The social issues of living in a mining town are complex. Not everyone in Singleton works in the mines and those that do may not necessarily be on the massive wages one associates with the industry.
A non-mining family finds it difficult to live in a community that has such a strong emphasis on monetary wealth.
It is also extremely frustrating for these people who don’t get any direct benefit from the coal industry to tolerate the impacts of increased traffic, higher property prices and rents.
Then there is the difficulty all businesses face with the ability to attract skilled staff when competing with the mine wages.
How you tackle the social issues is far more challenging that the environmental issues now being addressed by the industry.
Affordable housing and ownership over the social issues is a first step. At least industry is starting to talk about it and appears to be far more proactive to look at the issues than has happened in the past.
Coal mining is here for many years to come. The bottom line is ensuring their is a solid foundation for Singleton to fall back on when the industry peters out. Now that’s a challenge.
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