The South Australian government is considering different options to preserve the Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary, one of which may be a ban on mining in the area.
After Marathon Resources was found dumping exploration waste illegally in the area in 2008 there has been greater effort towards protecting the zone.
The Premier Mike Rann said in Parliament that the sanctuary was environmentally significant and that the Government would consider a mining ban. This was an option that the Liberal Senator Nick Minchin was also calling for as were the Greens. However Mr Rann added that another option was to put Arkaroola on a national heritage list or declaring it a national park.
However this may not protect the region from mining as a future government may allow mine exploration and development in the wilderness. This is the view of Matthew Turner from the Wilderness Society who said that just by calling it a national park you will not be able to prevent mining.
He explained that 83% of the area of national parks in the country was actually open to mining and mining exploration. The Arkaroola Sanctuary operator, Marg Sprigg said that it was not possible to protect the environment and allow mining in the area.
Mr Rann said that while the South Australian government was unashamedly pro mining there was a legitimate public debate about mining in specific areas of South Australia. He added that they would be considering all available options to preserve the Arkaroola Sanctuary.