THOUSANDS OF people have called for the state government to protect a beloved forest from the prospect of future mining activity.
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With a number of mineral exploration licences covering the Wombat State Forest, residents who live in the townships surrounding it are feeling considerable anxiety that a gold mine could be established in the forest.
More than 5000 people have signed a petition started by the No Wombat Gold group - calling on the state government to ban all mineral exploration and mining in the forest and to cease all current exploration activities.
It comes after residents noticed exploration activity in areas of the forest in recent weeks. In June, residents from around the Blackwood area were outraged after large drilling rigs were spied taking samples from the side of a gully above Yankee Creek - which forms part of the headwaters into the heritage-listed Lerderderg River and is close to the mineral springs.
This led to a protest, with residents taking to the forest with placards on which messages including "no mines" and "hands off Blackwood" were written.
More recently, Trentham residents located mining exploration markers to the south and east of the village.
Resident Judy Weatherhead, a committee member of Wombat Forestcare, was part of the campaign to stop a gold mine from being established at Bullarto South - at the headwaters of the Lerderderg River - between 2012 and 2014.
And she does not want to see a gold mine built in the vicinity of Trentham, either.
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She is among many residents who are concerned that a gold mine being established near the township would threaten biodiversity, the tranquility of the region and the livelihoods of businesses that rely on tourism.
With a history of gold mining in the area and many exploration companies searching for gold, mineral sands and metals such as copper, zinc and silver, residents fear it is only a matter of time until a company is given a mining licence.
The exploration around the Trentham area is being conducted by Currawong Resources, which holds a mining exploration licence for the area - from Blackwood almost to Macedon and north past Malmsbury.
A mining exploration licence allows explorers to look for a resource. If a commercially viable minerals deposit is found, a mining application can be lodged, though acquiring one can take many years.
There are currently no mining licences in the Wombat Forest.
Currawong Resources is a subsidiary of Canadian-based Fosterville South Exploration Ltd and was set-up to explore Victoria for high grade deposits.
Exploration activity is proceeding in the Wombat amid delays to the government responding to the Victorian Environment and Assessment Council's Central West Investigation Report, which recommended a park structure for the forest to protect its environmental values, in addition to the headwaters of six major river systems.
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The area the exploration activity is being undertaken is in the area VEAC recommended to become the Wombat-Lerderderg National Park.
According to the government, Currawong Resources has been conducting low impact mineral exploration in the forest to identify geological formations and rock types. The process is known as percussion drilling and involves creating a hole to access fragments of rock for analysis. It can only be undertaken in existing tracks.
A Currawong Resources spokesperson said the company takes care around wildlife in all areas it operates in.
"Before any exploration activity, a lot of work is done to assess the impact on the ground. If it is determined that it will have an effect on the surrounding area, it is taken into consideration to reduce the impact on flora or fauna," they said.
"It is in all of our interests to manage our great wildlife and our country."
The spokesperson said there were no plans for further exploration around the Blackwood or Trentham area at this stage and so there were no further plans for consultation.
They said Currawong Resources was also awaiting the outcome of the VEAC report to determine how it would proceed.
Wombat Forestcare considers it "critical" that the State Government accepts VEAC's recommendations before applications are made for mining licences.
Convenor Gayle Osborne said it was vital to protect the flora and fauna in the forest from all extractive industries, including mining and logging.
The Wombat is such an important refuge for flora and fauna, many of which are threatened with extinction.
- Gayle Osborne
"The Wombat is such an important refuge for flora and fauna, many of which are threatened with extinction," Ms Osborne said.
"Powerful Owls breed throughout the Wombat Forest - these magnificent birds are Australia's largest forest owls, and we need to ensure their survival.
"We need to choose between the protection of iconic species and short-term profits for a few."
A government spokesperson said regional communities and businesses had long benefited from access to public land such as state forests, however:
"Growing investment in minerals exploration across Victoria is bringing jobs and vital income that gets invested back into our regions."
