At this stage the water authority does not anticipate any discharge of surface waters which would impact on the Avon River catchment.

MidCoast Water's quality and environmental impact manager, Anna Kaliska, updated council's involvement in the development assessment processes.

Stratford Coal is seeking consent from the NSW Minister for Planning and Infrastructure for the continuation and extension of open cut coal mining and processing activities at the Stratford coal mine and Bowens Road North open cut.

The application including a project description and preliminary environmental assessment was submitted to the department in October.

The proposal includes extension of open cut mining operations for an additional life of 11 years, extension of current open cut workings and the construction of two additional open cut pits, she said.

MidCoast Water was invited to participate in an onsite planning focus meeting in November with key government agencies to provide input into assessment requirements, and an additional meeting with MCW, the mine representatives and consultants was held in December as a part of stakeholder consultation process.

The mine is located almost entirely in the Avon River catchment, Ms Kaliska said.

Proposed water management strategy includes separation of undisturbed and disturbed area runoff, collection and reuse of surface runoff from disturbed areas, capture of mine water in mine water storages and irrigation on rehabilitated areas.

The mine has a large storage capacity in dams and old open cut pits. The proposal does not include any discharge to surface waters.

MCW will continue to be consulted during development of the detail site water balance model and surface water and groundwater management plan covering the extended life of the mining operation, she said.