NEARLY two-thirds of people polled in the mining areas of Singleton and Muswellbrook say critical horse-breeding and wine growing areas of the Hunter should be off limits to coal mining. Support for a ban on mining in critical agricultural areas is even higher among people aged over 65, with 7 out of 10 people polled on September 27 saying horse-breeding, wine-growing and coal mining don't mix.

Read the full article here

Newcastle is proud to be the world’s biggest coal port, but we are also realistic about coal’s prospects. With the end of the mining boom and the need to transition to a more knowledge-based economy, the composition of Australia’s trade is changing. And much of this trade will be carried in containers.

Port of Newcastle's Professor Roy Green explains how opportunities for economic diversification in the Hunter will increase with a container terminal. Read the full article here

Arguments over the future of the Carrington coal terminal reflect a much bigger question facing the Hunter region - how prepared are we for major changes in the coal industry? The world is changing. Hunter communities have sacrificed a lot for NSW's prosperity.

Read the full opinion piece by Steve Phillips in the Newcastle Herald here