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See more on our Campaigns, Submissions and Events webpages.

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The NSW State Election will be held on Saturday 25 March 2023.

The Society's theme for this election is "The Blue Mountains - Let It Be".

The Blue Mountains that we know and love continues to be under threat. Our aim is to highlight these threats in an endeavour to protect and conserve the Blue Mountains.

We are holding a Candidates' Forum on 25 February at the Lawson Community Centre.

Following a redistribution of electoral boundaries, the Blue Mountains electorate will include all of Blaxland, Glenbrook and Lapstone for this election. It now matches the Blue Mountains Local Government Area.

Our State Election webpage provides links for you to check your enrolment and to enrol or update your enrolment.

Here's our State Election webpage.

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When the Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area was announced on November 13, 2021, the NSW Government also announced an adventure theme park at Lost City and exclusive accommodation in association with a Great Walk.

The National Parks and Wildlife Service is seeking public comments on its intention to grant 20 year leases for these two proposals in parts of the Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area. The period for comments is in the holiday period closing on 18 January. The parent company involved with these proposals is Experience Co (this is the same company that has plans to develop the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area).

Object to these leases that will privatise parts of this conservation reserve before the public has an opportunity to comment on the details of these developments.

The proposed locations and extent of the accommodation are only approximate and not clearly defined on the simple map provided. Likewise the location of “ziplines, via ferrata and suspension bridges” and other requirements for the Lost City Adventure Precinct. This means that the possible environmental impacts of the proposed lease are hard to identify, let alone avoid them and protect the area.

Ticking the consultation box without information is a sham process. Very limited information is available in the public exhibition of the notice to grant leases.

ACTION: Express your concerns about the development threat to this important Blue Mountains reserve before close of business, 18 January 2023.

For more information and assistance with making a submission, go to the gardensofstone.org.au website

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It is with deep sadness that we report the passing of our wonderful colleague and friend – Haydn Washington.

Haydn had been a passionate, informed and active champion of the environment since his teens.

He was heavily involved in the campaign to have the Wollemi become a national park; it was declared in 1979. Many other campaigns followed including the Franklin, Daintree and Gardens of Stone.

Haydn was an inaugural member of the Greater Blue Mountains Area World Heritage Advisory Committee from September 2006 to November 2013.

He has written six books on environmental issues and poetry.

Over the years he was a director of the Nature Conservation Council of NSW and the Colong Foundation for Wilderness (now Wilderness Australia), and a lecturer in environmental science at UNSW.

You will find more on Haydn - here.

Thank you Haydn - you will be sorely missed.

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In 2018, the NSW Government passed legislation to allow the flooding of World Heritage listed national parks by raising the wall of Warragamba Dam.

If the dam wall is raised as proposed, 4,700 hectares of World Heritage listed National Parks and 1,800 hectares of declared Wilderness Areas will be forever scarred from sedimentation, erosion and invasion of exotic plants.

Raising Warragamba Dam will inundate 65 kilometres of Blue Mountain's wild rivers.

In October 2022 the NSW Government declared the proposal Critical State Significant Infrastructure.

A new consultation was commenced on 21 November 2022 in relation to the CSSI declaration. The comment period runs to Monday 12 December 2022.

Here's more information about the NSW Government's proposal to raise the dam wall and how you can object (again).

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Support the plan to strengthen and expand the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area. We need your help to ensure all the Greater Blue Mountains’ values and areas worthy of National and World Heritage listing are recognised.

In 2000, the Greater Blue Mountains Area was included on the World Heritage list for its outstanding universal natural vegetation and exceptional biodiversity values. Cultural (Indigenous and historic) and scenic values were also nominated by the NSW and Australian Governments, but given the nomination was prepared in just six weeks, time defeated the effective justification of these important values.

Since 2000 conservationists, ecologists, geologists and Aboriginal people have presented data and information on other values and adjacent high conservation value (HCV) natural areas that should be listed.

Public comment is now being sought on the Australian Heritage Council (AHC) assessment for the National Heritage listing as a first step toward World Heritage re-nomination on the increased areas and values.

The society has produced a submission guide. Please use that to assist you in writing a short submission to the AHC by 16 Nov 2022. This is a critical time for consolidation and strengthened conservation protection of the area and values of the magnificent Greater Blue Mountains.

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The National Parks & Wildlife Service seeks submissions by 5 July 2022 on proposals to manage the Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area. The draft plan of management for the reserve is vague and the accompanying draft Master Plan for visitor management creates a parallel process that has no legal force.

Except for pest management strategies, the draft plan of management has few details on nature conservation action. There are no restoration management actions, apart from studies, to spend the very large biodiversity offset fund available for this work.

The draft plan proposes a Lost City adventure activity precinct and up to four accommodation nodes. Yet what is proposed to be built will be decided through commercial-in-confidence lease negotiations.

More information: Details and tips about making a submission and a link to the draft Master Plan and Plan of Management.

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If you care about the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area, no doubt you want to help protect the native plants and animals.

A Great Grose Weed Walk activity is your chance to join the many other caring and hardworking Blue Mountains Bushcare volunteers in their long term efforts to stop weeds invading the Grose Valley Wilderness Area.

Here's a brochure - which includes activities.

You'll find more information on the Great Grose Weed Walk webpage.

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Are you concerned about environmental damage or a development activity in your neighbourhood but don’t know who to contact? Is land clearing going on near you? How can you check that it is being done legally? Want to know how to write a submission opposing or supporting a Development Application?

Look no further - the Society's Planning & Development Resource Kit may help you.

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Subsidence from underground mining is damaging rock formations in Mugii Murum-ban SCA. This reserve is in the northern part of the Gardens of Stone region. The owners of Airly mine, Centennial Coal, are reported to have conceded that the cracks exceeded the limits of their development consent.

The future of this beautiful conservation area containing two spectacular mesas at Airly and Genowlan is at risk of further damage. It was supposed to be protected from subsidence when a mining extension was approved there in 2016.

What happens here could also influence protection levels for any new mining under the recently announced Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area.

You can read more about the latest damage in the Guardian article here.

Centennial Coal representatives were reported to be meeting government regulators last week. The Society has written to the Minister for Planning calling for the mining company to be prosecuted and all steps taken to ensure any further damage does not occur. However, we are concerned that the law may not be strong enough.

You can help by writing to the Minister for Planning asking for every effort to be taken to ensure the "spectacular geodiversity with majestic cliffs and rock formations" in Mugii Murum-ban are protected from now on and any unlawful damage is penalised. This is the link to send a message to the NSW Minister for Planning.

The Society has also written to the Minister for Environment as National Parks and Wildlife Service own Mugii Murum-ban SCA.

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On 22 October 2021 the application by FlyBlue for a lease to operate a commercial airfield, including helicopter flights, was refused.

The company’s temporary licence to access the site will also be revoked and it will be required to vacate the site within 28 days.

The site will remain open to emergency services.

Here's the NSW Government's announcement.

Here's our Katoomba Airfield Lease webpages.

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Australia has the highest emissions per person of any OECD country.

Government and business action is crucial in addressing climate change, but our personal actions also make a difference.

The Society has prepared a Climate Action Now Flyer that details the changes you can make to -

• reduce energy use
• switch to ethical electricity
• go solar
• consider the impact of how you eat and shop
• consume less and reduce waste
• consider your travel options.

We also encourage you to Raise Your Voice On Climate Change by -

• joining a bush regeneration or Landcare group
• joining the Blue Mountains Conservation Society
• moving money out of fossil fuels
• helping stop more fossil fuel projects
• engaging politically
• communicating and advocate.

We acknowledge Katrina Shields, Zero Emissions Byron, who inspired production of this flyer.