Monday, July 13, 2015

Liverpool Plains farmers prepare for action

Farmers on the Liverpool Plains in northern New South Wales are vowing to launch legal action and resort to civil disobedience if they have to, to stop a Chinese coal mining company being granted a mining licence.

The open cut mine is forecast to produce up to 10 million tonnes of coal per year over 30 years, but farmers claim the project will leave a 35 square kilometre hole in some of the most fertile agricultural land in the country.

Farmer and Caroona Coal Action Group head Tim Duddy said the project was "agricultural genocide".

"We are not talking about a coexistence model, we are talking about mining coming and farming going and it's as simple as that," he said.

Mr Duddy and a group of other Liverpool Plains farmers have met to discuss how they will proceed.

"We're looking at our legal options, we're looking at our other options, certainly the community is prepared to do whatever it takes to ensure a mine does not occur here," Mr Duddy said.

Farmer Andrew Pursehouse, who owns more than 4,000 hectares of prime agricultural land on the Liverpool Plains, said the group would resort to civil disobedience if it had to.

"This community is galvanised to stop whatever happens and it could lead to some pretty nasty stuff," Mr Pursehouse said.

"We've got to act like French farmers and stop this, this is just not right."

Mr Pursehouse's son Hugh, who also works on the family farm, said he was "disappointed" that the Federal Government approved the mine.

"They're pretty much flushing all our futures down the drain, they're destroying it for us," Hugh Pursehouse said.

He said he hopes all Australians will get behind the farmers' cause and show their support online.

"At the moment we've got a Liverpool Plains Youth group all over social media just trying to get the word out to all of Australia and everywhere."


No comments: