and of others, a constant priority, with on-site teams actively
focusing on OHS issues and emergency response programs.
The company also strives for continuous improvement with its
environmental management systems, and supports the small
local farming communities through the provision of maintenance
contracts,byprovidingassistancewithwilddogbaitingandcatching
feral cats, and by maintaining the roads it is permitted to use.
“
Our relationships with the community are very important,”
described Mr Lougher.
The company is also a keen supporter of biodiversity
conservation, providing financial and logistical support where
it can for programs geared to conserving the fauna and flora
endemic to its Forrestania operations. For example, the company
is a supporter of the Great Western Woodlands collaboration – an
alliance of conservation organisations working with communities
and stakeholders to protect, manage and promote an area of some
16
million hectares east of the rabbit proof fence. The area
represents one of the largest intact temperate woodlands and
biologically significant areas left on earth, with 20% of all
Australia’s plant species and 20% of Australia’s Eucalypt species.
Western Areas also sponsors the Perth Zoo’s Western Quoll
(
or Chuditch) enclosure, which works to improve the viability of
this vulnerable species through breeding programs, conservation-
based research and education. The Western Quoll is WA’s largest
carnivorous marsupial, and the teams at Forrestania get to
occasionally see this distinctively spotted creature at night. The
Chuditch has suffered loss of habitat through land clearing and
predation by feral foxes and cats, but the Zoo’s breeding program
has been so successful, its status has been downgraded from
endangered to vulnerable.
Western Areas helps to monitor Chuditch numbers, as part
of its environmental program, and through sponsoring the Zoo,
the company’s name is associated with the enclosure, and Zoo
entry passes are provided to Western Areas’ staff and donated to
Starlight Children’s Foundation Australia.
Western Areas also provides financial support for the Eastern
Wheatbelt Declared Species Group (EWDSG), which assists local
communities deal with the serious threat posed by feral animals;
particularly wild dog attacks on stock in the area adjacent to the
State Barrier Fence. Landholders, government departments and
mining companies work together through this unique initiative
to trap and bait wild dogs. Before the group’s establishment eight
years ago farmers were losing 50 to 100 sheep a year to wild dogs,
but they now lose very few sheep.
A similarly supported program, also focused on feral animal
control, is undertaken in the wheatbelt at the Dragon Rocks Nature
Reserve by the Department of Environment and Conservation as
part of its Western Shield animal conservation program. This
is part of one of the largest wildlife conservation programs
ever undertaken in Australia, and in its entirety covers nearly
3.9
million hectares across WA.
A final program that Western Areas supports is the WA
Museum’s research into the ecology of the Carnaby’s Black
Cockatoo, endangered by habitat loss and large scale clearing
in much of the wheatbelt.
Being large landholders in the area, working with the local
community is a crucial element to Western Areas’ success, and
one that really does deserve the energy the company spends on it.
It is a philosophical truism, in Mr Lougher’s opinion, that
“
Safety, the environment and production must all be aligned.
You can’t just produce without looking at the environment and
safety. A safe and environmentally sustainable operation will
always be the best producer”.
Above: Hon Simon O'Brien, MLC, Minister for Finance; Commerce
and Small Business (left) presenting the 2012 Premier's Award
for Excellence to Dan Lougher of Western Areas
Left: Cosmic Boy Mill
MINESITE 2012
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