Federal Member for Lyne Alison Penfold has welcomed the end of mineral exploration plans in the Manning Valley after MCi Carbon relinquished two exploration licences covering about 93 square kilometres of the Manning River catchment.
The NSW Resources Regulator cancelled the licences on 4 August after MCi Carbon applied to relinquish them on 1 July.
Penfold congratulated the Manning Against Mining Alliance (MAMA) and local residents who had campaigned against the proposal, saying the decision provided certainty for communities concerned about exploration near Mt George and potential impacts on the Manning River catchment.
“This is a very welcome outcome for the Manning Valley and particularly for the people around Mt George who have lived with uncertainty about this proposal,” Penfold said.
“I congratulate MAMA, its President Bruce Robertson, its committee and the many local residents who have worked tirelessly to scrutinise this proposal and ensure the community’s concerns could not simply be ignored.
“I also thank my Nationals colleague, Member for Myall Lakes Tanya Thompson MP, for her strong advocacy on behalf of the community, as well as the crossbench members of the NSW Legislative Council who took up the community’s concerns and helped shine a light on this proposal.
“I was clear in my opposition to this project and I have been particularly concerned by the lack of genuine consultation and the difficulty our community experienced getting straight answers about what was proposed and what its potential impacts could be.
“At a federal level, I took these concerns directly into the Australian Parliament, raised questions about the project and sought to engage the Albanese Labor Government about Commonwealth support for MCi Carbon and the concerns being raised by the Manning Valley community.
“When taxpayers’ money is supporting projects of this kind, the Australian Government has a responsibility to listen to affected communities and ensure there is proper transparency and accountability.
“The Manning River is the lifeblood of our region. Protecting its catchment, our productive farmland and the communities that depend upon it must come before projects that cannot demonstrate that they have community confidence.
“It is disappointing that, after the concern and uncertainty created by this proposal, it appears the community was not directly informed by MCi Carbon of its decision to relinquish the licences.
“Once again, the Manning Valley community has demonstrated what can be achieved when local people stand together, ask hard questions and refuse to be brushed aside.
“This is their win, and MAMA deserves enormous credit for seeing this campaign through.”
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