‘Huge toll’: anti-mine activists appealed to Labor MPs on Blayney mine ban
Members of a fringe group that took down a billion dollar gold mine privately lobbied Labor ministers and senators to oppose a motion by the Coalition that might have saved the project.
Members of a fringe group that took down a billion-dollar gold mine privately lobbied Labor ministers and senators to oppose a Coalition move that might have saved the project.
In a letter, obtained by The Australian under Freedom of Information laws, a co-director of the Wiradyuri Traditional Owners Central West Aboriginal Corporation urged Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek and other Labor MPs and senators to oppose a motion to overturn the decision.
“We are extremely concerned that the motion to disallow is an example of the power of the mining and mineral companies and lobby groups in this country,” the letter, sent on September 2, reads. “We urge you not to support the opposition’s motion.”
Ms Plibersek this month revealed that her reasons for issuing a Section 10 declaration halting construction of the mine depended largely on the blue-banded bee dreaming story brought to her attention by the corporation, despite the story not appearing in six ethnographic studies completed as part of the mine approval process.
The Coalition and NSW Premier Chris Minns have expressed outrage at the axing of the mine, which would have injected $200m and hundreds of jobs into the region, saying the site’s cultural heritage had already been assessed before Ms Plibersek’s intervention.
Federal opposition environment spokesman Jonathon Duniam tabled a disallowance motion before parliament last month to overturn Ms Plibersek’s declaration, but failed to gain a majority.
In the letter sent to Labor frontbenchers and senators prior to the motion being voted down, the WTOCWAC co-director urged MPs to consider that “Kings Plains near Blayney in NSW consists of a multitude of Aboriginal sites and history”.
In one example, the letter references the Three Brothers Dreaming – a story that Ms Plibersek had already deemed insignificant to her Section 10 decision.
“During the archaeological surveys completed by Regis Resources for the McPhillamys gold mine an extensive collection of archaeological sites were identified and recorded, particularly at the headwaters of the Belubula River. Other Aboriginal sites have been recorded in the area such as campsites during the upgrade of the Mid Western Highway,” the co-director, whose name was redacted, wrote.
“The Kings Plains regions sit between the three brothers Gaanha Bula/Mount Canobolas, Guhanawahlni/Mount Macquarie, Wahluu/Mount Panorama. The three brothers dreaming story is well known in the region, and song lines transverse this area between these three mountains. This has been previously recognised by [then federal environment minister Sussan] Ley’s section 10 declaration in 2021 protecting Wahluu from the desecration of a proposed go kart track.”
The WTOCWAC said there were of other Dreaming stories significant to the Belubula river but said they could not be shared “due to cultural sensitivity”.
The co-director also said since Ms Plibersek had made the Section 10 request, the corporation had been flooded with media requests from journalists trying to run “sensationalist stories” pitting two Aboriginal groups – the WTOCWAC and Orange Local Aboriginal Land Council – against each other.
“We do not wish to contribute to the conflict which is caused by colonial systems and legislation imposed upon us and our communities, and (as) such have chosen to provide no comment at this time,” the letter reads. “The application went through six rounds of procedural fairness which took a huge toll on our corporation and its members, none of whom are paid employees.”
The Australian on Thursday revealed the WTOCWAC wrote to then-Indigenous Australians minister Linda Burney accusing the OLALC of seeking “financial support” from Regis Resources and of “not consisting of traditional owners”.
The OLALC has expressed concern about scrutiny of the WTOCWAC and the Section 10 decision degrading the cultural authority of land councils nationwide.
Ms Plibersek and the WTOCWAC did not respond to requests for comment.
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