Announced in December 2006, the inquiry will be headed by a panel of five experts to provide a sound technical foundation for the assessment and long-term management of underground mining in the southern coal field.

Some community concerns about mining in the area and changes to the assessment system for extensions to existing coal mines prompted the inquiry. From 2010 all proposed extensions to underground coal mining leases will require approval under Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

Inquiry topics to be addressed include the effects of current and historic underground coal mining on rivers, creeks, swamps and cliff lines; world's best practice in the assessment, management and remediation of impacts; key factors which should be considered by government in assessing and regulating underground mining near rivers; and the social and economic importance of current and future coal mining to the region and the state.

A NSW Department of Planning spokesperson told International Longwall News the first step in the inquiry is a call for submissions from members of the public and interested stakeholders. These submissions will then be collated and provided to the panel for consideration.

The panel will then hold public hearings and those parties providing submission, and are willing to do so, will be invited to present to the panel at the hearings.

The panel members are:

Professor Bruce Hebblewhite (chair) – subsidence expert, head of the School of Mining Engineering at the University of New South Wales and executive director of Mining Education Australia;

Professor Jim Galvin – subsidence expert, managing director of Galvin and Associates and visiting professor of mining engineering at the University of New South Wales;

Col Mackie – groundwater expert and principal at Mackie Environmental Research with more than 30 years experience in undertaking groundwater assessments for major projects, including numerous underground coal mining projects;

Associate Professor Ron West – aquatic ecology expert from the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Wollongong and a member of the NSW Fisheries Scientific Committee (Threatened Aquatic Species); and

Drew Collins – managing director of the BDA Group and a leading expert in undertaking social and economic analyses for major projects. Collins was employed for many years with the NSW Environment Protection Authority and has since been appointed to numerous state and federal government panels and committees.