Environmentalists have launched court action to try and block the expansion of a massive coal mine in central Queensland, claiming the project will damage koala habitat and “stoke the climate-change furnace”.
The Mackay Conservation Group confirmed the new battle on Wednesday, saying it had lodged an objection to mining giant Glencore’s plan to expand the Hail Creek open cut mine in the Bowen Basin with the state’s powerful Land Court.
“The Hail Creek expansion will stoke the climate-change furnace that is heating our planet and will needlessly destroy critical habitat for threatened koalas and squatter pigeons, driving them closer to extinction,” MCG co-ordinator Emma Barrett said.
“That is too high a price to pay to extend the life of the mine for only about three years. This project is dirty and dangerous and should not proceed.”
The mine, located about 120km southwest of Mackay, produces both metallurgical coal, used in steelmaking, and thermal coal, used in power generation.
The expansion, if approved, would extend the mine’s life by three years to 2038 and produce an additional 24 million tonnes of coal.
It would extend the existing Kemmis, Carrinyahand Exevale pits and develop a new pit called Homevale Pit.
To make way for the pits, the company proposes clearing nearly 680 hectares of vegetation, which the environmentalists say serves as habitat for koalas and the squatter pigeon.
The MCG will also argue the mine is a “super emitter” and its emissions could be higher than the levels reported to regulators.
In a report from 2025, researchers with UNSW found methane emissions from Hail Creek could be three to eight times higher than the emissions that Glencore reported for the 2023 financial year.
The researchers collected data from aircraft sampling “methane plumes” downwind from the mine to arrive at that conclusion.
The controversial Environmental Defenders Office, which regularly uses the courts to stymie fossil fuel projects nationwide, will represent MCG in court.
“Our client will argue the project is inconsistent with national and international climate commitments, including limiting global warming and meeting emissions reduction targets,” EDO Managing Lawyer Andrew Kwan said.
A Glencore spokesman confirmed with News Corp the company would defend the project in court.
“Hail Creek coal mine is covered under the national Safeguard Mechanism and reports under Method 2 of the (federal) government’s National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting framework for open cut fugitive emissions,” the spokesman said.
“This represents global regulatory best practice for calculating fugitive emissions from open cut coal mines.
“The project proposal includes a greenhouse gas emissions abatement plan and the continuation of existing environmental management plans, including detailed mitigation measures for koala habitat.”
But even if the EDO are successful, a Land Court decision might not stop the expansion.
The court holds an advisory function and cannot veto projects, with the Queensland and federal governments holding the final say on mining leases.
In 2025, the Land Court recommended that a proposed expansion of the Ensham coal mine near Emerald be refused. That project, however, was ultimately approved in February this year.
Hail Creek serves as an economic anchor for the Bowen Basin, supporting 1000 direct jobs and more than 700 suppliers. Coal from the mine is railed to the Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal near Mackay for export.
Glencore submitted its plan to expand Hail Creek in January 2024.
The state government recommended approval for the expansion in March this year. The federal government is currently assessing the project.
The court tussle comes amid rising disruption across the state’s powerful coal sector.
This week, London-listed diversified giant Anglo American announced it had sold its portfolio of Bowen Basin mines to UK company Dhilmar.
Read related topics:Climate Change