For more than two decades, volunteers associated with Alliance member Lithgow Environment Group have tested waterways across the Lithgow region. The program began because local conservationists needed an independent, long-term record of what was happening downstream of coal mine, particularly where official monitoring was difficult to access, too infrequent or not designed to capture ad hoc pollution events.
This community work complements, rather than replaces, monitoring by WaterNSW, the EPA and mining companies. The NSW Government itself has acknowledged that water-quality responsibilities and datasets are fragmented, that important monitoring gaps remain, and that information is not always collected or shared quickly enough to support effective responses. Regular local testing can identify pollution spikes, document patterns over time and provide evidence for regulators, researchers and Planners.
The results have repeatedly shown stark differences between relatively healthy waterways and sites affected by mining discharges. In May 2026, volunteers recorded electrical conductivity, a measure closely related to salinity, of 4,220 microsiemens per centimetre at Western Coal Services Licensed Discharge Point 1. This is around twelve times the guideline value of 350 for slightly disturbed ecosystems. By comparison, readings were just 39 in the upper Coxs River and 220 in the Nepean River at Penrith.
This evidence has helped keep mining pollution in public view, strengthen calls for regulatory reform and hold companies and government agencies accountable. The Alliance is now recruiting and supporting new volunteers to continue the monitoring legacy built over 21 years by local water defenders.