Legal challenge against Adani coal mine plan, over water use

Adani coal mine water licence faces Federal Court challenge over move to bypass EIS, ABC , By Kate McKenna 4 Dec 18 The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) has launched a legal challenge to a Federal Government decision to bypass an impact assessment of planned water use by Adani’s Carmichael coal mine in central Queensland.

Key points:

Federal Minister made an “error of law” in bypassing EIS, ACF alleges
Adani licensed to take up to 12.5b litres a year from Suttor River
Indian miner says it can only take water after other licensed users

The ACF applied to the Federal Court, challenging Federal Environment Minister Melissa Price’s decision not to activate the “water trigger” for the proposed pipeline infrastructure, which avoided a full environmental impact assessment (EIS).

The move comes less than a week after Adani announced it would push ahead with construction of a scaled-down version of its Carmichael project.

Last year, the Indian mining giant was granted a water licence by the Queensland Government, meaning it could take up to 12.5 billion litres a year from the Suttor River.

Under federal law, coal mining projects must undergo a full environmental assessment if they are likely to have a significant impact on water resources.

But in September, the Federal Government decided the water trigger did not apply to the Carmichael project, instead saying it would only require “preliminary documentation”……..https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-12-04/adani-water-licence-acf-court-challenge/10582602

December 6, 2018 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, legal

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