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All eyes on Bellevue Gold as heritage challenge brews in wake of explosive Regis Resources rejection
Bellevue Gold chief executive Darren Stralow is confident the company will be able to fend off an Indigenous heritage protection challenge made against its newly producing namesake mine in the Goldfields.
Speaking on the sidelines of an Association of Mining and Exploration Companies event on Tuesday, Mr Stralow said an independent report regarding a Section 10 claim lodged for Lake Miranda in August was expected to finish at the end of the month.
“We’re really confident that we have a really strong native title agreement and cultural heritage management plan with the Tjiwarl, we’re completely operating within the confines of that and comfortable doing so,” Mr Stralow said.
The application will eventually be put to the Federal Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water which then makes a recommendation to Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek.
Section 10 applications — lodged usually to seek protection or preserve areas on cultural heritage grounds — have become an extremely touchy subject since Ms Plibersek in August sensationally rejected blueprints for Regis Resources’ $1 billion McPhillamys gold project in New South Wales, a decision that has infuriated the mining industry.
That decision was made public just two days after Bellevue had been hit with its own Section 10 challenge by Tjiwarl Traditional Owner Ms Colleen Berry.
The applicant has claimed Bellevue’s drilling and mining activities at Lake Miranda, near Leinster, threaten Tjiwarl people’s spiritual connection to the site and and the traditions linked to it.
But Mr Stralow believes the group has done enough to build and maintain a relationship with the Tjiwarl, despite Regis Resources getting caught out in a similar claim.
A caveat to that is Bellevue has a native title agreement in place with Traditional Owners, whereas Regis did not.
“The luck of the timing of the Regis decision compared to when our section 10 got announced, it was unfortunate, but again, WA is not New South Wales, we operate under a different regime over here,” the Bellevue boss said.
“We’ve got one of the most modern Native Title agreements and cultural heritage management plans across the WA industry (with) the Tjiwarl who are a very well established body who’s been recognised at a State and Federal level, so we’re confident.
“We’ll go through the process, and we’re comfortable there’ll be a decent outcome.”
Bellevue is WA’s newest gold miner and started commercial production in May.
The group has aggressive plans to lift production of 165,000oz and 180,000oz to at least 250,000oz by FY2028, and has enjoyed the tailwinds of record gold prices in tandem with ramp up.
Gold has been viewed as a beacon in WA’s mining industry amid closure of the BHP Nickel West smelter nearby and a raft of other battery metals-adjacent operations.
Thousands of layoffs meant there has also been a reduction in turnover, according to Mr Stralow.
“We’re seeing people call us for the first time in a long time, asking for work and reaching out,” he said.
“We pull from a limited workforce across Western Australia. Whenever there’s a mine that closes, whenever there’s some expansion plans that get shuttered… people will rotate to (mines) that have stayed in production.
“We have seen a bit of an influx of people, but that will stabilise over time. It is still a competitive space.”
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