The HTBA welcomes the NSW Government's acknowledgement that it is time for the Hunter Valley to transition and diversify into a more resilient economic future.
The Hunter Research Foundation's recent economic indicators for the Hunter region shows that employment growth in the Hunter since March 2015 has risen by 4.5% - twice that of the state as a whole and a credit to the diversified economy. There were 12,900 more people at work in September 2015, reflecting the rebalancing of the Hunter economy from mining to non-mining industries.
The Draft Hunter Regional Plan acknowledges the historic, iconic and economic importance of NSW's equine and wine industries and the need to protect and foster their growth – along with the significant opportunities for tourism. It also recognises the role effective land use planning can have on maintaining and growing these industries, protecting their lands and water, and addressing land use conflicts.
"However the 2012 Strategic Regional Land Use Plan for the Upper Hunter was intended to do the same, and the Government failed to follow through on it," said Mr Paddy Power, HTBA Treasurer and chairman of the HTBA Protect Our Industries Committee.
"At this stage we are more concerned with actions
than words," Mr Power said
"The imminent Planning Assessment Commission report, on what experts advise is an uneconomic Drayton South proposal, is pivotal to the future of our industry. Without our two largest players, Coolmore and Darley, our industry will fragment and, despite all the policy visions and intentions, we will have no industry to protect."
Over 80% of people in NSW agree that this proposed mine, located just 900 metres away, is far too close to the stud farms - where people live, work and raise their families.
"The Draft Hunter Regional Plan is a very high level document, and the devil is always in the detail. We will again work with the Government, as we have done in the past, to help develop and guide strategic land use planning. However this effort and the previous five years' efforts will be fruitless if our industry is destroyed by one mine in the wrong place."
"Visions need actions. The NSW Government has more than enough evidence on the need to act now if we are to preserve, support and foster the future growth of the Upper Hunter equine, wine and tourism industries."
"The imminent Planning Assessment Commission report, on what experts advise is an uneconomic Drayton South proposal, is pivotal to the future of our industry. Without our two largest players, Coolmore and Darley, our industry will fragment and, despite all the policy visions and intentions, we will have no industry to protect."
Over 80% of people in NSW agree that this proposed mine, located just 900 metres away, is far too close to the stud farms - where people live, work and raise their families.
"The Draft Hunter Regional Plan is a very high level document, and the devil is always in the detail. We will again work with the Government, as we have done in the past, to help develop and guide strategic land use planning. However this effort and the previous five years' efforts will be fruitless if our industry is destroyed by one mine in the wrong place."
"Visions need actions. The NSW Government has more than enough evidence on the need to act now if we are to preserve, support and foster the future growth of the Upper Hunter equine, wine and tourism industries."
HTBA Release
