THE NSW government's approval of a coalmine in a state forest has prompted criticism from Labor and the Greens and a vow by protesters to maintain a blockade.
Whitehaven Coal has secured planning permission to develop the Maules Creek coal project in the state's northwest.
The company said on Thursday that the $553 million development had been approved subject to strict conditions.
Whitehaven Coal's managing director Tony Haggarty welcomed the approval but noted the project still needed the go-ahead from the federal Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water Population and Communities.
"This is a world-class project and Whitehaven will be seeking to bring it into production as soon as possible," Mr Haggarty said.
But NSW Labor's environment and planning spokesman Luke Foley said a region mapped as tier one biodiversity land was "now being bulldozed for one of the world's largest open-cut coalmines".
Mr Foley said the mine would destroy high-value conservation lands that were home to 26 threatened plant and animal species, as well as harm the local farming community.
Greens MP Jeremy Buckingham said the mine would be "an act of environmental vandalism" and its approval was a failure of the government's Strategic Regional Land Use Policy.
Mr Buckingham said the coalition had promised before the election it would protect sensitive environments from mining.
"But here we have the last remnant of woodland on the Liverpool Plains being destroyed," he said.
The protest group Front Line Action on Coal on Thursday vowed to continue its 82-day-long blockade camp in the forest.
Spokesman Murray Dreschler said the mine would destroy about 1360 hectares of native vegetation and large tracts of productive farmland.
"We will not allow Whitehaven to destroy Leard Forest and Maules Creek and we invite the entire community to join us," Mr Dreschler said in a statement.
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