The Sydney Morning Herald reported representatives from the authority told a government inquiry into longwall mining in the Sydney catchment area that the Upper Nepean and Woronora catchments will suffer considerably if longwall mining is to continue in the area.
It said evidence of longwalling's effect on the waterways can already be seen in damage to the Waratah Rivulet, the Bargo, Cataract and Upper Nepean rivers that form part of the water supply to the Illawarra, Camden, Campbelltown and to the Prospect water treatment plant.
The SMH report said longwall panels 500m beneath the Waratah Rivulet, near Helensburgh, have cracked the sandstone bedrock, split rock ledges and tilted the riverbed, with cracks in the bedrock interrupting the water flow.
Peabody Pacific's Metropolitan Colliery is mining under the Waratah Rivulet, with a representative from the mining company insisting water in the catchment has not been lost as a result of the longwall activity, and that this has been confirmed by government and independent specialists, according to the SMH report.
The New South Wales independent inquiry into the impacts of mining on significant natural features in the Southern Coalfield has received dozens of submissions from mining companies, environmental groups and specialists.
It was launched late last year by the NSW Department of Planning and Infrastructure to address community concerns about the effect of longwall mining on natural features, including rivers and cliff lines.
Environmental groups have called for total longwall mining bans and insisted the inquiry impose at least a 1km buffer zone surrounding rivers and creeks in the Southern Coalfield.
