Crushing

Council to focus on extractive training, employment

The Goulburn Mulwaree Council has endorsed the Extractive Industries Training and Employment project proposed by its Economic Development Committee. The project will focus on developing relevant employment and training opportunities to prepare residents for careers in the extractive industries. 
The region currently quarries hard rock, limestone, gravel and sand, and is the site of Boral?s largest Australian hard rock quarry at Peppertree. Lynwood, another major hard rock quarry managed by Holcim Australia, is expected to commence operation in the second half of this year. 
?Quarrying/mining is fast becoming a significant industry sector in Goulburn Mulwaree,? stated the committee in its meeting minutes. ?Most quarries and mines are operating on licences for around 100 years but have sufficient product to continue for longer. This industry is here to stay.?
Identifying local opportunities
The project is part of a wider council initiative that aims to maximise the local economic benefits provided by the region?s extractive industries. It was proposed based on the findings of the council?s Extractive Industries Working Group, which visited each of the region?s five quarries to discuss their inputs in terms of services and labour. 
?We asked them [the quarry operators] not only what it was that they used but where they sourced those things to identify opportunities for local supply,? working group chair Debbi Rodden explained.
Rodden said that feedback for the quarries indicated that there was a shortage of skilled local labour and that they had been looking beyond the region to meet their needs. As a result, the group devised and executed a plan to connect local businesses with quarry proponents, which included holding an industry expo and an industry breakfast.
Rodden said that these events were met with great interest and following the working group?s success, the council is now looking to implement the Extractive Industries Training and Employment project to ensure its residents are well-placed to meet the labour needs of the region?s quarries. 
Promoting quarries
As part of the Extractive Industries Training and Employment project, the council will be raising awareness of the quarry employment opportunities available within the community, especially to students. 
Recognising that the training and experience required for many quarrying roles can be difficult to access, the council will also be looking to improve connections between the extractive industries and educational institutions, lobbying for the local delivery of training courses and promoting work experience within the sector. 
In addition, it hopes to implement a program that will help the unemployed engage with quarries, similar to the 10-week training, work experience and mentoring Rock Solid Futures program that the Shellharbour Local Government Area has adopted.
A working group is now being assembled to implement the project, which will be subject to council consideration.
Source: Goulburn Mulwaree Council, The Goulburn Post

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