The heart of the Arkaroola Sanctuary is not an appropriate place for a Uranium mine. Despite claims that are being made about the environmental benefits of nuclear power and the recasting of Uranium as a 'clean, green' fuel, this central fact remains.
In fact, the sanctuary is not an appropriate place for a windfarm, solar tower, or geothermal plant (developments whose environmental benefits are much less open to question than the nuclear industry's).
It is a perfectly appropriate place for what it is - a wilderness sanctuary, managed for conservation and sensitive tourism - and we need to be active in insisting that this is the role it continues to play.
act now to preserve the sanctuary
Marathon, the would-be wilderness miners, are claiming state government support for their project (see Marathon to run in Arkaroola Sanctuary in this journal) We need to tell the state government that we do not support this kind of development. Please take the time to write to the Premier and the Environment Minister (contact details below) telling them so.
I have put a copy of my own letter to the Premier below by way of inspiration. A letter does not have to be long, but the more personalised it is, the more weight it carries. So please feel free to extend, abridge, or modify my letter, or write your own from scratch. Naturally there is more information available in the 'marathon to run' posting referred to above, and available at right in the July archive.
Please do structure the letter formally, with full addresses for parliamentarians and yourself. Letters can be sent by e-mail, either in the body of the text, or, more formally - and probably more effectively - as a separate Word document or PDF attachment.
And remember the golden rule - always be polite (and reasonable in tone)!
let's see your letter, too!
For the sake of getting together several examples of letters for people to get ideas from please feel free to either e-mail them to me to post on this blog, or post the body of the text (we don't really need to repeat addresses and salutations, nor do we need to publish your address!) into the comments section below this posting.
And yes, this is an effective lobbying technique - I know from previous discussions with (not always delighted) Environment Ministers! The UnknownSA mailing list has previously been integral to some of the largest and most successful mass-mailing campaigns in the state's history, and we have a fully-protected, mine-free Gammon Ranges / Vulkathunha National Park and the half-million hectare Yellabinna Wilderness Protection Area to show for it!
Dear Premier Rann,
I am writing to you as I am concerned that the mining company Marathon Resources claims that it intends to mine Uranium at Mount Gee, in the heart of the Arkaroola Sanctuary - a beautiful region of immense biological significance that I consider to be a completely inappropriate venue for such a project.
I am genuinely alarmed that this group claims to have state government backing for it. According to the company's Dr. John Santich on their website 'we have essentially the approval of the state government'.
I sincerely hope that this is not the case. The company may not 'see any particular stumbling blocks to its development', but I certainly can - this project is being proposed for the heart of South Australia's premier private wilderness sanctuary! This is an internationally famous eco-tourism destination of immense importance, and Mt. Gee itself is only 2km away from Mt. Painter, the most well-known peak in the northern Flinders Ranges.
I urge you, if the company's claim is true, to retract any support you may be giving this project, and, if not, to publicly disassociate your government from it. I am confident that for the majority of South Australians this proposed assault on an icon will not be acceptable, despite any of the contentious 'benefits' being claimed for the Uranium it may produce.
Yours Sincerely,
Bill Doyle
Thanks in anticipation of your efforts on behalf of the environment. Here's those addresses -
CONTACTS:
The Premier The Hon. Mike Rann
Write: PO BOX 2343 Adelaide SA 5001
Phone: 8463 3166
Fax: 8463 3163
e-mail: premier@saugov.sa.gov.au
The Minister for Environment and Conservation
The Hon. Gail Gago MLC
Write: GPO Box 1047 ADELAIDE SA 5001
Phone: 8463 5680
Fax: 8463 5681
e-mail: minister.gago@saugov.sa.gov.au
![link to the u[n]sa homepage](http://users.chariot.net.au/~greenh/blog/unknownsa_ublog-text.gif)
![link to the u[n]sa features page](http://users.chariot.net.au/~greenh/blog/features_ublog-text.gif)
![link to the u[n]sa flinders ranges feature image pages](http://users.chariot.net.au/~greenh/flinders/flinders-2007_icon_BLOG_sidebar_fi.jpg){kind=icon}
![link to the u[n]sa kangaroo island feature image pages](http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1306/1187313059_93fdefd86b_o.jpg)
![link to the u[n]sa katarapko creek / murray river np feature image pages](http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1435/1181073355_b5c45f799d_o.jpg)
!['constellation' - wild country [national] set on flickr](http://farm1.static.flickr.com/155/415123844_3e6da621e5_s.jpg)
!['the bay serene' - the wild west [coast] set on flickr](http://farm1.static.flickr.com/121/312226516_606ac35455_s.jpg)
![u[n]sa journal - thanks for your time!](http://users.chariot.net.au/~greenh/blog/journal_ublog-text.gif "u[n]sa journal -thanks for your time!")
Meredith's letter to the Environment Minister:
ReplyDeleteRe: mining in Arkaroola Sanctuary.
I am concerned that the mining company Marathon Resources states its intention to mine Uranium at Mount Gee, in the heart of the Arkaroola Sanctuary - a region of immense biological significance that must be protected from this type of invasive mining operation.
I am alarmed that this mining group claims to have state government backing for it. On the company website it states that they have essentially obtained the approval of the state government. This project is being proposed in the heart of South Australia's premier private wilderness sanctuary. This is an internationally famous eco-tourism destination of immense importance. I have spent many weeks bushwalking in the northern Flinders Ranges including extensive trips in the proposed area around Mt Gee, Mt Painter and the granite mountains around The Armchair.
If the company's claim is true, please retract any support you may be giving this project, and, if not, publicly declare your government is not supporting it. I am deeply concerned at the damage to Arkaroola Sanctuary if mining goes ahead there.
This is one of the prize areas of our state. Have you seen the film The Tracker ?-it was filmed on location in this magnificent location. What a destructive and sad future if it is mined!
As Environment Minister, what will you do about it?
Do we know how the landowners (Douglas Sprigg and family who own Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary) feel about this?
ReplyDeleteI'm aware that title to land does not give rights of veto over mining activity, but they would surely be valuable allies?
(I'll be writing my letter off regardless, and as someone who has visited the region 3x in the past 2 years or so I am truly horrified.)
A slightly different 'spin'
ReplyDeleteDear XXXX
Recently I was distressed to hear that Marathon Resources Ltd. is proposing to mine Uranium at Mount Gee in the Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary in the Northern Flinders Ranges.
Perhaps surprisingly, this is not going to be an anti-uranium letter, or even an anti-mining letter. It is abundantly clear that your government sees the ‘mining boom’ as vital to its economic credibility in the same way it sees the expansion of the defence industry as vital, and I suppose that means finding and exploiting minerals, and building ships for the navy.
This is however going to be a letter that reminds you that your government is charged with more responsibilities than just those that please the Business Council of Australia. One of those, and one that requires more than blowy press releases and showy pdf brochures, is a REAL commitment to environmental protection. In this year of global warming and ‘peak oil’ tipping points, and the real possibility of a water crisis in Adelaide itself, your government is now charged with the continuing protection of a private wilderness sanctuary that is famous, much loved, and much visited – one which deserves that same level of protection and consideration as our greatest national parks – because that is what Arkaroola is, a de facto national park.
‘Sustainability’ is not just a word that can be tossed into a business plan and then forgotten. All mining has an environmental impact – it is up to us as a society to decide when that impact is acceptable. I put it to you that in the case of Arkaroola, with its tremendous conservation values, its scenic integrity and an adjoining pristine montane wilderness (the Mawson Plateau) that surely deserves full national park status in itself, we have a successful business and a community that wishes to pursue a precautionary ‘if it aint broke, don’t fix it’ policy.
That Arkaroola area is not just another low diversity piece of flat, overgrazed pastoral country – it is a scenic jewel, a biodiversity hotspot and a potential oasis in a time of climate uncertainty and change – it is also an environment where mining impacts, despite company reassurances, will be had to mitigate.
I repeat, this is not just an ‘anti nuclear’ argument. I would argue that some special landscapes deserve protection from even apparently ecologically benign ‘development’. Accordingly, I would also be writing this letter if this current proposal was for a wind or solar farm.
Please act in this case to support Arkaroola and protect the surrounding Flinders ranges landscapes in perpetuity. There should be no mining at Mount Gee.
Yours
Phil
I wish to express my concern upon hearing that the Marathon Resources company is planning to mine uranium at Mount Gee, Near Arkaroola.
ReplyDeleteHaving been there, I am aware that it is one of the few untouched and beautiful wilderness areas left in South Australia. The value of it as such, is ultimately far greater than the brief financial gains made by mining minerals there, which will harm the area both physically and aesthetically in the long term.
The company has apparently claimed that the government is backing its plan, which I hope is either misconstrued, or if true will be reassessed.
This area is a world class tourist area and should be promoted and run as such, not as a mining ground.
The constant need for more energy must be addressed by finding ways to reduce energy and consumer consumption, rather than find resources to maintain an impossible never ending growth model. We all know know today, that 'sustainable growth' is an archaic term which is untenable on a shrinking planet and is resulting in devestating consequences.
Instead, could the South Australian government take a contemporary lead and be known for a far reaching and globally sound policy, and protect one of the last environments in South Australia to remain truly beautiful and untouched? Then our own children can travel to places like these and experience their wonder, as I was able to as a child, and would like to be able to continue to in the future.
Some more information courtesy of Bill Nicholas in the Independent Weekly ("New leader for Marathon") this weekend.
ReplyDeleteStrangely he begins his article noting "the breathtaking sight across ancient red rocks to the shimmering salt pan of Lake Frome" which make the area a "very special place... and amazing place to refresh after an overdose of civilisation - in the mountains you can be free to wander the goat tracks, the wonderful creek beds, enjoy the sparkling night skies and especially the priceless views."
So Bill Nicholas appreciates the wilderness values of Mount Gee and its surroundings, yes? Well, not really - the rest of the article uncritically recounts a brief the history of mining exploration in the area before giving some details of what Marathon proposes:
"...an underground horizontal drive that snakes into the mountains from the plain near the East Painer Gorge. It's about 10km trip so the plan is to mine deposits that are closer to East Painter and gradually make their way into the Mt Gee, Armchair and Radium Ridge orebodies. Processing would be done at East Painter Creek - either a heap leach or tank leach to produce 1000 tonnes of U3O8 a year - giving the deposit a life of 15 years." [emphasis mine]
Just seeing the names of these places I have grown to love, alongside mining processes with such foreboding names as those I have emphasised, really does bring home how serious the situation is. I wonder how Bill will feel about having his freedom to wander the goat tracks and experience the wilderness values of this place curtailed by Marathon?
Dear Premier Rann,
ReplyDeleteRe: Proposed Mine in Arkaroola
I understand that Marathon Resources is planning a uranium mine at Mt Gee in the Arkaroola Sanctuary. Further, they claim to have the support of your government.
As a South Australian who has visited this area many times, including walking through the Mawson Plateau wilderness and showing the area to many international tourists I am deeply concerned. This area is the closest to pristine wilderness that we have left in SA (with the possible exception of Yellabinna and Yumbarra, which as you will be aware is currently being exploited and irrevocably damaged by Illuka Resources against the will of many of the traditional owners) and of tremendous biological, geological and heritage value. Mining wilderness areas of such breathtaking beauty for dubious short term economic benefit is akin to selling the family jewels for a loaf of bread.
I wish to remind you that your government has the responsibility of safeguarding South Australia’s ecological assets both for us and future generations. There are much smarter ways to bring economic activity to the state than plundering our irreplaceable environment.
It would appear that the Arkaroola Sanctuary does not provide this area with adequate protection. I urge you to declare this area a National Park and ban all mining from the entire area for all time.
I would be pleased if you could reply promptly with a statement of your Government’s position on this matter.
Bill's letter to the Environment Minister (written bearing in mind the plans identified in the Independent Weekly)
ReplyDeleteDear Minister Gago,
I am writing to you as I am concerned that the mining company Marathon Resources claims that it intends to mine Uranium at Mount Gee, in the heart of the Arkaroola Sanctuary - a beautiful region of immense biological significance that is a completely inappropriate venue for such a project.
I am genuinely alarmed that this group claims to have state government backing for it. According to the company's Dr. John Santich on their website 'we have essentially the approval of the state government'.
I sincerely hope that this is not the case. The company may not 'see any particular stumbling blocks to its development', but I certainly can - this project is being proposed for the heart of South Australia's premier private wilderness sanctuary!
This is an internationally famous eco-tourism destination of immense importance, and Mt. Gee itself is only 2km away from Mt. Painter, the most celebrated peak in the northern Flinders Ranges. This area is at the southern edge of the most important wilderness region of the northern Flinders Ranges (along with the nearby uplands of the Vulkathunha National Park) - the Arkaroola highlands and Mawson Plateau region
In fact, according to the current issue of ‘The Independent Weekly’ the company has extensive plans ‘to make their way into the Mt Gee, Armchair and Radium Ridge orebodies’. And to leach uranium ore on the East Painter Creek! They claim that all mining will be done via exceptionally long shafts – one assumes this is designed to enable them to claim minimal disturbance of the core of the sanctuary – but what impact will these really have on the area? What guarantees do we have that surface extraction or additional access shafts and haulage roads would not become necessary in the future? Where is the water to come from? Go to? What of the whole principle of land ‘set aside for conservation’?
I urge you to oppose this project, and to pursue your government’s reconsidering any support it may be giving it, and, if it is not doing so, publicly disassociating itself from it.
I am confident that for the majority of South Australians this proposed assault on an icon will not be acceptable, despite any of the contentious 'benefits' being claimed for the Uranium it may produce.
Yours Sincerely,
Bill Doyle
Dear Minister Gago
ReplyDeleteIs it true that the State Government is giving tacit approval for a uranium mine in the amazing Arkaroola Sanctuary? Please tell me it isn’t so.
When does one of the richest countries in the world say enough is enough?
Can we put a price on such an area, with its biological diversity and iconic beauty, that once damaged can never be repaired? Where will the water come from? The future methods of extraction and development of roads etc cannot be ensured once established and significant money has been invested.
Our environment is more valuable than the short term financial benefit to be gained, even without considering the moral dilemma of the outcomes of Uranium mining. As more and more areas throughout the world are plundered and degenerate such highly significant wilderness areas will be more and more prized and valued for eco-tourism.
South Australia has an appalling record in regards to habitat destruction and species extinction.
We have a responsibility to provide such places for future generations who already are going to inherit the results of our greed by way of oil depletion and climate change. The basic economic paradigm, that humans can keep expanding their activities to an endless extent, given that we have finite resources, cannot continue.
Please keep inappropriate activities out of this internationally famous wilderness sanctuary.
Yours faithfully
Stephen writes to his local member:
ReplyDeleteTo Robyn Geraghty, Member for Torrens,
I have heard that a company called Marathon is planning to mine uranium in what is now the Arkaroola Wildlife Sanctuary in the northern Flinders Ranges.
I have also heard Marathon believes it has the support of the state government for this type of venture.
I found this difficult to believe because, even with the current boom in mining developments in this state, surely some areas are considered out of bounds and inappropriate for beginning this type of project. An area of such wildlife significance and as much loved by visitors as Arkaroola should surely be valued and protected by the state government.
I am asking you as my local member to pass on my concerns to the Ministers in charge of the Environment and Mining, and the Premier, and give me a response alleviating my concerns. In other words, please get back to me telling me this isn't true.
I also hope that you, as my local member, would be against this development at Arkaroola.
1st response - environment minister not responsible...
ReplyDeleteArrived 14/09/2007
"Dear Mr. Doyle,
On behalf of Gail Gago MLC, Minister for Environment and Conservation, thank you for your email concerning mining in Arkaroola Sanctuary.
While the Minister appreciates receiving your letter, I advise that this matter falls within the portfolio responsibility of Hon Paul Holloway MLC, Minister for Mineral Resources Development and your correspondence has been forwarded to that office for consideration.
Denise Kean
A/Office Manager to the Minister for Environment and Conservation
27/08/2007"