Local worry ignored BY STEPHANIE CHARALAMBOUS 01 Apr, 2010 09:11 AM COMMUNITY, environment and union groups say they were shut out of discussions about major Latrobe Valley coal projects this week because of the unreasonable cost of attending. The Victorian Coal and Energy business conference held on Tuesday and Wednesday at Traralgon's Century Inn heard presentations about the future of the Valley's coal industry including algal sequestration, the development of a coldry pellet plant and geological carbon storage.
Key speakers included State Energy and Resources Minister Peter Batchelor, Clean Coal Victoria director Charlie Speirs and heads of major proposed coal projects for the region.
The standard rate to attend, according to the conference registration form was $2964.50 including GST and those who could not attend had the option to purchase the conference presentations for $764.50 including GST.
The Express understands speakers did not have to pay.
Community groups, unions and environmentalists contacted by The Express said they were not asked to speak and could not afford to attend even though they wanted to be part of the discussion.
``They can talk, but they won't be talking on behalf of workers in the Valley,'' Gippsland Trades and Labour Council secretary John Parker said.
Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union, mining and energy general president Tony Maher said he was surprised the union was not asked to speak, as it normally was at ``a lot of those events''.
The conference was run by the Australian Journal of Mining.
Parent company Informa's marketing director John Wilson said the conference was designed for industry to discuss projects and was not a community forum.
He said the cost charged per person was the industry rate and was not set up to exclude certain groups.
Latrobe City Council's Climate Change Consultative Committee, Federal Member for Gippsland Darren Chester and State Member for Morwell Russell Northe were also not invited.
``I've been approached by members of the community who are concerned about this forum being conducted and the inability of the community to attend because of the cost,'' Mr Northe said.
``I understand it's a business forum, but nonetheless our community is very interested where we go from here (with coal projects).''
Mayor Kellie O'Callaghan was invited and spoke on council's draft policy position on the Expected Local Impacts of Carbon Emissions Reduction Legislation.
Cr O'Callaghan did not give The Express her opinion on whether the conference should have been made more accessible to the community.
Moe and District Residents Association secretary Cheryl Wragg said the event was ``run exclusively for the benefit of speculative businessmen who are looking to make a bucketload of money out of this region without consideration for the community or job creation or alternate industry development''.
Gippsland Resource Group secretary Peter Gibbons said the $3000 attendance fee was a ``slap in the face'' and the group could not afford it as much as it wanted to attend.
Victorian Climate Change Action Centre coordinator Damien Lawson was one of the dozen protesters outside the conference and said he did not believe any climate change group was invited to the event.
``The decisions around coal in the Latrobe Valley will have enormous impact on the future development of this community and it's outrageous it has been shut out of these discussions,'' Mr Lawson said.
His concerns were echoed by Environment Victoria and Greens candidate for Eastern Victoria Samantha Dunn.
``The people in the Valley have a right to have a say about their future and that's the most disturbing thing of all,'' Ms Dunn said.
Environment Victoria campaigns director Mark Wakeham said the companies whose ``business depends on the community'' should have ensured there were community members at the conference ``to at least have someone to ask what the greenhouse emissions of projects will be and will houses be required to relocate''.
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