14th October 2025
The Natural Resources Access Regulator has closed a complaint filed by environment group, 4nature, about Mount Piper power station near Sydney taking excessive volumes of water from a neighbouring river, in apparent contradiction to the intent of its water access licence.
The development comes as power station operator, EnergyAustralia, and the environmental regulator were quizzed on how coal mine waste has factored into platypus disappearing from parts of the Cox's River catchment in a recent ABC article.
The Gardens of Stone Alliance, of which 4nature is a member, has written to NSW Water Minister Rose Jackson seeking urgent tightening of the water licence held by Energy Australia that is meant to ensure river water is only used when necessary.
Statements attributed to Andrew Cox, CEO of 4nature: "Energy Australia's Water Access Licence was meant to prevent water being taken from the Coxs River 'unless all available mine water from its storages has first been used'. Energy Australia's own reporting show that this is not the case.
"In the 2023-24 financial year, 3,100 ML of water was extracted from the Coxs River for use in the Mount Piper power station. At the same time, 5,700 ML of polluted water from the treatment plant, or more than twice the amount extracted, was discharged into local creeks via a holding dam.
"The purpose-built Springvale Water Treatment Plant was designed to supply cooling water to the adjacent Mt Piper Power Station and spare the Coxs River of unnecessary water extractions. It was meant to be an elegant solution for the use of polluted coal mine water.
"Even the regulator agrees that the water access licence rules are not worth the paper they are written on. Energy Australia's water licence in its present form is unenforceable and meaningless."
Statements attributed to Jacqui Mills, Senior Climate Campaigner, Nature Conservation Council:
"The water minister has a chance to rectify this failure. Minister Jackson must ensure that the coal industry uses its own dirty water first. Stronger rules are needed to protect the Coxs River and Fish River from needless extraction.
"Our water should not become a dumping ground for coal waste. We need to protect local rivers and Sydney's drinking water from the impacts of coal mining and power generation."
