Double whammy for West Coast community with Avebury Nickel Mine closure and Macquarie Harbour uncertainty
A significant ripple effect impacting the West Coast has been predicted if aquaculture is removed from Macquarie Harbour, with the region already suffering the blow of job losses.
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The recent closure of the Avebury Nickel Mine and a cloud over the salmon industry due to environmental factors is causing anxiety among residents of Tasmania’s West Coast.
The nickel mine near Zeehan was placed into care and maintenance after ore prices slumped, with about 200 jobs at risk.
A decision from Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek is pending on whether salmon farming companies will be allowed to continue operating in Macquarie Harbour at Strahan. The review was triggered by concerns about the impact of aquaculture on the Maugean skate, a fish species listed as endangered and endemic to Macquarie Harbour.
West Coast Council general manager David Midson said anxiety was high in the region.
‘The situation at Avebury has only added to the uncertainty created by the ongoing process with regards to the salmon industry in Macquarie Harbour,” Mr Midson said.
“We have no timeframe for a decision on marine farms, and this is creating stress and uncertainty in the community.
Mr Midson called on Ms Plibersek to make a quick decision.
“This situation also shows the importance of diversifying the West Coast economy, and we ask all political parties to look at funding the next iconic walk, the West Coast Wilderness Railway, as well as the Western Tasmania regional partnerships.
“Funding the Mt Lyell remediation project would find work for those displaced from Avebury while getting our fair share of royalties from the broader mining industry, as well as rates from Hydro, would help drive the economy forward.”
Destination West Coast chair. Jo-Ann Kerr, who also co-owns the bed and breakfast Harrison House in Strahan, said she was concerned about the aquaculture industry’s future.
“If salmon farming goes, I would be quite nervous and anxious about the future of the town, its facilities and its ability to cater for tourists, which means for us, everything we’ve worked for all our lives is sitting here in our business at Strahan, and that’s quite worrying,” Ms Kerr said.
“If the salmon industry was shut down, I would imagine that those families would need to go where work is.”
Ms Kerr said she believed the Strahan Primary School would be at risk of closing because half of the students there came from fish farming families.
“Then there would be an ongoing effect of other families making the decision to move away from Strahan because the kids can’t go to the primary school and having to bus elsewhere.
“And then that reduces the population, which then affects other services such as medical services, the pharmacy, the viability of the supermarket, and the ability for tourism operators to have part-time staff to cater for tourists.
“I think the ripple effect, particularly immediately, would be really significant.”
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