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NSW Mining Road and Rail Tour begins in Broken Hill
The 2013 NSW Mining Road and Rail Tour begins in Broken Hill today, in recognition of the rich mining history and modern contribution mining makes to the town and surrounding region.
NSW Minerals Council CEO Stephen Galilee will be crossing NSW by rail and road over the next two weeks, travelling ‘from the west to the west’ – from Broken Hill right through to the manufacturing hub of Blacktown in Western Sydney, home to many mining supplier businesses.
“I will be travelling right across NSW, visiting many mining towns and key mining projects, meeting with mayors and local councils as well as local business and community representatives to talk about the issues and see first-hand what’s happening in mining across Western and Central NSW,” Mr Galilee said.
“The historic mining town of Broken Hill is a great place to begin this year’s NSW Mining Rail and Road Tour. It’s the iconic birthplace of one of the world’s biggest mining success stories.
“Silver and lead ore were first found in Broken Hill in 1883 and the Broken Hill Proprietary Company was formed in 1885 – one of the forerunners to the global mining and resources giant BHP Billiton.”
“Mining still contributes greatly to Broken Hill and the region is one of our state’s shining examples of how the three pillars of tourism, agriculture and mining work together to provide economic stability.”
“A detailed economic survey of our members, conducted last year found that the 21 mining companies surveyed directly spent $67 million in the Broken Hill City Council area.
“The research showed that mining companies directly provided $20 million in wages to 215 full time employees over this period and spent $47 million on goods and services. The estimated flow-on effect of this economic stimulus in terms of additional spending was $63 million.
The NSW Minerals Council will also bring its Voice for Mining initiative to Broken Hill to help give a greater grassroots voice to those in the community who support local mining.
“The new website, www.voiceformining.com.au, is a platform for those in Broken Hill and throughout NSW who want to have their voice heard. They can visit the website and indicate what they might be prepared to do to support the industry,” Mr Galilee said.
“It might be writing a letter to a local newspaper, sending an email to local council or their local Member of Parliament, or simply be following us on Twitter and getting involved in the online conversation using the hashtag #NSWMining.”
The NSW Mining Road and Rail Tour winds up in Western Sydney on the 16th of July.
Contact: Lindsay Hermes I lhermes@nswmining.com.au I 0409 758 734