MiningWell, the tide is beginning to turnI see the tiny town of Bulga near Singleton in the Hunter Valley has scored a victory against Rio Tinto in the NSW Land and Environment CourtThe Court yesterday overturned a February 2012 decision by Planning Minister Brad Hazzard which allowed the expansion of Rio’s Warkworth coal mine just northeast of BulgaRio wants to extend the mine to the west and southwest – in the process removing Saddleback Ridge, the only thing separating the mine from the townIt also wants to extend its mining lease, which expires in 2021, to 2031The extension would have affected 766 hectares of land around BulgaLand and Environment Court Justice Brian Preston overturned the Minister’s approval for the mine extensionHe said the proposal would alter Bulga residents’ “sense of place” and “materially and adversely change the sense of community of the residents of Bulga and surrounding countryside”He referred to the “noise, dust and social impacts” which would result from the expanded mineBrad Hazzard and Rio Tinto argued that the Court should support the Minister’s approval but with perhaps a few more conditionsBut the Court rejected that argumentThe tiny central western town of Lue, near Mudgee, is facing a similar problem I’ll have something to say about that in futureBut meanwhile Governments and miners are learning the hard way that they can’t simply walk all over communities

The Alan Jones Breakfast show: Highlights