Georges River Macarthur - Longwall Mining - Sydney Catchments

Georges River Kings Falls App to Grid Ref 971112 Topographical Map Appin 9029 - 1S

Macarthur Bushwalkers started this walk on Saturday 1st April out of curiosity to see the condition of Georges River above Kings Falls and Appin Rd, we had no idea what we would find.

Our focust in the past on the Upper Georges River Catchment has been downstream to the north of Appin Rd at Kings Falls (Grid Ref 9711234) which includes BHP Billiton Illawarra Coals mine dam and Marhnyes Hole.

The river itself is very pretty once one ventures off of the huge track made by trail bikes. There are a number of crossing which are blocked off with wire and concrete blocks as the Sydney Catchment Authorityhy tries to keep the riders out of the more sensative areas of the catchment.

Our route along Georges River took us very close to Myrtle Gully, Back Gully and less than two kilometres from the Cataract River in the Metropolitan Special Area of the catchment

Eventually this water flows into the Woolwash via Wedderburn Gorge, then into The Basin at Kentlyn, both locations can be seen on this website.

Longwall Mining links

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 dyeing - 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, Marhnyes 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 - Wedderburn's 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_appin_cataract.html - Upstream of Kings Falls Appin in the Georges River upper catchment
• 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 licence's 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

Film footage of longwall mining

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. .PDF Hidden disasters of longwall mining

Waratah Rivulet - When the Rivers Run Dry - Total Environment Centre - Sydney Water System - Another longwall mining casualty.

Mining Advocacy Network