Tarkine … and the message for Launceston

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Riley Creek Venture site, the Tarkine

Excavator at the Riley Creek site

TARKINE HERITAGE LISTING – NO NEW MINES IN THE TARKINE

As Launceston awakes this morning, a clear message to Heritage List the Tarkine will resonate throughout the city.

Members of the group Groundswell have hung large banners in prominent locations in and around Launceston to highlight that Tasmanians will not allow the Tarkine to be mined.

On the corner of Tamar and Cimitiere Street in Launceston’s CBD, high up on the red gasworks framework, a message to the Federal environment minister Tony Burke reads: “TARKINE HERITAGE LISTING”.

Other banners reading “Tarkine No New Mines” have been positioned along the busy highways coming into Launceston and off a multistorey carpark.

“Tony Burke and the Gillard Government must nominate the Tarkine rainforest for heritage listing NOW – Burke is sitting on the proposal to protect the Tarkine for its multiple world heritage values – but is clearly stalling in order to allow more of the 58 proposed mining licences to be granted”. Said Spokesperson Dr Lisa Searle.

“Even if the Tarkine is granted heritage listing, the six permits already granted are able to commence. Mining company Venture Minerals already holds three of these licenses, and their mining operations are set to commence within the next few months.” Dr Searle said.

“The Venture site at Riley Creek is located 10km from Mt Lindsay – Venture’s flagship mine site. The Riley Creek catchment will be logged by Forestry Tasmania – a massive 118 hectares of diverse wilderness. The immediate area contains old growth myrtle rainforest, independently verified high conservation value tall eucalypt forest, DFTD – free Tasmanian devil habitat and pristine waterways. The area will be cleared of all vegetation and strip mined for an iron ore, to be shipped off and processed outside of Tasmania.”Said Dr Searle.

The Riley Creek project, located a few kilometres west of Tullah, is the initial mine lease for Venture Minerals which will then fund the Mt Livingstone mine and the flagship project Mt Lindsay mine.

“We will continue to stand up for places such as the Tarkine that have no voice, and that are worth saving for their environmental values and for future generations.” Said Spokesperson Dr Lisa Searle.

• Tarkine National Coalition, Tuesday: Rosebery and Savage River mines not to be affected by Tarkine National Heritage Listing

Tarkine National Coalition has honoured a commitment given to AWU representatives last week to investigate whether a new tailings storage facility at MMG’s Rosebery mine would be impacted by the proposed Tarkine National Heritage Listing.

The proposed tailings storage facility will not be affected. The proposed facility sits in an area within a mining lease granted in 2008 following the original 2004 National Heritage nomination. The lease area was removed from the updated Emergency National Heritage nomination in March 2011. Concessions were also made in this nomination to the Grange Resources Savage River mine to accommodate lease extensions from 2005 and 2007, and to allow a buffer surrounding the mine and the iron ore pipeline.

“It is clear that the Rosebery and Savage River mines are excised from the current National Heritage nomination and workers at these mines are not at threat from protection of the Tarkine”, said Tarkine National Coalition Campaign Coordinator, Scott Jordan.

“I understand that confusion on this issue has created some angst for workers at Rosebery and Savage River leading them to unnecessarily fear for their jobs, and I hope that this information will give comfort to workers at these sites”.

“The Tarkine National Coalition has always acted in good faith to ensure that existing mines are not adversely impacted by heritage protection of the Tarkine.”

Mr Jordan has contacted the AWU to communicate the information.

• Terry Long, Wednesday: The Tasmanian Minerals Council welcomes the Australian Workers Union’s public support for continued mining in Tasmania.

Chief Executive of TMC Terry Long said that the Tasmanian Minerals Council does not however endorse talks between AWU and Green groups.

“If AWU wishes to talk to Green groups that is their right,” Mr Long said.

“The Tasmanian Minerals Council is not party to those discussions and does not endorse them.

“We believe governments must be responsible for decisions about land tenure and access.”