Illawarra coal miner South32 was targeted by environmentalists today as a climate-related protest made its presence felt at the company's North Wollongong offices.
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It was a noisy affair, with the 60-odd protesters armed with drums and a megaphone, accompanied by a few dogs and a ferret, at the University of Wollongong's Innovation Campus, where South32 has its Illawarra headquarters.
They were there as part of the nationwide protests over climate change, and South32 was in their sights as the region's leading coal miner.
Speakers told a receptive crowd that South32's proposed expansion of its Dendrobium mine should be rejected as it had the potential to cause too significant damage to the drinking water catchment.
"The company has consistently done more damage to the water table that it projected," university staff member Rachel Rowe said.
We have to stop doing what we normally do because normal has no future
- Rachel Rowe
"There can be no more expansion of fossil fuel projects, especially in environmentally sensitive areas.
"We have to stop doing what we normally do because normal has no future."
Shellharbour resident and retired university staffer Tom Hunt, 65, said he wanted an end to coal mines expanding.
"It's taking away water, damaging the environment, and we know coal is not the fuel of the future," he said.
He and the Citizens Climate Lobby group were due to meet with Member for Hume Angus Taylor in Canberra on Friday afternoon to discuss climate change.
Ms Rowe said the Illawarra doesn't have to see itself as simply a mining area.
"I'm from a mining family," she said.
"They try to tell us mining is part of the identity of the Illawarra - it's not true, it doesn't have to be.
"My family always fought for good living conditions in the community - now we know about climate change it makes no sense [to rely on coal]."
A spokeswoman for South32 said the company was committed to emissions reduction.
"We support the global shift towards a low carbon economy and have aligned our decarbonisation plans with the Paris Agreement," she said.
"Our long-term goal of net zero emissions from our operations by 2050 reflects this commitment.
"We take our environmental responsibilities seriously and understand the sensitivities of working within the Metropolitan Special Area.
"Our extensive water monitoring program helps to inform our future mine planning and we share the data with the Department of Planning and Environment and other government agencies.
"The supporting Environmental Impact Statement for Dendrobium's next two underground mining areas contains specialist environmental studies and thoroughly assesses all environmental aspects of the project in the context of its location.
"It has been informed by years of expert research and has been developed through extensive consultation with our stakeholders."