AUS: Tourism lobby slams new mining laws that will 'rip Hunter wine country apart'

(ABC) - The Hunter Valley's Wine Tourist Association says proposed mining laws put an emphasis on ripping the region apart.

The draft amended State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) is being considered by the New South Wales planning department and closed for public comment yesterday.

The association's spokesman Stewart Ewen says his group has lodged a submission which outlines its strong opposition to the controversial reforms.

He says the laws prioritise a mining project's economic benefits as the main factor when the application is being assessed.

"It puts an emphasis just purely on ripping the Hunter apart in terms of mining," he said.

"The state (government) actually needs to make its mind up as to what it wants to do with the Hunter Valley.

"If it wants to make it a big mine they really need to tell everyone, so everyone can then either move out and the place can just be dug up, or they've got to get the balance right to sort of act as a buffer for Sydney."

Mr Ewen says the reforms appear to be a return to allowing unprecedented mining initiatives in the Hunter Valley.

"You've got the government sitting in the position where they're the judge, jury and benefactor of the coal industry.

"We don't have a level playing field for actually getting the right balance in the approvals and we've seen that in the Warkworth case, and that appeal is on this week of course.