Environment Matters

City West Lotteries House Conference Room

Tuesday 20 September 5.30-7.30pm, with supper

Helena Aurora Range needs your help

- Iron ore mines threaten Outback jewel -

In the heart of WA’s Outback, 400km east of Perth, lies the ancient and beautiful Helena Aurora Range (Bungalbin to its Traditional Owners).

This 'banded ironstone formation' range began at the bottom of a vast ocean, 2.5 billion years ago. Over the eons, the geology was shaped by heat and pressure and uplifted to form what is now the tallest intact range in the region—and home to many rare plants and animals. For over forty years, expert studies have recommended protection of this Range: truly a jewel in the Great Western Woodlands.

However, right now, the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) is calling for public comment on a proposal for two iron ore mines on the Range – covering an area twice the size of Kings Park. If this proposal is approved, the Range will be devastated forever... and more mines are inevitable.

This meeting will present information about the significance of the Range, the impacts of the proposed mines, and what people can do right now to help save it for the next 2.6 billion years.

Guest Speakers:

Shapelle McNee, botanist and Chairperson of Helena Aurora Range Advocates: The 40 year history of attempts to protect the range; the values of the range; the impacts of the proposed mining project on those values

Peter Robertson, Wilderness Society WA: The current EPA assessment process and the campaign to protect the range leading up to the March 2017 state election.

Sean Nannup: Welcome to Country