Members of the Upper Hunter Mining Dialogue’s Joint Advisory Steering Committee met in Singleton this week, with the Dialogue’s proposed 2023 Work Plan high on the agenda.

Members discussed and endorsed the plan that has been developed to address issues raised through participant feedback at the 2022 Community Forum.

This follows similar discussions at recent Joint Working Group meetings in early June, with the Committee providing suggestions to assist the Dialogue secretariat in commencing work or engaging with external stakeholders on key issues.

The Committee also engaged in an initial discussion on the Dialogue secretariat’s current review of our stakeholder engagement and communications strategies. Members provided input to assist the Dialogue in identifying opportunities to improve or enhance the Dialogue’s communications and engagement activities.

A draft review report is expected to be provided to the Dialogue’s Communications Working Group at their upcoming July meeting for review and discussion.

Members also welcomed early progress on the Dialogue’s latest annual water use and rehabilitation reporting projects which are nearing completion, and provided suggestions to assist in the secretariat’s planning for the upcoming Pasture Restoration Field Day, which is scheduled for October and will involve a day of touring rehabilitated pasture sites across Upper Hunter mining operations.