CHINESE Government-owned Shenhua Watermark has been cleared to buy key farms in the Liverpool Plains region as it moves to develop coal mining operations in the area.
The Federal Government's foreign investment review board and Treasurer Wayne Swan say that they acted in the nation’s best interests.
Local farmers have maintained a year-long blockade against BHP Billiton, which is also planning a series of coal mines.
The company’s Australian representative, Joe Clayton says Shenhua would not be mining under the richest food-producing agricultural land on the plains.
Farmers on the blockade in the BHP Billiton area next to Shenhua's zone have written to the Treasurer, Wayne Swan, asking him to consider that they were pursuing a court case against the NSW Primary Industries Minister, Ian Macdonald, over his approval of the BHP Billiton license.
Lawyers acting for the Caroona Coal Action Group wrote that should the validity of the BHP Billiton license be called into question it could trigger an investigation into the Shenhua exploration area.
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