BHP Billiton paid the State Government about $100 million two years ago for the right to search for coal and will make a decision on whether to proceed with large-scale mining by 2011.

BHP BILLITON soon limits seeking of coal-mine in Caroona, Australia. Reason of demarcation of seeking of coal-mine, to take care of the happening of environmental damage in location around mine exploration.

“With the effect of the subsidence from longwall coal mining, it would probably make farming as we know it impossible within 10 years,” said Tim Duddy, a landholder whose family has farmed in the district for six generations.

“While there are significant coal deposits under the floodplain, due to the sensitivity of the floodplain and associated agriculture to subsidence, these coal deposits cannot be efficiently extracted with current longwall technology,” the general manager of BHP Billiton’s Caroona coal project, Stephen David, said.

“Exploration drilling to date, and other survey work, suggests the surface topography and land use on the ridge country have potential to co-exist with some level of subsidence associated with longwall mining.”

Longwall mining involves carving out huge horizontal slabs of coal underground and can cause widespread surface damage.

The Government is considering another application for a coal exploration licence on the Liverpool Plains. It has reportedly received a bid of $600 million from the China Shenhua Energy Company for the licence, as well as bids from BHP Billiton, Xstrata and other mining companies.

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