Environmentalists say they have lost faith in the ability of New South Wales authorities to assess controversial mining projects after the Independent Planning Commission approved another coalmine – the fourth fossil fuel project in the state to get the green light in five months.
The Maxwell underground coalmine, being developed by a subsidiary of Malabar Resources, is the latest to receive development consent after the commission determined on Tuesday that the “risks of adverse impacts on the environment are low”.
The project, on the site of the former Drayton open-cut mine near Muswellbrook, will be allowed to extract up to 148m tonnes of coal over 26 years.
The IPC approved the project with 169 conditions and said the climate, agricultural, health and environmental impacts of the new mine, when weighed against its socioeconomic benefits, were “manageable”.
But the anti-mining group Lock the Gate has accused the independent commission of acting as “rubber stamp” for the NSW government since a review of its operations was conducted by the NSW Productivity Commission.
The review was requested by the state planning minister, Rob Stokes, in 2019 after the IPC rejected the Bylong Valley coalmine near Mudgee because of significant concerns about the effect it would have on the environment, agriculture and the climate.
The NSW Minerals Council lobbied the government for the review after objecting to the commission’s decision in the Bylong case and its high-profile rejection of the Rocky Hill coalmine near Gloucester.
The review led to new benchmarks and deadlines for decisions by the commission and changes that mean the IPC only assesses the most contentious developments.
Since the review, the IPC has given the green light to four new fossil fuel projects: the Narrabri gas project, Whitehaven’s Vickery mine, the expansion of the Russell Vale coalmine above Sydney’s water catchment, and the Maxwell underground coalmine.
Its decision in the Narrabri case is now the subject of a legal challenge in the land and environment court.
“The public has effectively lost faith in the IPC’s ability to assess controversial mining projects with an impartial eye since planning minister Rob Stokes kneecapped the authority following the rejection of the Bylong Valley mine,” said Georgina Woods, the coordinator for the Lock the Gate Alliance NSW.
“Merits appeal rights for those who oppose these projects are unavailable so, without an independent umpire, people and industries that are affected by mining have effectively got no say and no protection.”
Under NSW laws, communities lose their right to a merits appeal of decisions if the IPC holds public hearings on a project.
Stokes as the planning minister is responsible for making the decision as to whether a hearing is held.
Woods said Stokes had “stripped the IPC of its independence”. “It is now little more than an extension of the NSW Government and Planning Department, that rubber stamps anything that comes its way,” she said.
She called for the reintroduction of merits appeal rights to give communities a fair hearing in the state’s land and environment court.
David Morris, the chief executive of the Environmental Defenders Office, said the NSW government rules that imposed limits on the circumstances in which merits appeal rights were available were ‘“undesirable”.
“It’s put the community at a disadvantage vis à vis mining,” Morris said. “We say that merits appeal rights before the courts lead to better outcomes because you have an impartial judiciary.”
A spokesman for the commission said: “The commission determines each case independently, objectively and on its individual merits and in accordance with the legislative and policy framework.”
He added the commission was required to publish a statement of reasons for every decision and this document outlined how it considered the views of community members.
Malabar Resources said it welcomed the IPC’s decision to approve the Maxwell project.
The company’s chairman, Wayne Seabrook, said he hoped construction could begin in 2021.
“It will deliver about 250 construction jobs and 350 jobs during operation into the region, generating $55m in annual wages once the project is up and running,” he said.
Guardian Australia sought comment from Stokes, who did not respond by deadline.
