3.7.1 Key finding

Overall, additional coal resource development in the Gloucester subregion is predicted to lead to changes in groundwater drawdown and streamflow that are small in both magnitude and area. While there is large uncertainty in future ecological trends, the changes in hydrology due to additional coal resource development are generally so small that adverse ecological impacts are unlikely. There are some stream reaches in the vicinity of the Rocky Hill, Stratford and Duralie mines where hydrological changes were not able to be quantified. The possibility of significant ecological impacts in these streams cannot be ruled out.