Film says mining hurting NSW waterways

Film says mining hurting NSW waterways

A coalition of environmental groups has released a film which criticises the mining industry for its impact on New South Wales rivers and creeks.

The film points out that longwall mines that are too close to rivers or creeks can cause cracking in the bedrock, which cause the rivers to dry up.

It has also claimed the water sometimes re-emerges downstream, but it is often heavily polluted by the mining process.

Rivers SOS secretary Caroline Graham says a number of rivers in the Hunter region have dried up as a result of mining.

“When the longwall mines extract two or three metres of coal, well the ground above will fall,” she said.

“Also, it causes something called ‘upsidence’ in river gorges where the sides of the valley sort of close together slightly, uplifting rocks in the middle of creeks and rivers and all of this causes terrible cracking in the bedrock and the water runs down those cracks.”

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