Mrs Bowman was expecting a verdict in the New Year, so the decision handed down on Friday which means Yancoal’s Ashton South East Coal project cannot proceed without the company owning or leasing Mrs Bowman’s Rosedale property at Camberwell, took her by surprise.

It was a unanimous decision by the Court of Appeal’s three judges. 

“It’s wonderful news and I hope it inspires others facing a similar 

predicament to me to stick in there and fight mining and coal seam gas companies from taking your home,” she said.

“These companies are not allowed to kick you off your land.”

Mrs Bowman hopes that Yancoal, the company behind the Ashton project, will now call it quits, adding the last thing she wants to see is another Warkworth mine saga.

“Ashton is such a little, seven-year mine; why should one industry put all the other industries in the region at risk?” she said.

Mrs Bowman wanted the community, in particular those reliant on water (downstream from her property that fronts Glennies Creek) to understand that should the project’s proposed storage dams spill, like we have seen recently in Brazil, then they would be terribly affected.

“Last Friday (November 13) during that torrential storm we had water pouring down from our hill country and that sort of water would have impacted on Ashton’s proposed water storage on the open cut mine,” she said.

“If there were a breach and toxic water entered Glennies Creek then everyone downstream including the Pokolbin and Broke wine growing areas would be adversely impacted.

“We can’t as a community allow this to happen and as the overseas experience shows and at another mine near Mudgee it can occur – it’s simply silly to ignore the consequences as other industries will be damaged.”

In the 2014 decision, the Land and Environment Court found that approval could be granted for the mine’s expansion, but only on condition that Ashton purchased, leased or gained permission from Mrs Bowman to access her farm. 

Mrs Bowman has lived and farmed in and around the Camberwell area for most of her life. 

She belongs to the family who settled in the area in the late 1880s and who have been dairy farming there ever since.

She has said that she does not intend to sell her property to the mining company.

“This decision reinforces the importance of court-enforced conditions designed to protect our environment,” Environmental Defenders Office NSW (who represented HEL in the appeal) principal solicitor Sue Higginson said.

“It’s a timely reminder of how our laws can foster ecologically sustainable development. 

“So often we need our laws to strike a balance between economic and ecological needs.”

Bev Smiles, of Hunter Environment Lobby, said they were delighted the Court of Appeal upheld the conditions established by the Land and Environment Court. 

“The condition about Wendy’s property is really important – it shows that communities can have a voice in big developments such as this,” she said.

“We’d like to thank EDO NSW for all their help in securing this decision.”

Ms Smiles said because it was a unanimous decision the company would not be able to mount a successful High Court appeal.

“This ruling sets a legal precedent –it means the myth mining companies can compulsorily acquire land is totally incorrect,” she said.

“Those mining bullies better take notice of the ruling.”

Ms Smiles said this case was markedly different to the Warkworth case because in that judgement the Land and Environment Court disapproved the mine.

Whereas in this Land and Environment judgement, the mine was approved provided Yancoal acquired access Wendy’s property, she said.

A spokesman for Yancoal told The Argus: “Every landowner has the right to decline to sell their property and we have always respected Mrs Bowman’s rights to do so.”

“We have not engaged in any formal discussions with Mrs Bowman regarding her property, in accordance with her requests.

“The future development of the project will be determined by market forces and the acquisition of all remaining properties. 

“We are taking the appropriate time required to consider our options regarding the project.

“As outlined in the publicly available documents, the proposed open cut pit has been designed back from Glennies Creek and the alluvial flats.

“We have never proposed mining up to the creek or across the alluvial flats.”

The spokesman added three groundwater experts during the Land and Environment hearing said Yancoal had taken all necessary steps to manage the project’s water on site and prevent the risk of any impacts on the local estuaries and groundwater supplies.