silo | Andrew McInnes Photography

‘nuf said?

The Liverpool Plains is a prime food and fibre producing area that is under imminent threat from several coal mines – at least one of which, the Shenhua Watermark mine, is foreign-owned (Chinese). These companies seek to rape and scar the land, deplete and contaminate aquifers, then pack up and leave once the destruction is no longer financially viable. Never mind that there are farmers, you know, living breathing hard-working people, with families and dreams, enduring incredible stress as they seek to remain being outstanding stewards of the land they sweat for. How and why our political “representatives” allow this is beyond me – I suppose it goes along with their belief in continued economic growth year on year. Well, let’s inform them that exponential growth is unattainable and to seek it is ignorantly irresponsible (but I guess it is politically astute?).

I am not against mining, per se, however I do have issues with “the commons” being over-extracted for the profits of a few whilst the landholder has little recompense for the invasion, and the people of this nation see very little direct financial benefits. As another roadside sign in the area states: “Wrong mine, wrong place.”

A pre-dawn light painting at Breeza, on the Liverpool Plains, NSW. Breeza 2AM-001230 ©Andrew McInnes.

Silos at dusk. Breeza 2AM-001216 ©Andrew McInnes.

I hope you enjoyed these images.

Cheers 🙂

I recently conducted a 36 hour reconnaissance drive up to Breeza and Caroona on the Liverpool Plains area of NSW to examine the area where several open-cut coal mines have been proposed – at least one of which, the Shenhua Watermark mine, is foreign-owned. The Liverpool Plains a highly productive region of Australia with vast acres in production of barley, chickpeas, faba beans, sorghum, sunflowers, soybeans, maize, wheat and cotton, plus grazing of beef cattle and sheep. I concur with the protesters slogan of “Wrong mine, wrong place.”

On the drive up I hoped to photograph the extensive raping and scarring of the land through the Hunter Valley but opportunities are not prevalent from the roadside due to significant concealing of operations and the resultant ramifications. I am not against mining, per se, however I do have issues with “the commons” being over-extracted for the profits of a few whilst the landholder has little recompense for the invasion, and the people of this nation see very little direct financial benefits.

The following two signs are in close proximity, located alongside the Kamilaroi Hwy, near Breeza.

Should they be able to mine this…

and turn it into this?

Here is a warning sign to the public (the same public who paid for the road) that as a result of mining activity in the Hunter Valley the public infrastructure is likely compromised…

Let’s Lock the Gate “to protect our common heritage – our land, water and communities – from unsafe or inappropriate mining for coal seam gas and other fossil fuels.”

To wrap this blog-post up here are several images capturing a very small portion of the scenery, productivity, and lifestyle of this magnificent agricultural region. I am very grateful to the property owners for their time and the access to their properties.

These first four images were captured as I arrived just prior to dusk at “Rossmar Park” near Caroona.