Environmental Law

Water Fight Leaves Reed Barely Afloat

Contact: Andrew Shute, Partner and Johanna Kennerley, Senior Associate; Carter Newell (Queensland, Australia)

The Department of Natural Resources and Mines granted a water licence permitting the redirection of a section of Coral Creek to accommodate coal mining.

The coal mine in question is the Sonoma coal mine, about 6km south of Collinsville. 

 

The initial decision to grant the water licence was reviewed by the Department, and was substantially upheld (known as the ‘review decision’ in the Reed judgment). 

Mr Garry Arthur Reed appealed to the Land Court to:

  1. set aside the Department’s review decision; or in the alternative,
  2. amend the conditions of the Department’s review decision.

Mr Reed was unsuccessful in his appeal.1

QCoal Sonoma Pty Ltd (QCoal) and the other second respondents2 subsequently filed a General Application for an order that Mr Reed pay their costs of, and incidental to, the appeal. 

In a judgment delivered on 16 April 2014,3 Mr Reed was ordered to pay a proportion of QCoal’s costs.

To read the full article, click here or visit www.carternewell.com

< Back