Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
But Still Booming
Stoushes over the environment are nothing new here. The argument over whether a resort
should be developed at Ningaloo, up north, was particularly fierce in the early 2000s (so far
development has not gone ahead). And the state is not naive about the environmental
dangers of mining. In 2006 and 2007, dangerously high levels of lead were detected after
Esperance locals sighted a number of dead birds around the township. Lead had been emit-
ted by local industry, and the Esperance Port Authority has been convicted on lead-contam-
ination charges.
Boomtown 2050
, by landscape architect Richard Weller, is a nicely packaged book about how a rapidly grow-
ing town like Perth could be developed - sustainably.
But today the stakes seem higher. LNG exploration at James Price Point is a $30-billion
project. The boom has spawned a handful of mega-rich mining magnates whose influence
extends beyond resources and into politics and the media. Gina Rinehart, daughter of the
late iron-ore magnate Lang Hancock, in 2012 became the largest shareholder in Fairfax
Media. Much of the state's population has capitalised on opportunities afforded by the re-
sources boom, and tougher times spent sweating over every utilities bill seem a distant
memory. What's more, many of these same people have long said goodbye to steady nine-
to-five jobs and embraced a more cosmopolitan lifestyle thanks to financial return from the
mines; for them to maintain this lifestyle, such returns must continue to materialise. And
yet behind all these competing interests, the fact remains that every new mine or gas plant
much reach deep into pristine wilderness.
NINGALOO'S CLOSE SCRAPE
Some locals still sport 'Save Ningaloo' bumper stickers on their cars. No one seems to pay much attention to the
faded stickers these days, but they're a reminder of one of the most high-profile and fiercely contested environ-
mental campaigns the state has seen. 'Save Ningaloo', with its thousands of protestors, successfully blocked devel-
opment of a massive marina resort (slated for 2003) on a loggerhead-turtle nesting ground. Comprising 280km of
coral reef, and visited by species such as manta rays, whale sharks, dugongs, humpback whales and turtles, Ninga-
loo is one of the last healthy major reef systems in the world.
The area has nevertheless remained a site of interest for property developers and the resources sector. In late
2012 BHP Billiton submitted a proposal to the state government to explore for LNG some 5km from Ningaloo's
perimeter. Regardless of whether exploration goes ahead, the condition of this World Heritage-listed reef will re-
main precarious and controversial.
