Stop Baralaba South coal mine

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The operators of Baralaba North coal mine have recently been fined for breaking their environmental approval conditions. Companies have to be pretty negligent to get a fine and this is the first coal company issued with an infringement since Adani in 2020.

Now US billionaire-owned Baralaba Coal are seeking State and Federal approvals for the NEW Baralaba South coal mine!

This project will destroy prime farmland, and risks pollution of the Dawson river and drinking water supplies for the Baralaba and Woorabinda Aboriginal communities.

The Queensland government is currently seeking public comments on the proposed Baralaba South coal mine’s Environmental Impact Statement. Tell them to prioritise communities over the profits of multinational coal companies.

Make an official submission to reject the Baralaba South coal mine

Dear EIS Coordinator (Baralaba South Project),

I’ve been watching with horror the impacts of climate change and fossil fuel project development on Queensland’s threatened species, precious ecosystems and regional communities.

I request you take on board my comments regarding the Baralaba South Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and reject this project to protect Queenslanders and our precious environment.

Baralaba coal has recently been fined by the Federal Government under the EPBC Act for breaking their environmental approval conditions, the first coal company issued an infringement since Adani in 2020. The Queensland Government should take note and factor this breach of environmental law into its assessment of the proposed Baralaba South coal mine that risks our climate, precious water supplies and prime agricultural land.

Globally, the International Energy Agency recognises that a 1.5 degree aligned future requires that all new fossil fuel projects be rejected. In Queensland, the Land Court ruled that a 1.5 degree aligned future is imperative for our human rights, and noted particularly the impact that fossil fuel developments will have on reducing the human rights of Indigenous people and children.

Despite this, the Baralaba South EIS has a woefully inadequate Decarbonisation Plan which does not show how the project will meet the Safeguard Mechanism decarbonisation pathway, nor does it calculate site specific fugitive methane emissions or seriously consider options to reduce fugitive emissions.

The Baralaba community has been fighting a version of this project for more than 10 years. In 2020, Save the Dawson conducted a survey in Baralaba which found more than 97 percent of residents opposed the new coal mine.

The coal mine will have unacceptable impacts on water supply and the local community. The project is of particular concern to local residents, primarily Indigenous people in Woorabinda, who rely on the Dawson River as their primary water source. The EIS does not currently adequately identify the impacts on drinking water.

Baralaba is a productive farming community. Many farmers in the region are worried about the impacts the Baralaba South coal mine will have on farmland. The project’s EIS identifies more than 550 hectares of ‘strategic cropping land’ would be permanently destroyed for the coal mine. Farmers are also concerned about the mine’s impact on the Dawson River, which they rely on for water and the impacts of dust on crops. This productive farming region should be cared for and protected for future generations, not sacrificed for a foreign owned coal mine.

Baralaba Coal is seeking to make a quick buck from a coal mine that will cost the community dearly. The Queensland government must prioritise regional communities over the profits of multinational coal companies.

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