Around 200 locals attend MDL 3040 Community Forum

Furious farmers and landowners say the 200 jobs on offer by a controversial Queensland coal mine is a ‘drop in the ocean’ compared to 3000 employed in agriculture in the region threatened by the operation.

Around 200 people attended the MDL 3040 Community Forum at Moore Park Beach Community Hall on Sunday.

The impact of the coal mine proposed for Bundaberg on public health, agriculture, jobs and the environment were among the pressing concerns raised by locals who turned out in force at a MDL 3040 community forum on Sunday.

Arranged by ALP Bundaberg MP Tom Smith with Minister for Resources Scott Stewart in attendance, around 200 people filled the Moore Park Beach Community Hall to voice their opposition to the coal mine proposed by WA exploration company Fox Resources for prime agricultural land in north Bundaberg.

On hand to field technical questions about the mining development application, department of resources coal assessment hub director Alex Grundy said the strength of the Bundaberg community’s response to the Fox Resources proposal was “unprecedented” in his time in the role.

Around 200 people attended the MDL 3040 Community Forum at Moore Park Beach Community Hall on Sunday.

“I’ve been assessing coal projects in the department for about 18 years, this is the first time we’ve ever received this sort of response to a bid or development licence,” he said.

“It’s quite unprecedented in that regard.”

ALP Bundaberg MP Tom Smith spoke to the crowd, telling them "we need to hear from people in community (about) why (the mine) is not in your interest and therefore not in the public's interest".

Among the voices speaking out against the mine, Horticulturist Reuben Murray said the 200 jobs which Fox Resources has said the coal mine would bring to the region was a “drop in the ocean” compared to the 3,000 people employed in agriculture in the region, and questioned the wisdom of putting agriculture at risk in the face of climate change and a growing population.

Horticultural researcher Naomi Diplock also voiced concerns about the health, environmental and agricultural impacts of MDL 3040, saying “the introduction of a coal mine in this region poses a severe threat to our agricultural land”.

Dr Naomi Diplock from Applied Horticultural Research said MDL 3040 "poses a severe threat to our agricultural land".

“Food security is a critical issue not just for Australia but globally, and our food bowls are not just local assets, they are national treasures,” Dr Diplock said.

“Sacrificing fertile land for certain short term economic gains from coal mining is very short sighted.”

Local grower and deputy chair of the Australian Macadamia Society Michael McMahon said it was “hard to fathom” the mining application was being considered given the risk to the underground aquifers and surface water used by local irrigators, and promised that the peak bodies representing horticulturalists in the region “will fight tooth and nail” against the mine.

‘TRAFFIC, NOISE IMPACT WILL BE HUGE’

After apologising for her “squeaky voice, but you’ve got to speak out against bullies,” retiree and Moore Park Beach resident Cheryl Hay, whose home sits on the boundary of MDL 3040 asked if she was going to be “kept awake at night” by the sound of the mine.

Mayoral candidate Helen Blackburn also raised the question of noise and traffic congestion from vehicles transporting coal to Bundaberg port, saying the “traffic impingement on our society” will be “huge”.

Resident Cheryl Hay asked if she was going to be “kept awake at night” by the sound of the mine.

Mr Stewart said the fact that Fox Resources has said the coal mine would be underground meant that residents would likely not be exposed to the sound of “explosions”, but there are “absolutely” valid concerns about how coal will be transported from the mine site that Fox Resources will be asked to address through the application process.

‘HOW MANY BLOODY MINES HAVE GONE AHEAD’

Bundaberg Landcare president Mike Johnson said he hoped the politicians at the forum were being “bloody fair dinkum” in promising to take the community’s opposition to the mine into account, asking “how many bloody mines have gone ahead … raping all the prime land” in other regions including Toowoomba.

In response, Mr Stewart pointed out he had already rejected the MDL 3040 application in 2022, with the application only being revived due to the supreme court’s overruling of his decision.

Minister for Resources Scott Stewart said he was impressed with the “factual” and measured way in which the community had voiced their opposition to the mine.

Mr Stewart said he was impressed with the “factual” and measured way in which the community had voiced their opposition to the mine, and he will take away clear messages of concern around saltwater ingress into freshwater aquifers, the impacts of traffic on the roads and on employment in the region if the mine were to go ahead.

Mr Stewart is now calling on the public to make formal submissions by mid-March 2024, when Fox Resources will submit their application, following which he will make his decision approving or rejecting the application around July.