Farmers protest coal mine plans

Hundreds of farmers in the north-west of New South Wales are protesting about mining expansions outside a coal industry conference in the Liverpool Plains.

About 200 farmers travelled from throughout the region to met outside the annual coal conference in Gunnedah to protest BHP Billiton's Caroona Basin exploration plans.

They want an independent study into the effect this could have on local water supplies in one of the state's biggest food producing areas.

The federal MP for New England, Tony Windsor, has been asked to speak to the conference.

He says local landholders stand to lose their livelihoods if mining destroys inter-connected water tables.

"They have no idea what slashing these arteries can do in terms of potential downstream impacts," he said.

He says the industry should contribute financially towards the study, but he says they will have to overcome their own fears of what a study might find.

"At a government level and at an industry level they know they can't prove you can successfully longwall mine in that sort of flat alluvial plain that's underpinned with underground water systems," he said.

"They know you can't assure the community there is no risk."

The farmers have vowed to take their concerns to Sydney.

China coal rights above climate change fears

The giant state-owned China Shenhua Energy group has won the right to explore for coal in a northern New South Wales section of the Murray-Darling river system.

The $600 million tender, which will cover 190 square kilometres of the Gunnedah Basin, has fuelled concerns about the effects of mining on rich farmland and groundwater reserves [and climate change fears.]

The area, south-east of Gunnedah, is next to BHP Billiton's Caroona coal exploration site - the focus of a battle with farmers over the effects of a potential mine.

NSW Primary Industries Minister Ian Macdonald says he is not concerned that the company is owned by the Chinese Government.

"I'm not worried about state-owned companies like some people are," he said.

"Many of the major corporations in South Korea that already have investments in Australia are state-owned.

"Over many years, we've had many countries invest in Australia that are essentially state-owned."

Mr Macdonald says money was a key factor in the Government's decision.

"But also, there's a number of other factors relating to the mining - the strength of the company, which is the world's largest and clearly, a very solid foundation."

Both the state and federal governments have rejected a call from local communities for an independent study on the effects of mining on groundwater reserves.

The federal MP for New England, independent Tony Windsor, says the Gunnedah basin decision is a sign of hypocrisy the over future of the Murray-Darling river system[ and climate change fears.]

"We have the Federal Government in South Australia saying, 'Oh, we made short-term decisions without long-term knowledge in terms of water resources and now we're going to have to rectify that,'" he said.

"I think the real motivation here is both the state and the Commonwealth have refused to be part of an independent study because they're more interested in the short-term cash."

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Pregnant killer mum jailed for two years

A pregnant mother of five from northern New South Wales has been sentenced to two years jail for breaching the conditions on her suspended sentence for manslaughter.

Twenty-five-year-old Lacey Lee Jukes pleaded guilty in the New South Wales Supreme Court in 2006 to the manslaughter of her mother's 35-year-old partner.

Jukes fatally stabbed Mack Hati during an alcohol-fuelled argument in the family kitchen in September 2003.

She was given a two year suspended sentence, but breached parole when she and her then boyfriend broke into her maternal grandmother's house and stole jewellery to buy amphetamines.

Tamworth Court sentenced her to 12 months periodic detention for break-and-enter and stealing.

But Jukes failed to comply with her the conditions of manslaughter sentence by failing to attend counselling sessions and continuing substance abuse.

Jukes is four months pregnant and has been sentenced to two years jail, with a non-parole period of one year.