Minister meets mine lobby groups
Mines Minister Bill Marmion has paid Kalgoorlie-Boulder a flying visit, addressing lobby group Goldfields First and the Amalgamated Prospectors and Leaseholders Association on Sunday.
The agenda was clear for Goldfields First - to address questions of the group's credibility and request a seat on the Mining Industry Liaison Committee.
Two positions on the MILC are held by APLA, but Goldfields First insists it has a claim to a seat on the committee as the only representative body of active small-scale miners in the region.
A statement issued by Mr Marmion's office in February said proposals for reforming environmental regulation fees were first raised with the MILC in 2009.
Mr Marmion was presented with a story written by former journalist John Bowler, published in The Golden Mail in 1999.
The article documented how prospector Mike Charlton, an APLA and Goldfields First member, was met with indifference and even hostility when seeking help from APLA more than 15 years ago.
Speaking to the Kalgoorlie Miner yesterday, Mr Charlton said he wanted the minister to understand that many who joined Goldfields First did so after a longstanding battle with APLA.
"The divorce is final and the minister understands that," Mr Charlton said, referring to the deteriorating relationship between leaseholders and prospectors in the region.
"The minister said he understood the bigger picture and said that we should have formed 15 years ago."
APLA president Mike Lucas said Mr Marmion put himself in the line of fire.
"We had very good discussions and we will continue to deal with this properly, rather than shouting over the back fence," he said.
"The minister admitted he had not been given all the relevant information and the effects it would have.
"There is no way we will be surrendering a seat on MILC, the issue was not raised with APLA by the minister, it's a non-event."
Mr Marmion issued a statement yesterday saying the meetings with Goldfields First, APLA and other interested stakeholders were constructive.
He is scheduled to return to Kalgoorlie-Boulder within a week to participate in a regional Cabinet meeting.
