By Anne Daw
LIMESTONE Coast Protection Alliance (LCPA) wrote a farcical public letter regarding mining, which needs to be addressed.
The current LCPA committee has never been involved with mining or fighting it.
Some original committee members left because of the questionable direction LCPA was heading in.
LCPA appears to show lack of understanding of the definition of mining, which is the process of obtaining coal or other minerals from the ground.
On thorough reassessment, it appears that government does not take notice of social licence and in fact, discussing social licence appears to distract from the real science provided.
Many South East residents do not want any mining or petroleum activities at all, apart from extractive.
The LCPA history account written in this letter was totally incorrect.
The LCPA claims “Lock The Gate has limited mining activities in the South East.”
This is totally incorrect, as it has never been involved with mining in the South East and as far as petroleum activities go, is contrary in my opinion.
Donations are listed separately from grants.
LTG has received $4m in grants from 2013 to 2017 and yet, during this time, they went to a peak body in the South East twice, as I understand, asking for huge donations.
In 2017, LTG records show “cash at bank included $1m, held in a public fund established under auspices of the Register of Environmental Organisations maintained by the Department of Environment”.
Usually grants came from the government.
If this is so, for LTG, there is conflict of interest.
The original Lock The Gate does not resemble what it is today.
LCPA included the following statement “LCPA has found in the Limestone Coast that almost all mining personnel are FIFO as the talent pool does not exist here for those kind of jobs”.
As previously stated, the current LCPA committee has never been involved with “mining”.
At this point, although there are exploration licences for lignite and mineral mining (e.g. silver, copper, lead and zinc), there has never been mining in the South East apart from industrial and extractive minerals for construction of buildings and roads.
People are under the illusion the fracking moratorium in the South East was a win, which is far from the truth.
LCPA was asking people to write emails to politicians to support Troy Bell’s inadequate “fracking only” bill.
This will do nothing to protect the South East from the impacts of 4km deep wells.
Conventional gas activities risk contamination of air (because of flaring), soil and water.
Impacts were felt in Queensland long before there was any fracking.
By only focusing on or supporting the fracking only moratorium, it is clear the petroleum industry has received the message from the South East of South Australia that conventional is okay.
I quote a recent media release from Lakes Oil (Gina Rinehart is a major shareholder),”the well is located in a jurisdiction that encourages petroleum exploration”.
Anne Daw,
Agricultural advocate,
Kingston SE
