The Hidden Costs of Clean Coal

Georges River Macarthur

General longwall mining

• longwall mining process - damage, cause and effects
• backstow - mining subsidence - backstow reduces surface damage, our politicians don't legislate for it
• Cataract river - Cataract river during the seventies
• Georges river dieing - Georges river greatly reduced water levels
• Iluka Creek - Iluka Swamp - Iluka Creek, Iluka Swamp, Georges River catchment
• Macarthurs rivers - Bargo, Georges, Cataract rivers - Broughton Pass Dam, Marhnes Hole, Appin
• Mine subsidence - mine subsidence in the Upper Nepean river catchment
• Georges River photographs - photographs of 7 km downstream of Freres Crossing
• Stokes Creek Wedderburn - Stokes Creek, Wedderburn, Georges River, Campbelltown
• Wedderburn - Wedderburns rivers, creeks and properties
• Wedderburn gorge - Wedderburn gorge, Georges River catchment, environmental damage
• Woolwash - The Woolwash junction with O'Hares creek Wedderburn - Minto
• O'Hares - Iluka - Georges River, O'Hares Creek, Dharawal State Recreation Area, Iluka Creek, Iluka Swamp, Maddens Creek.
• O'Hares - Wedderburn - Georges River, O'Hares Creek, Campbelltown, Wedderburn.
• Dharawal State Recreation Area - Georges River, O'Hares Creek, Darkes Forest.

• gr_punchbowl_kentlyn - Punchbowl Creek at the Basin Georges River NSW
• broken promises - longwall mining - deceit, denial and broken promises
• Cost clean coal - Clean coal, is it too costly to consider
• Longwall Mining - Global Climate Change, letter to Kevin Rudd, Prime minister Australia
• The hidden costs of clean coal - The environmental and human disaster of longwall mining - Multimedia from The Center for Public Integrity Washington DC. Video filmed in the mine and the effects above ground.
• BHP Billiton environmental damage - BHP Billiton, Fly river, Ok Tedi river, copper mines, Irian Jaya, Barrow Island, deforestation Indonesia, environmental damage, longwall mining
• BHP Billiton misinformation - BHP Billiton Illawarra Coal - Rio Tinto misinformation and the publics wrong impression of mining
• Politicians and approvals - These politicians approve longwall mining licences which pollutes our atmosphere, damages our rivers, water catchments and your homes
• Mine subsidence - longwall mining and its impact on water resources
• When longwall mining comes to your town - When longwall mining comes to your town, your home is in the hands of the mining company- from the US and applies here in Australia

Atmospheric pollution, river pollution, deforestation - tax payer grants!

The Federal government giving research grants to the mining industry which generates huge profits anyway.

The mining industry:

1. has and is the worlds greatest atmospheric polluter since the industrial revolution.
2. causes irreparable damage on a large scale to the land which includes rivers, catchments and drinking water storage.
3. embraces deforestation on a large scale.
4. poisons rivers
5. destroys ecosystems, flora and fauna..
6. uses financial resources which could be better used to develop and improve known and existing environmentally friendly technologies.
7. creates doubt and confusion for mining industry employees who may see CLEAN COAL as a saviour for their jobs.
8. brings CLEAN COAL into the argument which is an unknown commodity, a red herring.
9. is slowing the development of new industries and increasing job numbers with their suggestion of clean coal.

BHP Billiton's board accuses the company of failure to endorse the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and its role in worsening climate change and producing a radioactive legacy for future generations.

When the coal has run out in your area the mining companies will move on, who will take responsibility for your damaged property then?

If you are lucky it will be the tax payer otherwise it will be your responsibility.

BHP Billiton absolved itself of the damage created by their irresponsible mining techniques at the Fly and Ok Tedi rivers in Papau New Guinea Fly and Ok Tedi rivers. It is estimated that the damage is so bad it may take 200 years or more to clean up. BHP Billiton simply walked away.

Visit The hidden costs of clean coal - The environmental and human disaster of longwall mining - Multimedia from The Center for Public Integrity Washington DC. Video filmed within the mine then on the surface.

Alternative energy sources

Mining jobs have been disappearing for some considerable time because of new techniques in the development of mining equipment!
One only has to use Google to see the mining equipment of the future. The mining industry in Australia is a small scale employer these days. Mining representatives stated that there would be a loss of 13000 jobs if the mining industry were to close today.

Clean coal doesn't exist

Mining representatives from the Hunter Valley spoke at the start of the 2009 Sydney Walk on Warming and stated that they were in complete support of the Federal government supporting clean power generation industries because clean coal "didn't exist".

They stated there twice as many jobs would be created if the government closed down the mining industry and developed solar, wind and other means of power generation which are tried, tested and available. With further development they could be Australias next export to the world.

Solar energy

Australian engineers are now taking solar energy research and technology overseas because they cannot obtain funding here.

Their actions are sending a very strong message about the taxes obtained from mining, the mining lobby and their mythical clean coal. The sad thing is that we, the Australian people are letting it happen. Kevin Rudd has just allocated $100 million dollars of tax payers money to the development of clean coal technologies. So far there isn't any.

Rudd governments tax payer grant to the mining industry

There are however technologies which do work but need investment. They have received some funding but not $100 million. One asks why an industry (mining) needs financial assistance from the very people whose homes they destroy and who they treat with such contempt.

The Governor of California Arnold Swarzeneggar is showing the way by utilising Australian designed solar energy devices to generate electricity in his state. He is now building a second solar power plant which is even bigger than the one which recently came online using Australian technology.

What's next for Australia

23 June 09 - CoalTrans - As the world’s premier exporter, the Australian coal sector is reaping bonanza earnings from unprecedented prices in all categories of traded coal products.

The industry’s major producers have moved to capitalise by increasing their domination, notably through a phase of corporate consolidation. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, a new clutch of growing independent Australian producers has emerged, many controlling some of the key growth assets for the next decade