central western New South Wales have been dealing with dust pollution for five years.
Residents neighbouring a soon-to-be built lead, silver and zinc Bowdens project at Lue near Mudgee fear they will be exposed to similar emissions.
The two communities' experiences have triggered a NSW parliamentary inquiry into the potential impacts of gold, silver, lead and zinc mining on public health, water, air quality and agriculture.
Bruce Reynolds, who lives near the Cadia gold mine with his young family, said he installed a filter on his rain tank when heavy metals were detected in the water and his 10-year old daughter started experiencing skin irritations.
"What I hope comes out of this is safeguards for communities moving forward, not just our community but communities right across New South Wales to make sure that they're not exposed to high levels of dust," Mr Reynolds said.
"We believe the drinking water quality has improved dramatically," he said.
"We've been told that that will filter out everything, all the major elements."
Mining regulation
The state parliamentary inquiry, announced on Tuesday, will also examine the adequacy of the response and compliance action taken by regulatory authorities in response to complaints by communities.
Gem Green from the Cadia Community Sustainability Network, which represents landholders near Cadia Valley Operations, said her organisation had been reporting dust pollution from the mine site for years.
"The better part of the past three years has been a really intense experience," Ms Green said.
"The inquiry is going to give us as a community and a state an opportunity to give feedback on our concerns."
Ms Green said she was confident the inquiry's terms of reference were comprehensive and believed it would lead to a good outcome for mining and the broader community.
She said her organisation had the core philosophy and belief that mining and agriculture could live and work together.
"Our position has always been to work with Newcrest at Cadia Valley Operations," Ms Green said.
"It is in everyone's best interests for local economy, for jobs, for the state and the nation for Newcrest at Cadia Valley to continue as long as possible and as safely as possible with far stricter parameters in place for health and wellness."
Community concerns
The inquiry has been established after lobbying by Greens MP Cate Faerhmann.
"There are a number of other projects, a new gold mine, a new silver and lead mine in (the) Central West," Ms Faerhmann said.
"Communities have contacted me incredibly concerned about the potential impact on their health, on their water supply and frankly, we've got to look into it.
"They feel like their concerns have been ignored.
"Let's see if we can change the laws that basically allow these companies to pollute the atmosphere and the water."
Submissions to the inquiry close September 5 and the committee is due to report its findings on November 21.
In a statement, Cadia's general manager Mick Dewar said the mine welcomed the inquiry.
"Mining safely, responsibly, and sustainably is what our local community expects of us and what we demand of ourselves," Mr Dewar said.
"Health and safety isn't an option for Cadia, it's a prerequisite.
"We take pride in our 25-year involvement with the Central West region, and we look forward to showing how our operations can continue supporting jobs, regional investment, and the energy transition."