MINEFREEGLENALADALE INC. (MFG) is a registered charity with the Australian Charities and Not for Profits Commission (ACNC). We work with other concerned community groups to raise awareness about proposed and existing mining developments that may impact negatively on the central and eastern catchments of the Gippsland Lakes. These include the proposed Fingerboards mineral sands/rare earths mine at Glenaladale and the Benambra copper mine.

MFG provides support for those who will be impacted by proposed mines through raising awareness about the environmental, economic, social and cultural risks, educating about decision-making processes, providing assistance to participate in the Environment Effects processes, collating research and scientific information about relevant technical areas, preparation of submissions and participation in Panel Hearings.

We are ordinary people – farmers, residents and concerned community members – who, as we have become aware of the threats of mining to our catchments have become accidental activists determined to do what we can to stop any further deterioration to our environment and water systems as a result of unnecessary or inappropriate mining activities.

We have been fighting since 2014 to raise awareness of the devastating consequences the proposed Fingerboards mine will have, not just on our families, lives and livelihoods, but also on our wider area and on our precious environment, including the heritage listed Mitchell River, the Perry River and two Ramsar Wetlands – the Gippsland Lakes and Corner Inlet.

The mining proponents, Kalbar Ltd, brought the exploration licence in 2013 from Rio Tinto and Oresome Resources who both walked away. Our community suffered 7 years of hell before going through an exhausting and expensive EES process from August 2020 till  July 2021 (during the peak of COVID). In November 2021 Minister Wynne handed down his negative assessment of the mine listing 49 risks that he thought were too great to overcome. (There are more.) We were elated with the damning assessment. Kalbar’s reputation was damaged and in February 2023 Kalbar Operations Pty Ltd rebranded itself as  Gippsland Critical Minerals (GCM). 

Unfortunately, against all decency and common sense, Resources Victoria renewed the Retention Licence over the Fingerboards in October 2024 and given GCM the opportunity to put forward a ‘rescoped project’.

MFG has had to regroup and start all over again.

GCM is spending a fortune on PR, hype advertising and marketing. It is also capitalising on Australia’s stated intention to build a stockpile of rare earths – particularly those that support America’s defense (bombs and bullets). We have no doubt they will be up their ears chasing handouts and subsidies. 

None of the claims they are making stand up to scrutiny. (This includes that they are different company from Kalbar even though they have the same ABN, addresses, secretary and directors.) They have produced some effectively cosmetic changes, e.g. pulling the boundary back a bit from the river but extending further on to farmland that wasn’t to be mined in the first proposal. They 

All proposed changes do nothing to change the fact that this mine is still in the  wrong location, is the same operation and still imposes an enormous risk on our environment, community, local economy and cultural heritage. 

There could not be a more inappropriate place for a mine. They claim the are moving it further away than the original 350m of the Mitchell River and 500m of our main industry – the Lindenow Valley vegetable industry. We know that if they are granted approval, any of those claims or conditions can be changed at the flick of a pen and with no community consultation and no opportunity to object.

The vegetable industry that employs up to 2000 people will be devastated through the loss of water to the mine and the loss of its ‘clean, green’ image through the inevitable and unavoidable dust contamination of crops. 

The mine is on fragile soils that when disturbed will slump into the Mitchell River, causing siltation that not only affects ordinary users of the water, but will smother life in the river bed. It also threatens the unique and fragile Perry River Chain of Ponds that feed into Lake Wellington.  

The water the mine is seeking (minimum 10,000,000L per day) will lower aquifers and decrease freshwater flows to the already stressed Gippsland Lakes, impacting on the ecosystem and all the industries that depend on the natural beauty of the area. 

This mine is not necessary – there are many other deposits across Australia and around the globe that have richer, shallower deposits that would not have such devastating effects on the environment and local economies.

We need your help to stop this mine – the health of our environment and the future of our children are depending on us.