Proposal for Oldbury sand mine on black cockatoo habitat angers residents on Perth's southern fringe

Australia Broadcast Center

06-05-2025

A decade-long battle over a proposed sand mine south of Perth has reached boiling point, as the need to balance the delivery of more housing clashes with environmental concerns.
The Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale is pushing back against a revived plan to clear 11.6 hectares of protected banksia woodland in Oldbury, along the Swan Coastal Plain on Perth's southern fringes.
Beneath this Banksia woodland down the Swan coastal plain lies a dormant sand deposit.
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Conservationists and residents are concerned, as the site is crucial habitat for the endangered Carnaby's black cockatoo.
On the other hand, sand is considered a priority resource, and crucial to bolstering Perth's housing supply
Community frustration
Resident Ian Morrow lives a couple of hundred metres down the road from the Oldbury site with his partner.
'We came out here to be amongst nature and the bush," Mr Morrow said.
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I worry about future generations, the children aren't gonna have this much longer if we keep chopping it down.
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Ian Morrow's worried about the impact of the sand mine and how it might damage natural vegetation.
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Mr Morrow is also worried about residents' health amid rising awareness around the dangers of silicosis – a preventable lung disease caused by inhaling silica dust.
'There's silica sand in here, the dust is already pretty bad out here but when you're mining it and digging it up, it's going to be 10 times worse.'
Back and forth
Hanson Materials applied to mine sand at Oldbury more than a decade ago. It has since been acquired by German company Heidelberg Materials.
Heidelberg Materials says sand is a priority resource, crucial to the development of the local area.
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After back and forth with the local council, the State Administrative Tribunal had to step in to mediate, ultimately approving the project in 2015.
Nearly a decade later, in 2024, Heidelberg was required to apply for an amendment to extend a clearing permit.
The Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale unanimously rejected the proposal, citing concerns over the environment, noise and dust.
Locals say they've seen flocks of Carnaby black cockatoos at the site.
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'We understand that development needs to happen, however there needs to be consideration for what we're passing on to our future generations,' the shire's deputy president Tricia Duggin said.
'If we were to look at sand mining and an application were to come from elsewhere, it would be viewed differently because it wouldn't be involving our banksia woodland.'
The Department of Water and Resources is now assessing Heidelberg's clearing permit application.
A crucial resource
Mining and resource management expert Sally Thompson said balancing environmental protection with housing needs often required difficult decisions.
Mining expert Sally Thompson says the housing crisis is an immediate issue that needs to be addressed.
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Perth has gone from being the nation's most affordable capital city for rentals, to its second-most expensive in just five years.
Photo shows
Houses close to Perth's CBD
Renters in Perth are feeling the pinch as it becomes the nation's second-most expensive capital to rent in, and an economic expert says the state desperately needs to increase its building capacity.
'If we want to move quickly, we need to use the techniques and the material and the expertise that we already have in Perth. And that's all about sand,' Ms Thompson said.
She said the housing industry should aim to use resources which have a lower impact on the environment in the future.
'But we're not going to do that tomorrow and there are people that need houses today," Ms Thompson said.
In a statement, Heidelberg Materials said the sand quarry would provide a vital local resource for residential construction, at a time when 'demand is high and sand available locally is low'.
Significant headway on the quarry wasn't possible within the original time frame, due to delays in obtaining the required approvals and the impact of COVID.
The company said it was committed to an 'environmentally responsible approach', and restoring and offsetting the impact.
Environmental concerns remain
But the Conservation Council isn't convinced, concerned the project will adversely affect the woodland and its native creatures.
The Conservation Council's Mia Pepper says it's time to focus on restoring and protecting the nature we have left.
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'I think companies might have the very best intentions but the reality is often very different,' the Conservation Council's Mia Pepper said.
'We know that banksia rely on some of the mineral sands to survive and grow. It's not just about water … that's why we see failure in attempts to rehabilitate.
'It's death by a thousand cuts for the Carnaby cockatoos.
"Restoring and protecting what we have left is really critical to the survival of this species that we know and love.'
The Department of Water and Resources said it was unable to commit to a time frame on a decision, noting additional information was required to support the assessment of the application.