Crossbench joins ALP to quash Blayney goldmine motion

Crossbenchers helped the Albanese government double down on its decision against the Blayney goldmine on Tuesday, rejecting a disallowance motion.

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek in question time on Tuesday. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Crossbenchers helped the Albanese government double down on its decision against the Blayney goldmine on Tuesday, rejecting a disallowance motion on Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek’s intervention that halted the $1bn project.

On Tuesday, opposition environment spokesman Jonno ­Duniam said he was dismayed at the rejection of his Senate dis­allowance motion.

In a letter to federal MPs, Regis Resources chief executive Jim Beyer set out how the mine proposal passed state and federal environmental approvals and that there were a total of 15 expert heritage reports prepared for the site. None found the proposed tailings dam would destroy significant Aboriginal sites or what is sometimes known as “intangible” heritage such as important songlines.

Ms Plibersek’s decision to make a rare declaration on Aboriginal cultural heritage grounds at Blayney has caused almost a month-long outcry, including from the Orange Local Aboriginal Land Council which claims its elders and their expertise were ignored and disrespected.

The Orange land council, the representative body for local ­Wiradjuri people under NSW law, settled on a neutral position on the goldmine after conducting its own assessments.

In a letter to Ms Plibersek last week, land council adviser Roy Ah-See said she had been taken in by the “baseless claims” of a dissident group including claims about a bee songline that the land council said “never previously ­existed”.

The land council wants an ­urgent review of the evidence Ms Plibersek relied upon to make her decision against the location of the mine’s proposed tailings dam. Regis says it will take five to 10 years to find another suitable site.

Senator Duniam said Labor, the Greens and several independent senators had shown they did not care about regional communities.

“Tanya Plibersek’s decision ripped the heart out of the Blayney community. This was a chance at redemption for Labor senators and the crossbench to right the wrong that the Environment Minister inflicted upon them. When the community needed them most, they wilted,” he said.

“The Environment Minister made a political decision, thinking that she knew better on Indigenous cultural heritage issues than the Orange Local Aboriginal Land Council, the responsible Aboriginal land council for the area. She overruled the NSW government and her own department, further damaging the business community’s confidence in the Albanese government.

“Regis Resources jumped through every hoop possible to get this mine approved and consulted with 13 registered Aboriginal parties to understand the cultural significance of the site.

“The extensive consideration of Indigenous cultural heritage made throughout this process informed the NSW government’s Independent Planning Commission’s approval of the mine.

“That Minister Plibersek instead thought that she knew better is beyond belief.”