Preliminary works for MMG’s proposed tailings dam in Tarkine rainforest given go-ahead

A proposed tailings storage facility in the Tarkine rainforest is a step closer to securing approval, with the federal government giving the all-clear for preliminary works to go ahead.

THE federal government has given mining company MMG the green light to undertake drilling and other preliminary works for a controversial tailings dam it has proposed to build in the takayna/Tarkine rainforest.

The majority Chinese state-owned miner has proposed to build a tailings storage facility at South Marionoak, north of the Pieman River, where it would pipe mining waste from its Rosebery mine about 3.5km to the west.

The company said that without the tailings storage facility, the continued operation of the mine would not be feasible beyond 2024.

The 85-year-old zinc, copper and lead mine supports a workforce of 500 people.

MMG’s plan to build the dam inside the Tarkine has provoked a fierce backlash from the conservation movement, with 71 people arrested for trespass and for halting works at the site of the proposed facility since protest action began last year.

Due to potential impact on listed threatened species and communities, the proposal was deemed a controlled action under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act in July last year.

Bob Brown Foundation campaigners at the site of MMG’s proposed tailings dam near Rosebery. Picture: Supplied

MMG had sought approval from the federal Agriculture, Water and Environment Department to undertake drilling and other works to aid in the design of the tailings dam.

Late on Friday afternoon, the department published a decision saying the preparatory works were not a controlled action and could go ahead, provided that a raft of environmental conditions were met.

MMG welcomed the decision, with Rosebery mine general manager Steve Scott saying the company planned to begin the approved works by the end of this month.

“We are pleased with the clarity provided by the department,” he said.

“We remain committed to complying with all necessary requirements and will ensure appropriate environmental protections are in place.”

Rosebery mine general manager Steve Scott welcomed the decision. Picture: Grant Wells

Bob Brown Foundation campaigner Scott Jordan said the ruling placed “the whims of a company owned by a foreign state over the verified national and world heritage values of Australia’s takayna/Tarkine”.

“It now falls to citizens to again take to the barricades to defend the rainforests, the eagles, the owls, the quolls and the devils that call this region home,” he said.

“We urge people to rally now to join us on the blockade to defend this ancient and majestic wild place.”

The prospective dam would require the construction of a 140ha reservoir and would involve clearing as much as 285ha of land.

Follow @rg_inglis

New protest camp set up as tailings dam decision looms

PROTESTERS have set up a fresh camp in the Tarkine rainforest as the Federal Government’s decision on whether Rosebery miner MMG’s proposed new tailings dam can go ahead looms large.

Environment Minister Sussan Ley is due to hand down her decision on the controversial mine waste facility by January 7 but it could land earlier.

The Bob Brown Foundation said the pending decision on whether majority Chinese state-owned miner MMG could recommence work on its proposed dam north of the Pieman, had prompted the re-establishment of a blockade camp on the access road.

The tailings dam project would involve piping mining waste some 3.5km to a proposed 140-hectare reservoir and, in the process, clearing as much as 285ha including rainforest.

So far 71 people have been arrested for trespass and halting works at the site since protest action started in 2021.

The mining company - which says it needs a new waste facility to guarantee future production at its Rosebery mine - stopped prepatory works at the site last year in the face of intense protest action and legal interventions.

Protestors at a new camp set up at the site of MMG's proposed tailings dam

BBF hopes Minister Ley will refuse the mine owners their request to waive the drilling and roading works for the tailings project from EPBC assessment.

“In expectation of the Minister capitulating to MMG, we have re-established our blockade in the Pieman overnight,” campaigner Scott Jordan said.

“We are standing in defence of these ancient rainforests and the species like the Masked Owl and Spotted Tailed Quoll that calls them home.

“Hundreds of Tasmanians stood with us in 2021, and many more will join us in 2022

“The ball is in the Minister’s court. She can prove us wrong by ending this toxic project and prosecute MMG for their “illegal” actions, or she can condemn ancient rainforest to an outdated mine tailings dump.”

In August last year, Minister Ley refused to grant the Tarkine Emergency national heritage listing.

MMG says the 85-year-old zinc, copper and lead mine supports 500 people and the company is committed to finding “the safest and most balanced solution”.

“We respect the right to peaceful protest and for people to express their opinions, however, our number one concern is that we maintain the safety of everyone on site - for workers and protesters alike,” the company said last year.