News and Events

Media release 19 November 2021

Keith Muir, former Colong Foundation for Wilderness Executive Director, said:

“After what must be the longest protected area campaign in history, the Colong Foundation welcomes the new Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area of over 30,000 hectares which positions Lithgow as the gateway to the Gardens of Stone region.

“The new reserve ranks in the top 20 of most floristically diverse of all State Forests, National Parks and Reserves in NSW, just behind Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, but outranks them all on geodiversity diversity.

“The funding provided will permit the establishment of a world-class tourism and conservation reserve protecting and presenting an astounding array of heritage values. It will improve the protection of internationally significant pagoda landscapes and remaining rare upland swamps. The area includes 84 threatened plant and animal species, such as the Giant Dragonfly, and 16 rare and threatened communities.

“The untapped tourism value of Lithgow’s Gardens of Stone backyard lies in the diversity and rarity of its scenery and native flora, and in its Aboriginal cultural heritage. These values will be protected and enjoyed by thousands of people.

“Lithgow will become the new Katoomba. Katoomba was once a coal mining town, having successfully transitioned to a tourism based economy in the 1920s.

“It is testament to the persistent community campaign from the Colong Foundation for Wilderness, Blue Mountains Conservation Society and the Lithgow Environment Group that this announcement has happened today.

“While this is a great outcome for nature, the threat to the World Heritage Area from the proposed raising of the Warragamba Dam wall casts a long shadow over today’s wonderful announcement.”

Media release 29 April 2020

Congratulations, together environment groups have pushed back against the 2000 hectare Augus Place mining proposal and with luck our efforts shall ensure NSW is not locked into coal-fired electric power generation for another 33 years.

Dr Brad Smith of NCC found out that the design life of the Mt Piper power plant is much shorter than the life of the proposed mine, defeating the main justification for such a long consent. The Colong's investigations revealed that restarting the Angus Place mine will be much more destructive that either the Springvale or Airly mines.

We have done well. 836 citizens lodged objections using the Colong webform and another 2365 came in from the NSW Nature Conservation Council before the exhibition period closed on Tuesday 28 April, 2020.

The groups in the Gardens of Stone Alliance have developed well reasoned arguments against the proposal for the planners and decision makers to consider. We've play our part, and the system should curb the worst excesses of this mine...

Of course the main task is now to work the political system to enable changes to the local Lithgow economy, and that is where Destination Pagoda comes in to assist with an alternative tourism economy. We can't let the community fall flat as coal declines in economic and political influence. Its about the change we need to see, not just opposing coal mines.

So together we have defended the heritage values and beauty of Gardens of Stone region, arguably the most important natural area in the state. Together we opposed the Angus Pace mine extension as it would ruin many of the remaining Newnes Plateau swamps and cause the virtual extinction of this nationally rare ecosystem. Angus Place proposal must not be allowed to cause far-field impacts on swamps and streams beyond its mining area and drain the Wolgan River and its swamps. The spectacular Wolgan Falls must continue to flow.

Cathedral Cave is indeed a natural cathedral, and the pagoda landscapes in and around the proposed mining area must all be protected.

New economic research by Dr Jo Mackellar has demonstrated that Lithgow will gain significant job and economic benefits if a new state conservation area were created on its doorstep. The report, commissioned by the Gardens of Stone Alliance, assessed the potential visitors to a planned Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area and the economic contribution of those visitors to the local region. The research identified the community benefits to Lithgow from the new reserve.