The Glencore/Yancoal Hunter Valley Operations Open Cut Coal Continuation Project (HVO)has been recommended to the Independent Planning Commission (IPC) by the NSW Government today, moving the project closer to unleashing 800 million tonnes of climate pollution over the next 20 years. The expansion is being considered under an updated state coal policy to allow expanded and extended coal mines despite NSW being likely to miss legislated emissions reduction targets.
Greens MP, Solicitor and spokesperson for Planning and Climate Sue Higginson said:
“The Minns Labor Government has allowed this massive and catastrophic project to proceed in the planning system despite publicly and legally committing to emissions reduction targets that will be impossible to reach if this project goes ahead,”
“The Minister for Planning has once again guaranteed that the community will not be able to challenge the merits of this dangerous mine expansion through recommending the IPC conduct a ‘public hearing’, a decision that prevents the merits of a project from being challenged if it’s approved,”
“This next step for HVO comes the same day that the Government accepted all of the Net Zero Commission’s recommendations in the Coal Spotlight Report, except the recommendation that coal expansions were inconsistent with climate laws that the Minns Labor Government introduced in 2023,”
“We cannot afford any more coal. Every single person in NSW is already paying $20k per year because of the impacts of climate change, and this project is literally pouring petrol on a house fire,”
“The Government could act today, to make sure this project is never approved, and we stop the expansion of coal in NSW. Instead, they are avoiding the truth, lying to the community, and setting us on a path to disaster,” Ms Higginson said.
