Protesters blockade road in Sutton Forest

Despite Hume Coal not turning up to the party, the protesters were satisfied with the amount of media coverage they received to highlight their cause.

Anti-mining groups around the country were throwing their support behind the blockade via twitter while television networks and several newspapers, including this one, went along to see what all the fuss was about.

Lock the Gate's Drew Hutton also payed them a visit, as did Greens Senator Jeremy Buckingham.

The blockade was organised by the Southern Highlands Coal Action Group (SHCAG) to raise awareness about mining activities in the shire and to stop the miners getting onto Robert Koltai's property on Carters Lane, Sutton Forest.

Mr Koltai signed an Access Agreement with Hume Coal to allow them to explore for coal on his property in exchange for compensation.

He has since received abusive and vilifying telephone calls from "certain persons" that he said had caused his family great hurt and distress.

"Like my neighbours I do not wish this coal mine to proceed," Mr Koltai said.

"The feasibility activities being undertaken are in their very early stages and this has caused a great degree of fear and uncertainty among the local community which I share.

"I firmly believe, however, that the sooner there is certainty about the future the better off we will all be and I have exercised my legal rights as a landowner in the interests of bringing certainty forward not delaying it.

"I have entered into an access agreement for which I have been compensated and have done so in the knowledge that the law enables the holder of an exploration licence to obtain 'compulsory' access, as it were, in the absence of agreement by the landowner in any event and without compensation."

He added that any interference with his rights and obligations could have legal consequences.

The blockade began on Tuesday and some diligent protesters camped overnight at the entrance to Carters Lane.

At one point on Wednesday morning, about 80 people had come to lend their support to the blockade.

SHCAG's Peter Martin said residents were extremely concerned about what was happening in the shire and claimed that the government was ignoring their concerns.

"They're not giving any guarantees about anything when, before the election, they said they would guarantee this sort of stuff won't happen in water catchment areas," he said.

"Most people in the area don't want this to occur and the government actually has the means for stopping it.

"There's enough evidence to say that mining would impact ground water and we're saying to the government: get real and stop sitting on the fence."

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He added that attacks, verbal, written or otherwise, on Mr Koltai were not acceptable and SHCAG was not trying to make this personal.

Goulburn MP Pru Goward said she understood why the people were blockading the lane but said we needed to give the proper processes the chance to work.

"We've set up the toughest regime in Australia, no other government has done this, and we are doing this in the middle of a severe economic downturn," she said.

"We are doing it because we think it is the right thing to do."

Hume Coal project manager Tim Rheinberger said he would not disclose confidential information contained in Access Agreements and that he expected members of SHCAG to respect the wishes and legal rights of landholders who have negotiated to allow Hume Coal access to their property.

"The Hume Coal Project is now in the second year of exploration activities and moving towards the prefeasibility stage," he said.

"The second Review of Environmental Factors gives approval for the drilling of a further 90 holes across the Authorisation Area, building on the work already completed through negotiated land access."

The blockade was continuing at the time of going to press and it was not yet known how long it would go on.