|
Posted on 9-10-2003
Giant
Mine Plan, Huntley
9 October 2003
Greenpeace representatives travelled to Huntly today to request
that
Environment Waikato re-start the RMA submission process on Awaroa
4, a
massive new 11 million tonne coal mine proposed by Solid Energy.
Disappointingly councillors Helen Lane, Steve Osbourne and Barry
O'Connor
decided to continue the undemocratic actions of Environment
Waikato and
continue the hearing without fully re-notifying the public for
input.
Environment Waikato deemed that impacts of the enormous proposed
mine could
be described as 'minor'. They used new Resource Management Act
'limited
notification' rules to justify informing only a small pool of
groups and
individuals. This excluded the general public and most public-interest
groups from having appropriate input. "Clearly, Solid Energy's
225 hectare
coal mine proposal is not a 'minor' matter," said Greenpeace
climate
campaigner Vanessa Atkinson. "Solid Energy plans to move 113
million tonnes
of earth in order to mine the 11 million tonnes of coal beneath,
and
redivert a stream. The opencast mine will further contaminate
Lake Waahi
from polluted water pumped out of the enormous crater, which
would then run
into the Waikato River. "We believed Environment Waikato made
a mistake so
we went to Huntly today to ask that they re-start the submission
period.
We'd like to see Environment Waikato allow anyone in the country
who has a
view about the Awaroa 4 mining proposal to be treated fairly
and have their
evidence and opinions taken into account when they assess Solid
Energy's
application. "This is obviously not a little local issue but
one that has
significance on a national and international scale. Once the
11 million
tonnes of coal is mined it will be crushed into dust and burnt
at the
Huntly Power Station. A Greenpeace scientist has conservatively
estimated
that this will contribute 45.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide
into the
atmosphere that will fuel dangerous global warming," concluded
Ms Atkinson.
"This proposal is not only relevant to Waikato locals but also
should be of
serious concern to everyone in Auckland. It is a timely reminder
that
Aucklanders drink what is dumped further up the Waikato River."
|
