Organised and hosted by the Greens, the 90-minute gathering at Caf? Mediterrano was more a community-based forum than a politically-charged meeting, with most of the attendees driven by their fears of the mining rather than any political persuasion.

Guest speaker Cate Faehrmann MLC, environment spokesperson for NSW Greens, gave a short presentation and MidCoast Water was also represented.

A 10-minute film on mining in our region was shown with the floor then opened to general discussion, attendees given a chance to ask questions and voice their concerns.

Host Greg Smith, Greens candidate for the seat of Myall Lakes at tomorrow's election, was impressed with the discussions, saying those in attendance seemed well-informed and asked intelligent questions.

He said many have seen what has happened with coal seam gas mining overseas and much closer to home with the approval at Gloucester and, given recent aerial inspections of the Manning Valley, were concerned for their own property and the region's waterways.

Mr Smith said while a number of legal possibilities were raised, the main action to come out of the forum was to encourage anyone concerned about coal seam gas extraction to phone their member of parliament to show the community's concern and keep the issue at the forefront of the minds of those with the power to make a difference.