Go to Queensland Government Petition site and support this petition.This petition of Queensland residents draws to the attention of the House the threat of mining activities to Nature Refuges recognised under the IUCN classification system.

The undersigned wish to highlight the historic necessity of protecting water catchments, carbon stores, and what remains of the state's biodiversity on private lands. As such we believe Nature Refuges deserve protection from mining activities that will destroy these increasingly vital conservation areas.

There exists a blatant contradictory flaw in state legislation that permits areas deemed worthy of 999 year conservation agreements between state and landholder to be quashed by short-term mining ventures.

In particular, we draw attention to 'Bimblebox Nature Refuge' in the Desert Uplands which was part-funded by the Commonwealth National Reserve System Programme, on account of its outstanding floristic values. It has since become a stable base for numerous scientific research projects relevant to the entire bioregion. 'Bimblebox' is now threatened by the development of a large open-cut coal mine.

Your petitioners therefore request the House to protected the 'Bimblebox Nature Refuge' along with all Nature Refuges, from future mining activities. Complete online petition here.

If you want further informatiom contact

Paola Cassoni
Bimblebox Nature Refuge
Alpha
QLD
Australia

+61 7 49853474
bimblebox[at] gmail.com

Another useful group is the Nature Refuge Landholders' Association Queensland - Inc. (NaRLA) with its website here. A very large proportion of land in Australia is under private ownership or management. Most threatened and endangered ecosystems are located on private lands. The States simply cannot secure all the important habitats, so encouraging this sector of the community to conserve nature on private land is the way of the future.