A reply from Centennial...

RESPONSE TO COORANBONG GAZETTE
PROPOSED OLSTAN MINE
20/03/09

How many job positions will be created as part of the Olstan Project?
It is anticipated the proposed Olstan Mine will generate approximately 40
operational and 15 construction jobs.
Will the construction jobs be at the commencement of the project only, or
will they exist for the full duration of the project?
The construction jobs generated by the proposed Olstan Mine will be at the
commencement of the project.
How many of these job positions will be fill by residents within the Lake
Macquarie area?
Centennial Coal employs over 800 people across its 5 local mine sites, 65% of
our employees live in the Lake Macquarie area.
How many of these job positions are like to go to people with specialists
skills brought in from outside the area?
Less than 15% of the jobs generated by the proposed Olstan Mine require
‘specialist skills’ and many of these specialists most likely in the Hunter region.
How many of these job positions are likely to be filled by existing
Centennial Coal employees/contractors?
The jobs generated by the proposed Olstan Mine will be in addition to
Centennial’s current workforce.
What is the expected volume of coal that will be exposed and recovered
from the digging of the access trenches?
Excavation of an access pit is required to establish access to the coal seam. The
amount of coal recovered from these access pits will be known when various
technical studies have been finished and there is a final mine design.
What is the expected volume of coal that will be extracted by the augering
process of the exposed coal seams?
The proposed Olstan Mine is a three-year project extracting up to 1.5million
tonnes.
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Will a Community Consultative Committee be set up for this specific
project?
The establishment of a formal Community Consultative Committee for the
proposed Olstan Mine will be a decision for the Department of Planning and
would be included in any consent conditions
Because the proposed Olstan Mine is in the Newstan Lease area, is in the same
geographical area as Newstan’s operations and Newstan is moving to ‘care and
maintenance’ the Newstan CCC will continue to be consulted.
Is it possible that Centennial Coal will apply for more auger mines in the
Lake Macquarie area?
The proposed Olstan Mine is the only auger mine being considered by
Centennial.
Can you rule out the possibility of other future auger mine projects after
Olstan?
Olstan is an important short-term project for Centennial in terms of supplying our
current coal contracts with the local power stations. Centennial’s future in the
Lake Macquarie area, while in initial stages of exploration drilling, lies with our
Awaba East and Mandalong South underground projects.
James Wearne stated on 14 March that it was incorrect that communities
as far away as Valentine and Eleebana would be affected by dust. How can
that be stated with certainty?
Initial results from air and noise assessments indicate under ‘worse case’
scenarios residents from Blackalls Park or Awaba will not be affected by the
proposed Olstan Mine.
The results of all technical studies will be made available to the public through
the Part 3A process once they have been finalised.
Can you provide further information on the former arsenic works that once
existed on the same site as the proposed Olstan Project?
Centennial is aware there is an abandoned arsenic smelter site in the area and
that there could be potential issues with this site.
We need to understand what these issues could be and have therefore engaged
experts in this field to undertake studies on the site. The outcomes of this work
will be incorporated in future consultation with the community.
Where were they specifically located?
The old Arsenic Smelter site is located in the south-western area of the Newstan
lease adjacent to the existing Main Northern Railway