Australia's largest temperate rainforest in Tasmania's takayna is under threat, now more than ever.

Chinese government-owned mining giant MMG wants to build a massive toxic waste dump in the heart of ancient rainforests in takayna, home to 500-year-old myrtles and critical habitat for Masked Owls and other threatened species.

We are doing everything we can to stop them. Right now, we urgently need your help. 

This proposed waste dump would be a 140 ha tailings dam, hacked out of the rainforest to receive millions of tonnes of toxic mine waste, pumped across the Pieman River from MMG’s Rosebery mine.

The first phase of this industrialisation of the wilderness will involve shredding the rainforest with 14 km of new roads and clearing 165 drilling sites. Next, 285 ha of forest and rainforest would be bulldozed to allow the construction of the massive tailings dam.

For over 115 days, and still going strong, our Pieman blockade camp has kept the miners and their heavy machinery out of the rainforests. This peaceful direct action has provided breathing space for us to launch a two-pronged legal action, taking on the Tasmanian and Federal Governments to try and stop this appalling rainforest waste dump. 

This massive direct action campaign is a huge undertaking, costing thousands of dollars each day to maintain a blockade, research the endangered species and carry out documentary story-telling in the remote takayna forests. 

The huge costs involved in holding the line against MMG’s machinery cover transport, equipment, food and safety gear for hundreds of peaceful forest defenders. 

Plus, we support every protester that is arrested by providing them with legal representation for their court appearance. To date, over 70 good people have been arrested for protecting these forests from MMG’s bulldozers. 

Now that we have launched legal actions in the Tasmanian Supreme Court and the Federal Court, we are facing substantial additional legal bills as we try to use the law to stop the destruction of the rainforest.

We will not back down from protecting this rainforest, in the courts or the forests. 

Although police raided and removed our longstanding blockade camp on 13 April, arresting three forest defenders, they were unable to force us to leave the forests and our defiant activists are continuing to disrupt and delay MMG’s plans. 

Our forest defenders will continue to peacefully obstruct MMG from starting their works for as long as it takes. And our legal team will explore every avenue to stopping this ghastly waste dump in the courts. 

The only thing that will stop us from being able to stand fast is a lack of funds. 

Your pledge will ensure our forest defenders can continue to hold the line against MMG’s machines, for as long as it takes. 

And our legal team will back up these courageous protests with decisive action in the courts.

$20,000 — Legal fees for arrested forest defenders 

To support the courageous activists prepared to face arrest for peacefully defending takayna’s rainforests, we pay for their legal representation, which averages around $300 per person. (We don’t pay any fines that they may receive.) This will cover the legal costs of over seventy forest defenders.

$10,000 — Campaign video and images 

If a tree falls in the forest and no one sees it, who will care?  We know the key to saving these forests and their wildlife is to share their breathtaking beauty with the world, along with the vandalism of those who would destroy them the heroism of our forest defenders. Inspiring short videos and beautiful images are the key to all this – we have an incredibly talented team who can take footage from every angle, capturing the majesty of the forests and the drama of the battle to save them. Because to see takayna is to want to save it. 

$10,000 — Tell the world what’s happening in takayna’s forests 

Advertising is not just about selling toothpaste. We use it to make sure as many people as possible know what is happening in takayna and, most importantly, how they can action! This money helps us to produce posters, postcards and flyers and to pay for social media and other advertising to boost our message far and wide.  

$20,000 — Masked Owl research 

We know these rainforests are home to the endangered Tasmanian Masked Owl.  How do we know? Because our team of scientists has lived in the forests for weeks at a time, recording the screech of the owls which proves they live, feed and breed in these forests.  This research will be critical in our court case which argues that MMG failed to properly look for the Masked Owl, instead producing a shoddy, half-hearted report that found nothing, because it suited them not to.  These funds will be used to continue this important work of documenting the presence of the Masked Owls in the rainforests threatened by MMG.

$40,000 — Forest camp operating costs 

Maintaining safe and secure forest camps and carrying out peaceful actions in remote takayna is a huge logistical undertaking costing thousands of dollars every single day. Although our longstanding blockade camp was dismantled by police after a raid on 13 April, our forest defenders have re-established a forward base camp from which peaceful direct actions continue daily. These funds will provide the equipment, food, climbing gear, communications and transport that sustains our forest defenders as they hold back the destructive machinery of MMG and will help take on other threats to these forests as they arise.