Help oppose another extension of the peabody minE!

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 American mining giant, Peabody Energy, have plans to extend their mining operations deeper into the Woronora Catchment. We have plans to stop them, and we need your help.

Public submissions are due on the 26th August (this Tuesday!), and we need as many people as possible to put in submissions opposing the plans.

We have created a handy submission guide with key talking points for your to include.
You can find this visual guide on our Facebook page.
Submissions don't have to be lengthy or elaborate, so long as they are in your own words expressing your opposition to the proposal. The more submissions the better!
Once you are ready to upload your submission, you can do so via the NSW Planning Portal.
You will be asked to make an account, which should only take a few minutes. From there, the submission process is simple.
For as much impact as possible, we ask you to also send your submission as a letter to the Planning Minister Paul Scully, as well as your State or Federal MPs. Paul Scully's email address: wollongong@parliament.nsw.gov.auOn Saturday we hosted a presentation/writing workshop to showcase the many complex layers of damage caused by mining in water catchments, and to encourage participants to put in submissions of their own. Thank you so much to everyone who came along, your support is so greatly appreciated. Good luck everyone!

Warmly and with hope,
Cooper, SSEC Volunteer 

Membership, environmental advocacy Sutherland Shire Environment Centre is a non-profit, non-government organisation run by volunteers who care about our local area and do our best to advocate for the environment. Your support builds the power of our collective voice. 

I am writing on behalf of the Woronora Valley Residents Association Inc. to voice our firm and urgent opposition to Peabody Energy's proposed Modification 4 at the Metropolitan Colliery. 

This proposal seeks to extend longwall coal mining directly beneath the Woronora Dam, which supplies drinking water to hundreds of thousands of residents in the Sutherland Shire and greater Sydney.

This is not just an environmental concern - it is a matter of public health, infrastructure security, and basic common sense.

Peabody's track record speaks for itself. In 2022, the company's operations caused a dam failure that led to a discharge of coal-laden water into Camp Gully Creek, which flows into the Hacking River and Royal National Park. 

They were fined [$196,560 fine and costs of $304,806 awarded against them] after pleading guilty to pollution and licence breaches. The idea of approving more mining under such critical water catchment areas - by a foreign-owned company - is reckless and unacceptable.

The Woronora Dam is not only a lifeline for our community - it is also heritage-listed and located within a Special Area where public access is restricted to protect water quality. Allowing longwall mining in this zone endangers both the natural environment and our water supply.

There has been no genuine community consultation, and this project continues to move forward despite growing public opposition.

We urge the NSW Government and Planning Minister Paul Scully to reject Modification 4 in full.

Marelle Burnum Burnum, Woronora Valley Residents Association Inc