Why should I join PMAT?

Over one hundred and sixty years ago, Ballarat miners and prospectors joined together to stand up to to what they saw as an abuse of their rights by the authorities.

 Only by standing together “truly by each other”, as the original Eureka prospectors and miners did, and fighting to defend our rights and liberties will we achieve a better deal for fossickers, prospectors and small-scale miners in Tasmania. 

If you enjoy fossicking or prospecting in Tasmania today then your rights to do this are also under threat. 

Fossickers and prospectors are regarded by the regulators as bringing essentially no income to the State of Tasmania, compared to commercial-scale mining. Because of this, fossickers and prospectors are treated with contempt and suspicion.

Regulators are usually unfamiliar with the law as it applies to prospecting and fossicking. They have no time to dedicate to prospectors and fossickers compared to large-scale mining projects. They often give the lazy, least-effort answer to most questions: “no”.

There is also a pervasive view that prospectors and fossickers may engage in “illegal mining”. There is no middle ground allowed for between a casual hobby and a full-blown mine. Because the regulators feel they can’t control fossicking and prospecting, the lazy bureaucratic response is to try to shut it down as much as possible.

Regulators have banned fossicking and prospecting in areas where full-scale commercial mining is still allowed and encouraged.

Prospectors are forced to obtain permission from multinational mining companies before they can access Exploration Licence areas. The companies often just ignore prospector’s requests, and there is no penalty for this behaviour.

Questions and protests from individual fossickers and prospectors are ignored altogether, or get lazy bureaucratic answers. If you think fossickers and prospectors in Tasmania should be able to get a better deal, join PMAT today!

To join us, keep an eye out on the Upcoming Events page and on the sidebar, and just turn up to one of our field trips!

Membership costs are $20 per year, or $35 for a family membership (up to 2 adults plus children).