LOSS  OF  PRODUCTIVE  LAND    ISSUES-‐  

DRAYTON  SOUTH  COAL  MINE  Planning  Assessment  Commission    

DR  PETER    BACON,  CPSS,  CPESC,  CPAg  

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Key  points  1. ‘Disappearance’  of  previously  mapped  BSAL  from  the  site.  

2.  Widespread  degradaQon  of  cropping  soils.  

3.  Development  is  incompaQble  with  the  AcQons  listed  in  the  Hunter  Regional  Plan  2036.  

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3%  of  NSW  is  BSAL  :land  with  high  quality  soil  and  water  resources  capable  of  sustaining  high  levels  of  producQvity.  Clear  criteria  need  to  be  met  for  BSAL  

BSAL land in NSW

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1).  Loss  of  Biophysical  Strategic  Agricultural  Land  (  BSAL)  

218  ha  of  BSAL  is  within  yellow  lines  

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EIS  process  and  ‘LOSS’  of  BSAL  •  218  ha  of  ‘verified’  BSAL  were  idenQfied  in  the  Gateway  ApplicaQon.  

•  By  May  2015  the  BSAL  was  ‘shrunk’  to  78  ha  (SLR  2015b).    

•  BSAL    area  later  reduced  to  zero  on  the  basis  of  field  inspecQon  and  adributes  such  as  flooding  which  are  NOT  BSAL  criteria.    

•   This  intriguing  result  was  ignored  by  the  final  assessment  report.  

•  The  presence  of  adequately  mapped  BSAL  would  constrain  the  development    

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2).  Loss  and  degradaQon  of  producQve  agricultural  land  (including  CLASS  3  land)  with  BSAL  criteria).  

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Poten&ally  BSAL  land  

The  soils  are  highly  variable  

Class  3  has  high  cropping  capability.  Class  4  low  cropping    Class  5  no  cropping  7  

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QuantaQve  losses:  

•  253  ha  of  ‘croppable’  land.  Partly  BSAL.    •  122  ha  of  grazing  land.  •  Conversely,  Class  5  land,  which  is  ‘unsuitable  for  agriculture  or  at  best  only  light  grazing’  increased  by  379  ha.  

‘These  are  major  impacts’  -‐  quote  from  NSW  Dept  P&I  (2012).  

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RelaQon  to  the  Hunter  Regional  Plan  2036–AcQons    

‘10.1  Protect  loca=ons  that  can  accommodate  agricultural  enterprises  from  incompa=ble  development……  

10.6  Manage  Biophysical  Strategic  Agricultural  Land  and  other  important  agricultural  land  as  loca=ons  for  agricultural  ac=vi=es  and  complementary  uses’  –BSAL  ‘disappearance’  &  

LOSS  of  253  ha  of  cropping  land?   10  

KEY  FINDINGS  1.  ‘Disappearance’  of  BSAL  without  

adequate  explanaQon.    2.  Loss  of  253  ha  of  cropping  soil  (likely  

BSAL?).  ‘A  major  impact’  (NSW  Gov)  ,  but  NOT  discussed  in  the  Final  Assessment  Report?  

3.   These  losses  of  Ag.  land  are  incompaQble  with  the  Hunter  Regional    Plan  2036.  

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