NARRABRI mayor Cathy Redding has slammed the Vickery Extension Project during a public hearing on Thursday.
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Speaking during day one of the NSW Independent Planning Commission's (IPC) public hearings into the Whitehaven Coal project, Cr Redding expressed the council's concern for the potential impacts to the Boggabri community.
"As a long-time member of Narrabri Shire Council, I have come across many different forms of consultation to varying degrees of success," Cr Redding said.
"What I can say is that the current proponent claims to have consulted with our community, but it seems to me they have largely ignored the concerns of the Narrabri shire about the potential impacts of this proposal on our people.
"I ask you commissioners, is the proponent engaging with my community in good faith?"
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"I have been involved in VPA discussions with the proponent, when our community rejected one offer, their response was to offer us less money," she said.
"We are willing to share the wealth derived from our shire, but not at any price, it must be fair and equitable."
Cr Redding said her community could "co-exist" with the already approved Vickery project but the council "did not currently support the extension".
"It's not for ideological reasons, it's for pragmatic reasons," she said.
"We will not surrender the right of the Boggabri community and its future to the lowest bidder or even just any bidder."
Not all of day one's speakers were against the project.
Winanga-Li Aboriginal Child and Family Centre's Wayne Griffiths said the project offered a lot of opportunities to the region's indigenous population.
"Vickery extension provides a lot of employment opportunities and the ability for a lot of Aboriginal people to gain some really meaningful employment out of that," Mr Griffiths said.
"At our early-childhood service here we have 39 aboriginal kids that come to our service every day of the week and it's very important for them to have access to that service.
"This kind of system in terms of the Vickery coal extension really does provide to us an opportunity for that long-term meaningful employment.
"This kind of employment opportunity really does send a clear message to everybody, if you just want to change the way you think and the way you do things, everybody shares in the wealth."
The IPC's online hearing continues from 10am on Friday.
Billy Jupp
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
