The mining industry does not support a moratorium on coal mining in the Hunter Valley but says it will continue to work with all industries including thoroughbred breeders.A 10-point plan released by the Hunter Valley Thoroughbred Breeders Association (HTBA) on Tuesday included a call for a moratorium on all new exploration and mining decisions pending an independent assessment of the impact the mines have on the area.However, the NSW Minerals Council said a moratorium was impractical and all pa

The mining industry does not support a moratorium on coal mining in the Hunter Valley but says it will continue to work with all industries including thoroughbred breeders.

A 10-point plan released by the Hunter Valley Thoroughbred Breeders Association (HTBA) on Tuesday included a call for a moratorium on all new exploration and mining decisions pending an independent assessment of the impact the mines have on the area.

However, the NSW Minerals Council said a moratorium was impractical and all parties needed to work together.

It said a moratorium on new mining projects or extensions in NSW would threaten more than 30 coal projects in the pipeline over the next decade worth $9.2 billion in capital investment.

"The mining industry has been an important part of the Hunter Valley for more than 150 years," NSW Minerals Council chief executive Dr Nikki Williams said.

"We have coexisted with thoroughbred breeders, farmers, wine makers and other industries over that time."

Dr Williams said the Council took the concerns over the impact of mining in the area seriously and had an action plan to respond to those concerns.

"Mines are already required to undertake comprehensive environmental, social and economic assessments as part of the planning assessment process," she said.

"Mines regularly refine their plans during this process. In the case of the Bickham proposal in the Upper Hunter determined earlier this year, this process meant the proposal did not proceed."

The Bickham development was stopped in May this year by the NSW government which promised to initiate a strategic plan for coal mining by the end of 2010.

The lack of action by the government was what stirred the breeders' organisations to formulate the 10-point plan.

"Neither the terms of reference nor an issues paper has been released for the strategic plan," HTBA president Wayne Bedggood said.

While the mining industry is developing systems to accurately measure air quality, Arrowfield Stud proprietor John Messara says it is obvious.

"I have flown over the Hunter Valley in a helicopter and some days it is completely brown," he said.

"You can run your finger on a fence and it is covered in dust.

"It is not good for the horses, especially the young horses."

The breeders say they are not anti-mining but are looking to create a balance between the two industries.

"We have a good relationship with the mining industry and share common goals," Thoroughbred Breeders director of policy and public affairs Helen Georgopoulos said.

"We share common goals and desire for a sustainable future.

"But there has been a lack of planning on the part of governments.

"We need a land use strategy."

The thoroughbred industry in the Hunter Valley contributes more than $2.4 billion annually to the state's economy and has the second largest concentration of stud farms behind Kentucky in the United States.