Environment & Energy
Related: About this forum4,000-Strong Crowd Of Farmers, Greens Boo Dep. NSW Premier On Coal Seam Gas Plan
THE Deputy Premier and leader of the NSW Nationals, Andrew Stoner, was heckled and booed as he tried to reassure a 4000-strong rally of farmers and environmentalists at NSW Parliament yesterday calling for tougher restrictions on coal and coal seam gas mining.
The O'Farrell government remained steadfast that the draft strategic land use guidelines it has proposed to manage mining and farming are balanced and will protect agricultural land, despite protesters yesterday claiming the state's food bowl was at risk.
''This government is listening to each and every one of you,'' Mr Stoner shouted over the howls of protest from the crowd, which included members of the NSW Farmers Association, the Country Women's Association and the Lock the Gate Alliance. He later snapped at one protester heckling from the front of the crowd, telling him to ''shut your mouth''.
EDIT
But at the rally, the Farmers Association president, Fiona Simson, said the government had betrayed promises made to her members before the election that the plan would indicate areas where mining could not occur. ''The draft policy falls far short of what we agreed on, and what the community was promised,'' she said. A spokeswoman for Mr Stoner said the guidelines were consistent with pre-election policy, which stated there could be a ''balanced existence'' of mining, coal seam gas and agriculture.
EDIT
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/rally-lets-off-steam-over-coal-seam-gas-20120501-1xx6z.html
freshwest
(53,661 posts)I'm imagining these are not going to be anything to benefit the community as a whole, but some international corporations. The resistance to what the farmers wer promised may be shouted down by people working the mines, setting neighbor against neighbor. I've seen this in rural areas.
pscot
(21,023 posts)they could make some waves.