Lock the Gate Alliance has today derided Waratah Coal and Queensland Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney for misleading landholders regarding the rail corridor from the Galilee Basin coal mines.
"In June 2012, Jeff Seeney promised the people of Central Queensland that he would approve no more that two rail lines out of the Galilee Basin. Now we see, in their Supplementary EIS, that Waratah coal is throwing good money after bad, planning a rail corridor to Abbot Point that has no support from the Government," said spokesperson for the Alliance, Ellie Smith.
"Landholders should be aware that they are under no obligation to negotiate with Waratah Coal for access to their properties for surveying or any other activities. Their properties will not be compulsorily acquired and this rail line is highly unlikely to go ahead unless it is supported by 100% of the landholders along the route.
"There are a number of reasons to believe Waratah Coal will never mine in the Galilee Basin. Coal use in China is flat lining; the cost of building rail and port infrastructure without government subsidies and Government support through compulsory acquisition, is near impossible; and Palmer will also have to prove that his mine justifies destroying one of the last pieces of intact biodiversity in the region, Bimblebox Nature Refuge.
"Lock the Gate calls on the Deputy Premier to put an end to the confusion and misinformation caused by this proposal and reject the rail line outright."