The sadness that has been visited on Bimblebox Nature Refuge

China First has been approved but the fight to protect Bimblebox has only just begun Is this email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser.

Dear Bimblebox Supporters, Many of you would have heard the bad news by now. At lunch time last Friday (9th Aug) the Queensland Government released the news that the Coordinator General has approved the proposed mine that will destroy Bimblebox Nature Refuge (known as the Galilee Coal Project or the China First Project). Obviously 'disappointed' is an understatement for what we're all feeling right now. You can see our new blog post on the decision here, including a link to a letter from Campbell Newman prior to the 2012 Queensland election, promising that under an LNP government "coal mining development will not be allowed in areas of high conservation value".  What do they think Bimblebox is!? This is far from the end. On signing the conservation agreements with both State and Federal Governments over ten years ago we promised to protect Bimblebox in perpetuity, and that’s what we intend to do - but we will need your help! Next Steps Clive Palmer's Waratah coal still needs: Federal Government approval - The mine will be assessed over the coming months and we will call on you to contact the new environment minister right after the election. Mining Lease and Environmental Authority - When Waratah Coal applies for these there will be a public notice and the opportunity for concerned community members to submit objections to the Land Court.  A water licence - To dewater the aquifer that neighbouring properties depend on and which may interconnect with the Great Artesian Basin Waratah Coal need a water licence from the QLD government we will need to lobby hard to ensure the government puts water above coal. Finance – By demonstrating our opposition to mining the Galilee Basin we will hopefully make potential financiers aware of the local and global environmental consequences of this mine.  We will be calling on you over the next few months to be more involved in this campaign. Please stay posted. If you would like to lead a local action group in your area to organise events at key moments for Bimblebox please get in touch. Donate China First is not the only project proposed for the region; the multiple mega coal mines proposed for the Galilee Basin will have significant repercussions for biodiversity and our vital groundwater resources, not to mention the global climate! The GVK/Hancock Alpha Coal Project was the first, and so far the only mine in the Galilee Basin to receive approval from State and Federal governments. Some landholders in the region (including Paola) have put in objections to the mine and are now in the Land Court ensuring there is some independent scrutiny applied to this project. We urgently need funds to help ensure we have the best experts and legal advice for this landmark case. We are spending a whole heap of our own money but we know many of you out there want to help. Big or small contributions will be greatly appreciated! Click here to contribute. Donations through this link go to Mackay Conservation Group's Bimblebox Fund who are supporting the campaign so that your contributions are tax deductible. You can also give us a call to arrange alternative donation methods on 07 49853474 Participate On the 25th of August we encourage those of you in Brisbane to head along to the Rally for the Reef. Because, of course at the end of the rail line from the mines in the Galilee Basin will be huge dirty ports covering communities with coal dust and putting more strain on our important Great Barrier Reef. 11am Sunday 25 August 2013 Queens Park, Brisbane RSVP via facebook or just gather your friends, make a Bimblebox placard and head along. And for those who don’t mind getting their hands dirty and can spare a good chunk of time there is plenty of work to do around the nature refuge. If you’re interested in coming out send us an email! Thank you for your ongoing support, With a fighting spirit, Paola, Ellie, Sonya and the rest of the Bimblebox Team PS - Please consider making a contribution to our legal fighting fund and forward this email to friends and family.

Be our friend on Facebook | forward to a friend  Copyright © 2013 Bimblebox Nature Refuge, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you have expressed interest in receiving updates about protecting Bimblebox Nature Refuge from mining Our mailing address is: Bimblebox Nature Refuge Bimblebox Nature Refuge Alpha, QLD 4724 Australia Add us to your address book