District farmers fight back
Quill. Community spirit was alive and well at Marnoo on Sunday, February 22, as farmers and friends affected by mining and the renewable energy push came together in support and to share their stories – it was standing room only at the Marnoo Cricket Ground ... Across Victoria Alliance (AVA) has united 27 allied groups across the whole of Australia in the fight against the mining and renewables projects throughout the regions.
Commonwealth recognises Fingerboards with Major Project Status: Gippsland Critical Minerals
Gippsland Critical Minerals’ redesigned Fingerboards Project has been awarded Major Project Status (MPS) by the Australian Government recognising its global supply impacts, economic benefits and its alignment with national interest. Senator The Hon Tim Ayres, Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science has awarded Major Project Status to the Fingerboards Project for a period of 3 years, a decision based on the projects potential contribution the Australian critical minerals sector, specifically as a supplier of rare earth elements and zircon, with onsite separation and rail transport for downstream refinement.
Confusion reigns on CopperString ownership: Katter
I don’t get it – will Queenslanders own CopperString, or will the industry and job creating project be sold off to a multinational like Glencore who only have the interests of their boardroom at heart? Katter’s Australian Party Leader, and Member for Traeger has said.
All risk, no reward for outback farmers: NSW Farmers Association
Shortchanged farmers in the state’s northwest are desperately calling on government to deliver fairer compensation for small-scale title mining claims. NSW Farmers Acting CEO Mike Guerin said the proposed compensation amounts for opal mining claims fell well short of the real and ongoing losses faced by farm businesses hosting mining activity...
Mine update as works progress
Kaiser Reef, the publicly listed company that owns Maldon’s Union Hill Mine, operates the processing plant at Porcupine Creek and is exploring areas in Nuggetty, has provided the Australian Stock Exchange and a mining conference with an update of its activities. The company shared a financial estimate of the stockpile material that it has been processing from the historical waste dumps at Union Hill – a process that has some Maldon locals asking questions.
Environmental Effects Statement required for Fingerboards Critical Minerals Project – responses
The Victorian Minister for Planning, the Hon. Sonya Kilkenny MP, has decided that an environmental effect statement is required for the Fingerboards Critical Minerals Project and given reasons for her decision. Gippsland Critical Minerals Pty Ltd, the proponent of the Fingerboards Project, has responded to the decision. The community action group, Mine Free Glenaladale, has responded to the decision and GCM's statement.
Ironback Hill Ree Project drilling approvals secured
Magnetite Mines Limited (ASX:MGT) is pleased to advise that all necessary permitting, approvals and heritage clearances have been secured for an initial drilling campaign at the Ironback Hill Rare Earth Element (REE) Project, located near the Razorback Iron Ore Project, in South Australia.
Donald project reaches agreement with Traditional Owners
Donald Mineral Sands has reached a Journey and Understanding Agreement with the Traditional Owners of the land where it is developing the Donald Rare Earth and Mineral Sands Project. The agreement is between DMS and Barengi Gadjin Land Council, the Registered Native Title Body Corporate representing the Wotjobaluk, Jaadwa, Jadawadjali, Wergaia, and Jupagulk Peoples ... The Donald Project, near Minyip, in Victoria’s Murray Basin, is a globally significant deposit of critical minerals.
First Nations online briefing: CRC TiME
Join us on February 23 for a First Nations online briefing, which is tailored for First Nations people and organisations, as well as people working to support First Nations inclusion in mine closure and post-mine transitions.
Vanadium royalty relief a win for regional jobs, emerging industries: Michael, Sanderson
Vanadium miners will be afforded significant royalty relief with the Cook Government delivering a major election commitment which will support Western Australia's resources industry and help the State's economy remain the strongest in the nation. From today, a 2.5 per cent royalty rate will apply to vanadium products in a move to incentivise production of the critical mineral in WA and encourage its emerging vanadium battery industry.
Tin mining dangers
Kaali King. Few of us know that tin is one of the fastest growing rare-earth mineral commodities in 2025, outstripping lithium, cobalt, silver and graphite. Demand for electronics and EVs, all of which use tin solder (48 per cent of the global tin market) is fuelling the boom.
Time for action: WA’s rail buy back promise cannot wait
We now have a bumper crop, a tax windfall for government, and broad agreement across agriculture, transport and local government that the system is stretched. The buy-back was presented as a serious response to a real capacity, efficiency and safety problem. The only question left is whether the government is prepared to act.
After the Mallee horse has bolted: Critical mining consultation
Mallee residents are being encouraged to have their say informed by recent experiences on mining licence approvals in the electorate, after the Commonwealth Government opened a new consultation. Member for Mallee Dr Anne Webster, shared her dismay that, yet again, mining-related consultation is occurring during the harvest and Christmas season, and that the horse had bolted on key projects within the electorate.
$1m flows to local business as demonstration pit gets the green light: Gippsland Critical Minerals
Gippsland Critical Minerals (GCM) will commence work on its Mining and Rehabilitation Demonstration Pit (MRDP) in early 2026 with the workplan formally approved by Resources Victoria, marking an important step forward in progressing the redesigned project ... “It is exciting to get the go ahead to commence this work which will give the community some real insight into our mining methods and how the project has changed”: GCM CEO Michelle Wood.
Works restart at Maldon’s Union Hill Gold Mine
The owner-operator of the Union Hill Gold Mine and nearby gold processing plant, Kaiser Reef Ltd, held an information session for Maldon residents ... to advise of current and future works planned for its Maldon sites. ... Kaiser Reef Ltd, which is listed on the ASX, has operated in Maldon since 2021 after an acquisition agreement with Golden River Resources Pty Ltd.
Farmers sound alarm
“The mental health toll on farmers is becoming impossible to ignore our community is carrying the stress, uncertainty, and frustrations of a system that refuses to hear them.” Those are the words of Limestone Coast Sustainable Futures Association (LCSFA) chairman Todd Woodard, who has issued a blistering condemnation of the state government’s proposed Mining Act reforms — warning the legislation further eroded farmers’ rights and silenced regional voices already pushed to breaking point.
Adavale Resources commences Phase 2 drilling at London-Victoria Gold Mine targeting extensions beneath pit and potential resource growth
Adavale Resources Limited (ASX:ADD) has commenced high-conviction Phase 2 drilling at its London-Victoria Gold Mine, a key site within the Company’s Parkes Gold-Copper Project in the Lachlan Fold Belt of New South Wales. Phase 2 comprises an approximately 10-hole, ~2,300m reverse circulation (RC) drilling program designed to test a series of growth targets in the southern portion of the 1.5km-long open pit at the site.
Sand mining kills trees
Big, healthy eucalypt trees in Roe Creek are falling victim to sand mining, according to two members of the public who have contacted the Alice Springs News. The mines are either side of the Temple Bar Gap, south of the Ilparpa Road.
Letter to the Editor: Mine Free Glenaladale responds to Gippsland Critical Minerals
Mine Free Glenaladale ... A spokesperson for Mine Free Glenaladale, Ms Robyn Grant, said she was surprised at Mr Harrington’s comments ... “He is simply parroting the same unscientific misinformation and spin that the community has been asked to swallow for the past 12 months, as the failed Kalbar project is rescoped."
Farmers gearing up for fight: NSW Farmers Association
NSW Farmers Acting CEO Mike Guerin – who led a successful legal challenge against the federal government and mining giant Glencore in Queensland – said he was “getting the band back together” to fight Santos’ Narrabri Gas Project ... “The people who depend on the Great Artesian Basin for their water are living in fear that this project will go ahead and go wrong, like many of them do, creating tens of thousands of water refugees and forcing farmers to abandon half the continent because it’s been contaminated forever.
Liberals stand up to Labor’s ruthless attack on farmers: Patterson, Centofanti
The Liberal Opposition has listened to the concerns of regional landowners, farmers and stakeholders and have successfully moved significant amendments to Labor’s ill-conceived Statutes Amendment (Energy and Mining Reforms) Bill 2025. Labor had attempted to force the Bill through Parliament, which would have seen farmers indefinitely unable to access their own land.
The results are in – Mallee’s Biggest Survey results published: Webster
Member for Mallee Dr Anne Webster has released the views of over 5,300 Mallee voters showing strong opposition to Labor’s energy policies and highlighting that her advocacy is consistently in harmony with what Mallee voters believe ... Mallee’s Biggest Survey was circulated within Mallee to every letterbox and online in the wake of the May election and took months to receive, manually process and analyse over 5,300 responses.
