Garth Hamilton (Groom, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and I afford you all the same flattery as the previous Speaker.

Mike Freelander (Macarthur, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you.

Garth Hamilton (Groom, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We are in the dying days of the operation of the New Acland Coal Mine, in my electorate of Groom. The mine that exists just a few kilometres outside of the town of Oakey, a town that's had a reasonably difficult time over the last couple of years—well publicised PFAS with flood mapping and, of course, a pervasive drought has gone through the area. So the end of stage 2 of the New Acland Coal Mine will no doubt hit the town hard—and has been. After 14 years of fighting for stage 3 approvals, the coal reserves and the mine's existing footprint have finally run out. The last coal will be extracted on 24 November, and to point out what I mean by last coal: this is the end of the lease. The coal that would be under stage 3 is right there. There's no physical boundary. There's no change in seam. It's just the lease boundary. It's right there, right in front of us. Quite frankly, its presence is heartbreaking, I think, for those in the community who have seen this mine for such a long time as a great source of employment.

I would like to take a moment to commend the remaining workforce at the mine, who've continued their work safely and efficiently in the face of such career uncertainty. Health and safety on a mine is a very tough thing to change. It's not just about practices; it's about the mine culture. This is something I've learnt over a long time in the industry, asking that question: why is one mine safe and why is one different? It comes to that hazy answer of culture. It's something about the way that people work and how they work together. Clearly, at New Acland that culture still exists.

I would like to extend my thanks, of course, to the management of the mine and to acknowledge the great work they've done, including the CEO of New Hope, Reinhold Schmidt, who I spoke to this morning, and David O'Dwyer, who's doing a great job as general manager out there. He's another alumni of UQ's now extinct mining engineering course. Neither of these two have stopped pushing for the project and have committed to leaving the mine in a state of readiness should the Palaszczuk government decide to grant the removing approvals so that stage 3 can proceed. It's so important to point out that there is precedent for the state government to step in. They did this at Olive Downs. They've done this at Adani. And, as I've done previously, I'll continue to ask the premier to step in and provide the approvals and keep New Acland going. New Hope's gesture of good faith in keeping the mine in good readiness shows the community of Oakey that, if these jobs can return, they will. After 24 November, the mine moves into a care and maintenance mode and will have a skeleton crew, the bare minimum on site to keep the place in a state of safety and readiness. Hope does exist that we will get a change in fortune. The Land Court decision is coming forward and I pray for a favourable outcome.

New Hope will continue its rehabilitation mission at the mine site, turning former pits into useable farm land. I'd go a step further: they turn it into great farm land. By using modern technology to shape the ground to best capture that rain run-off and by using augmented seeds in the fields they're getting a fantastic return from the 2000-odd head of cattle that they have on that grazing land. It's some of the best grazing land in the area. But in general I'd like to acknowledge the long history that the mine has and the great work it's done throughout the region. Mining started there in 1910 and just recently I was out at the mine and saw some of the old workings exposed. It's fascinating to see the old room-and pillar-mining that had been undertaken, some of it by hand. It was a great reminder of how far technology has come.

Far from being pitted against the local agricultural industry, the mine has played an important role in many locals' lives, either directly or indirectly. It's often the case that local farmers would send their kids to work in the mines, to get their trade or to put some cash in the bank for a rainy day—or, more likely in our region, for a very, very dry one. New Hope has played a big role in shaping our region. It has provided jobs; at its peak we had 500 on stage 2. It's actually built local supply chains and it engages directly with the local community. It's given great careers to kids who otherwise wouldn't have had them. I think that's true across the whole mining industry, and I count myself, perhaps from another mine site, as one of those kids for whom the mining industry changed completely the trajectory of life. It's a fantastic industry and it has done a lot for Australia. It has done a lot for regional communities and it's something that I think we must continue to protect. New Acland, like many mines around Australia, provides a great way of providing social mobility to our nation. It's providing equality of opportunity to regional kids, making sure that there are the pathway so that we can have the same aspirations of those living anywhere else in the country.

The loss of the mine is not just a blow to Oakey's economy but also, certainly, to its identity. I talked about how long the mine has been there, and there have been underground mines at Acland, Balgowan, Wallaroo and 1 and 2 at Sugarloaf. The coal mines in the area service railways, brickworks and gasworks, and even hospitals and abattoirs. It's a history that was preserved for many years in the Acland Coal Mine Museum at the site of the former No. 2 colliery, and it's a history that's very important to remember. And New Hope Group has been a major contributor to community groups like the Oakey Bears Junior Cricket Club, the Oakey Bears Rugby League and the Oakey Show Society through donations, grants and sponsorships. I'd also like to acknowledge all the good work that New Acland's community liaison officer, Bec Meacham, has done in supporting her local community.

While the federal government is unable to intervene, of course, with required state government approvals, I do take this time again to point out that something can be done. This is a policy decision and the Queensland government stepped in at Olive Downs and they stepped in at Adani for exactly the same reason. This is a mine which is right there; it has all the built infrastructure required. It has the roads, the rail and the operation. Go to the mine and you'll see what they call it the Palaszczuk line, which is a bit tongue-in-cheek. They have lined up all the trucks that are no longer being used, and it's a terrible shame: all this investment sitting there rusting, waiting. It could be put to good use and local people could have jobs. Sadly, we're missing that.

The skill sets that have been nurtured there over years are already slipping away. The management are absolutely in full support of employees who choose to take work elsewhere. Mining is a small community and, often, we move from place to place. But should we get the go ahead, unfortunately, we're going to be starting right back at base level, having lost many of the efficiencies and productivities that a highly skilled workforce develops over time. Mining is not an easily replaceable skill set.

Considering the opportunity lost by not going ahead with stage 3, it's worth pointing out that this is coal that will be produced now, and that there's a need for it now. We have incredibly high prices and we have demand now. I've been an advocate for the mine before and continue to be one now, even if in the current debate it may be politically inconvenient. It's something of a conviction of mine to support this industry and to support this mine. I will continue doing that throughout this debate not because I'm there for big industry, not because I particularly support coal—quite frankly, having worked in a coalmine, coaldust is a terribly pervasive thing, and I do not enjoy it—but because this mine, absolutely, has been the backbone of Oakey's economy. It underwrites Toowoomba's economy.

Our ability to invest in new technologies in our region, our ability to grow, has been underwritten by the economic technology this mine has brought to the region. I hate to think that zealotry on either side of the current debate on net zero would unnecessarily cost hardworking people their jobs, rob them of their dreams and stifle their aspirations. I would hate to think that we would ignore the immediate good, the achievable good, in pursuit of unachievable perfection. This is a point that I know the community get behind. Local LNP MPs, the CFMEU and the Chamber of Commerce have all lobbied hard to keep this mine alive, to keep this mine going, and I will continue to join them on this point.

Time's running out, and I could speak more on the benefits of this mine, this industry. I will continue—regardless of where the debate takes us, regardless of the future—to support this mine, to support this industry. The people of New Acland can count on me for that.