A spill of coal and waste from the Clarence Colliery mine near Lithgow into the sensitive Wollangambe River in the Blue Mountains World Heritage area earlier this month is worse than first thought, says the NSW Environment Protection Authority.
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The agency learnt of the incident, which involved the collapse of a coal waste holding cell, on July 2, when waste was found at least 150 metres down the river. But the EPA has detected it has now affected 4500 metres -30 times more.
EPA director south Gary Whytcross said the priority has been on containment, clean-up and inspecting the river on the ground to determine the extent that the waste had moved downstream.
"The EPA has inspected different sections of the Wollangambe River downstream of the spill and confirmed that coal fines have settled on the river bed and in pools from 1 to 4.5 kilometres downstream. Further investigations will be undertaken this week to inspect for coal fines in the rugged gorge area beyond the 4.5 kilometre point."
The agency issued a notice to Centennial Coal which outlined strict clean-up requirements. The company installed 22 silt fences between the mine site and the Wollangambe River to prevent any more material reaching the river.
Centennial Coal issued a statement on its website about the spill.
"The incident involved the overflow of material from a holding cell in the reject emplacement area. All relevant agencies and authorities were notified and Centennial is continuing to work with these bodies. Our priority remains minimising any impact to the environment."
It said repairs to the holding wall were completed on July 13.
"Centennial is treating this incident very seriously, in full compliance with the EPA's clean up notice."
While it is anticipated the clean up will continue for some time, largely due to the difficult terrain in which the material has been deposited, significant progress has been achieved.
"From the day of the incident, Centennial engaged a specialist team to oversee the clean up with several hundred metres of the impacted area (the area closest to the Wollamgambe] already being cleaned by hand," the website statement said. "The cause of the incident is still being investigated."
Keith Muir, director of the Colong Foundation for Wilderness, said at the time of the spill: "This is the worst possible way you can pollute the river. This will make the wild river run black."
Greens mining spokesman Jeremy Buckingham said the coal industry was treating the environment "as their tip".
"This latest incident once again backs up the Greens' calls for coal mining to be banned in our water catchment areas."
EPA officers and scientists from the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage have been taking water samples to gauge the environmental impact. They are also working closely with National Parks and Wildlife Service on the clean-up.The EPA's legal investigation is continuing.
-with smh.com.au