Latest news with #Goldfields
ABC News
13-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Local government minister warns Shire of Coolgardie not to treat ratepayers as 'cash cows'
Western Australia's local government minister has criticised an outback shire's bid to hike mining rates by 97 per cent saying ratepayers should not be treated as "cash cows". The cash-strapped Shire of Coolgardie, 500 kilometres east of Perth in WA's Goldfields, proposed the rates increase despite strong opposition from the local mining sector. This has now been refused by the state government. In a statement Local Government Minister Hannah Beazley said the shire needed to be held accountable for its "dire financial situation". "The decision was made in the best interests of the community and state, as well as addressing concerns expressed by impacted ratepayers," she said. Ms Beazley said the size of the proposed rates increase "did not meet the values of consistency, equity and fairness". In a written statement Coolgardie shire president Malcolm Cullen said the government's decision was "disappointing". "While it may have looked ambitious in its scope the motivation was always to restore and future-proof infrastructure for the benefit of the mining sector," he said. "In light of this decision the shire will now implement its alternative budget strategy." He said a number of key infrastructure projects, including road upgrades, would now need to be deferred. Mr Cullen declined the ABC's request for an interview. He said the shire, which faces a budget deficit of $6.5 million, would work towards a "sustainable solution" for ratepayers. Multiple mining operators had warned the shire about the potential impact of the proposed rates hike. Wyloo Metals, owned by WA mining magnate Andrew Forrest, said its rates bill would have increased from $725,471 to $1.74 million. ASX-listed company WIN Metals said its bill would jump from $299,000 to more than half a million dollars annually. Speaking to the ABC, Eastern Goldfields Prospectors Association president Cranston Edwards welcomed the government's decision but said the shire's "underlying issues" needed to be addressed. "I think it sends a message that you can't keep hitting the ratepayers," he said. Mr Edwards said the shire needed more scrutiny and called on the councillors to resign. "Just like any other company would do if they go broke, they've got to face the music," he said. The Western Australian Local Government Association has been contacted for comment.
ABC News
11-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
WA Government to increase capacity of historic Goldfields water pipeline by 2027
The West Australian government will spend more than half a billion dollars expanding the capacity of the historic Goldfields Water Supply Scheme, one of the world's longest overland freshwater pipelines. The so-called Golden Pipeline took five years to build during WA's 1890s gold rush and was commissioned in 1903 as the brainchild of the state's first engineer-in-chief CY O'Connor. About 40 per cent of the original pipeline remains in use today, supplying drinking water to more than 100,000 people across WA's Wheatbelt, Upper Great Southern and Goldfields regions. Water Minister Don Punch told reporters in Kalgoorlie-Boulder on Wednesday that $543 million will be allocated in the forthcoming state budget to increase the pipeline's daily capacity by more than 7.2 million litres, or about 10 per cent. It will be the biggest upgrade of the 566-kilometre-long pipeline in decades. "We anticipate works will be completed in 2027," he said. "The design work started out in 2021, so they're well underway and completed, and we're now in a position where works can begin very shortly. Mr Punch said demand from the resources sector, particularly the booming gold mining sector, was driving the expansion. "This pipeline has an incredible history and has been meeting the needs of the Goldfields until now, but clearly with the growth that's happening, and the attractiveness of this region, we need to increase water supply." The proposed works include the replacement of 44.5km of aging pipeline in the shires of Merredin, Westonia, and Yilgarn, with new sections to be installed underground alongside the existing route. The capacity of the Binduli Reservoir near Kalgoorlie-Boulder will also be doubled from its current level of about 400 megalitres and new valves installed to improve reliability. Shadow water minister Peter Rundle said the funding was very much needed. The Nationals MP said the development would see the regional party review the policy of supporting a desalination plant in Esperance that it took to this year's state election. "It will slow that particular project down, the desalination [plant], but we'll have a look at it for sure," Mr Rundle said. Work on the pipeline expansion began in 2021 when $15 million was committed towards feasibility studies. Water Corporation CEO Pat Donovan said the existing capacity of the pipeline was about 75 million litres of water per day, which would increase to about 82 million litres daily after the works were completed. "It's about a 10 per cent increase in capacity," he said. The original capacity of the pipeline when it was commissioned in 1903 was 22.7 million litres a day. Mr Donovan said tenders would be called within the next six to 12 months after detailed design work is completed and he considered the project one of the most significant since World War II. "Post-war, some of the pipeline was replaced with wooden pipes due to steel shortages, so that was a significant upgrade," he said. "But in terms of more recent history this is a very significant investment in the future of the pipeline." More than 60,000 pipes were used in the pipeline's original construction and eight steam pumping stations were capable of delivering 8 billion litres a year, which has since been upgraded to more than 24 billion litres a year. Mr Donovan said the long-term plan is for the pipeline to be rebuilt with modern below-ground pipe over the next 50 years. "We will be progressively replacing that over decades to come as we continue to upgrade to improve reliability and meet future demand," he said. The funding comes as the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder works to deliver a separate project to drought-proof one of Australia's biggest inland cities. Known as Water Bank, and with an estimated cost of $92 million, the project involves building new dams to harvest stormwater and grow supplies of recycled water to irrigate public spaces. WA Labor has committed $5 million to the project, while the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder has spent months lobbying Canberra for $9.5 million via the National Water Grid Fund to complete stage one. There was no word on its application in this year's Federal Budget.
ABC News
30-05-2025
- General
- ABC News
Man charged after allegedly leading police on chase through streets of Kalgoorlie
Police in Western Australia's Goldfields have charged two people following a string of incidents, including a man behind the wheel of an ATV allegedly attempting to ram police cars several times. The incident allegedly began early on Monday, when a 19-year-old woman was stopped by police for allegedly recklessly driving a stolen Toyota LandCruiser through bushland in the northern suburbs of Kalgoorlie, 600km east of Perth. A WA Police spokesperson said that during the woman's arrest, a 29-year-old man driving a Polaris all-terrain vehicle was also directed to stop. Police allege he drove directly at the officer arresting the woman, with both officers jumping out of the way. Police located the ATV a short time later in a laneway in West Lamington, where the 29-year-old allegedly drove it directly at a police car. The ATV rolled, causing significant damage to the police vehicle, but the two officers inside managed to apprehend the man. Police allege the man had methamphetamine in his possession, while a subsequent search of a nearby property uncovered mercury, a stolen trailer and bobcat, and a paintball gun. The West Lamington man has been charged with 12 offences, including assaulting police, driving to escape pursuit by police, possession of a dangerous poison, and unlawful possession of a paintball gun. The 29-year-old man and 19-year-old woman are due to face Kalgoorlie Magistrates Court in June. Police are continuing to look for a trailer with a small crane that was initially sighted being towed on the LandCruiser. The trailer has WA registration KBC 962W, and anyone with any information is urged to contact police. Goldfields-Esperance Acting Inspector Shayne Knox said incidents such as this could have lasting effects on the community. "We will not tolerate this level of reckless behaviour that puts lives at risk and could cause catastrophic outcomes for members of the public and public officers," he said. "The circumstances of these arrests strongly demonstrate the commitment of Kalgoorlie police to relentlessly hunt down and arrest individuals impacting our community."
West Australian
29-05-2025
- Sport
- West Australian
Japanese star keen for success at Golden Open
Japanese squash professional Risa Sugimoto is hopeful of going one better against a crack field at this weekend's annual Northern Star Golden Open. Kalgoorlie-Boulder's premier squash tournament this year features players from nine different countries who are chasing $6000 prizemoney in each of the women's and men's divisions. Sugimoto is fresh off an epic final of the South Australian Open in Adelaide, when the 30-year-old was beaten in five games by Hong Kong's Toby Tse (9-11, 11-6, 5-11, 11-8, 11-8). This week Sugimoto has focused on her recovery before her opening round on Friday, when she will have to win two games to make it through to the semifinals. 'In last week's tournament, I was lucky enough to perform better than I previously had been, making it through to the finals,' Sugimoto said. 'This week, I want to work through my fatigue and try to perform through my fatigue to allow me to perform at my best on the first day of the tournament, which is hard with two matches to win.' Sugimoto is hoping to use the Goldfields event to boost her ranking which will assist her chances in getting a call-up for the 2026 Asian Games. 'I am aiming to get my PSA ranking inside the world top-100,' she said. 'Next year I want to qualify for the Asian Games with the target of winning a medal.' The No.4 seed, Sugimoto will take on Ka Huen Leung from Hong Kong in her first round. Sugimoto is enjoying the contrast between Kalgoorlie-Boulder and her hometown Kyoto. 'It's very relaxed, very quiet (in Kalgoorlie-Boulder) and good for recovery,' she said. 'In Kyoto there is so much traffic and people everywhere.' The top-three women's seeds are Helen Tang (China), Akari Midorikawa (Japan), and Wong Po Yui Kirstie (China). Among a strong men's field, Sri Lanka's Ravindu Laksiri is the No.1 seed from Pakistan's Hamza Khan, and the Chinese duo of Wailok To and Ming Hong Tan. Queenslander Brendan MacDonald is the highest-seeded Australian at No.11. The Northern Star Golden Open gets under way on Friday from 10am at Ray Finlayson Sporting Complex and continues on Saturday and Sunday.
ABC News
29-05-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Basketball team resurrected to help build kids' dreams in remote WA town of Leonora
Most nights in Leonora are filled with the sound of basketballs hitting the concrete. It's the sound of a small outback town coming back from adversity. About 800 kilometres east of Perth, Leonora has many problems: limited opportunities, crime and high rates of youth suicide. It also has one basketball team, the Blazers. The Blazers were resurrected by Rene Reddingius, affectionately called "Pop" by Leonora children, who high-five him when they see him in the streets. He runs the basketball program with the help of his partner Shelley. Almost a decade ago, six Aboriginal youth took their own lives over an 18-month period in the town of about 1,500 people. So in 2017, Rene — a Pirni man — left his job with the WA Commissioner for Children and Young People to return to his country, the Goldfields, to make a change. "We were the hotspot for the world," Rene said. Rene knew what pain felt like, "having a hell of a time trying to survive 2004", after recovering from an attack. "I survived by coming to my country at my darkest hour," he said. "On my country … contemplating my future, I ended up walking back into camp, and I've become the man that I am today, and I will always walk with strong sense of purpose." And it's that sense of purpose that he wants to help young people on his country to find. Resurrecting the old Blazers team, which he founded in 1991, gives Rene a way to reach them. He says the majority of children in the remote Goldfields town are "at risk", often facing additional socio-economic challenges, but that shouldn't limit or determine what they can achieve. Rene says there's no "miracle work', it's just about giving children the skills, strength and support to make the best choices for themselves. "You've got to do the actions that will make the difference, the choices at the crossroads," he said. "It's: 'Don't jump in that stolen car, driven by your cousin'. It's: 'Don't take that substance that's been offered at the party by your boyfriend.'" The basketball program has given a new direction to the lives of many Leonora children, such as captain Amber Thomas. She lived in the neighbouring ghost town of Gwalia and used to walk one hour into town for "muck-up games" when the program restarted. Amber had a full house where she was "like a big sister to her big sisters," and a full head. "Pop" Rene and the Blazers became her second family. "He's my safe space when I don't have a safe space," Amber said. On the basketball court she stopped saying "I can't do it" and, now a youth worker, she's guiding other teens, just a little younger than her. "Push through and see how far you can get," she said. Blazers look up to Amber and the other captain, McKye Blake, who's also her partner. "When the kids think about what a healthy relationship looks, they think like Amber and McKye," she smiles. McKye used to get in trouble, but staying in the team helped him stay in school and he's now an apprentice boilermaker. Being a role model "puts a lot of pressure" on McKye, who has to "act like a leader". But basketball has taught him pressure can shape character. "Going into these areas we don't feel comfortable. Like, going through, helps you become better," McKye said. The Blazers' training starts without Rene, with the children taking it upon themselves to lead the warm-up session. Anyone who's late, including Rene himself, runs laps. It's about accountability but also hard work. "If you have the bar low, people can fall over it." Every Blazer player is expected to set and achieve goals, cheered on, and held accountable, by the entire team. It's something Leonora mother Naomi Sprigg dos Santos appreciates. "I think it's vital for children who come from trauma and often times dysfunction to know that life can be predictable and to have a routine," she said. "Rene offers that in the program. There is a predictability about his training, there's a predictability about his expectations." Ms Sprigg dos Santos thinks relationships play a huge part in the success he's having. For Rene, the "life-skill program" must try to engage families, and the whole community. "They have shared memories, and instead of dropping a kid off at a program, you can go and do stuff with them," he said. Wongai grandmother Samantha Banks is an ex-basketball player and current supporter, touring with the team when she can to see her grandchildren playing. "It keeps us all together, me, the kids," she said. "My nana comes and watches me play, cheers me on and makes me confident," Aliahky smiles shyly. Ms Banks said basketball was teaching her grandchildren how to want to be on time, organised, but, most importantly, on the right path. "He can take his little anger or whatever on the courts," she said. It is one positive message, reinforced on the court, at school, and at home, that Rene wants children to internalise. The Blazers have been touring the state. Rene says they are big opportunities for small-town children, and their peers who have fallen through the cracks are taking notice. But if the basketball program is taking them places, it's because it's a grassroots movement. Rene's father, who's also called Rene, but is better known as "Sir", taught four generations of Leonora youth. "They respond to you as the relationship you've built," he says. Families, the shire CEO and the school principal say having familiarity and continuity makes the program more successful than anything that could be offered by a visiting service. Choosing to return to his home town and stay, Rene has helped it to bounce back. Even if he decides to leave, the once under-confident Amber is ready to step up. "My dreams and hopes for Blazers is, let me just say, me working for them, being a big boss of Blazers," she smiled. "One day, I will get there."
