A mining development received overwhelming approval.
Polling company DemosAU recently found 69 per cent of Bundaberg residents want more new coal projects.
The sample survey of 500 people revealed they preferred coking coal while 13.6 per cent were neutral. Only 12 per cent opposed coal production between 6 and 8 November 2023.
More than half of respondents (52.6 per cent) were aware of Fox Resources’ mining development licence application for the $200 million Bundaberg Coal Project, 8km northwest of the Rum City.
The project involves extracting up to 286M tonnes of hard coking coal. The site is near the existing East Coast railway line, allowing “easy” access to the Port of Gladstone. A new power generation facility will be required.
About 200 jobs are expected to be created with local suppliers promised to share in a combined $45M of capital expenditure. The mine is touted to operate for 20 years.
Brisbane’s Supreme Court previously overturned State Resources Minister’s decision against granting mineral development licence application MDLA3040 to Fox.
Lock the Gate Alliance Queensland co-ordinator Ellie Smith criticised the judge’s ruling for allowing the “most locally unpopular coal mine in Australian history” to proceed.
“Benefits of the proposed mining development include providing royalties for the Queensland Government to help fund a new hospital for Bundaberg; approximately 200 local jobs with [a] priority on local employment; around 20 new apprenticeships for local workers; and an estimated $45M per year in economic benefits for local suppliers of services and materials,” Fox executive director Bruce Garlick said in a public statement.
