Felix Resources managing director Brian Flannery told International Longwall News that the changes had been made in response to public submissions to the first mine plan and were now lodged with the NSW Department of Planning, awaiting approval.

“We are happy with the changes – the move affects about year 14 of our mine … it cuts out a little bit of the resource but in the scheme of things it’s quite small,” Flannery said.

“We had already cut it off [mining] 300m short of the edge of the lease, but we have now moved it a further 200m.”

The Moolarben Coal Project, which includes opencut and underground mining, has encountered ongoing opposition from environmental groups, who claim longwall mining will cause subsidence damage to the Goulburn River gorge area.

Public submissions to the NSW DPI also raised concerns over the cultural significance of the area, which includes Aboriginal rock art and artefacts.

A website set up by one opposition group, www.savethedrip.com, calls for at least a 1km buffer zone around the Goulburn River gorge area.

But Flannery said each case should be assessed individually and a “one size fits all” buffer zone was not suitable.

“That would probably shut down about half of the NSW underground coal industry,” he said.

The modifications to the Moolarben Coal Project include:

• A minimum setback of 500m from The Drip;
• A minimum setback of 450m from the Goulburn River Corner Gorge and associated cliffs;
• Maximum protection to identified important Aboriginal sites; and
• Reduced exposure to damage to cliff lines in the underground mining area that contain items of Aboriginal heritage.

The new plan also offers to compensate or replace water lost by any landholder as a result of the project.

Meanwhile, Felix’s Ashton longwall is on track for March first coal, expected to produce more than 2 million tonnes per annum of semi-soft coking coal.