Protectouropalsaustralia

18/05/2026

FROM THE DESK OF ORMIE - part 2/2

The cornerstone of the opal mining industry, for the last 100 years, has been over the counter titles. This system allowed a cottage industry to flourish into one which produces and supplies 90% of global markets with black opal, one of the most prized and sought after gems by domestic and international commercial jewellers and collectors. Notably, the success of the opal industry can only be attributed to those within the industry…an industry which has only been hindered by governmental bodies, never helped.

The Department’s latest attempt at hindering the evolution and sustainability of the opal industry is to take away the right of a prospector who holds an Opal Prospecting Licence (OPL) to peg and register as many titles as necessary to secure his/her find upon cessation (cancellation or expiry) of his OPL.

By allowing an OPL holder to only register two mineral claims at the end of his prospecting lease tenure, the prospector risks losing what he has discovered through his hard work and significant expenditure of resources, to claim jumpers/ratters who can then legally (thanks to the Department) peg the prospective ground. Why would any prospector bother?

Further frustrations for prospectors arise due to poor mapping provided by the Department.

Despite numerous discussions and meetings over the past 20 years with the Department concerning the mapping of the Opal Prospecting Blocks (OPB), the cartographers still cannot get it right.

On the Minview maps developed, maintained, and provided by the Department, there is a disclaimer stating that the maps cannot be relied upon for their accuracy. These maps are allegedly designed to provide prospectors, miners, land lessees/holders, and regulatory bodies with information relevant to OPAs, OPBs, buffer zones, restricted areas (vacant areas in the OPBs), mineral claims, et cetera. The disclaimer is essential because the maps are, in many instances, obviously incorrect.

This issue results in constant embarrassment for the Department in Maitland, yet they persist in allowing the staff at the Lightning Ridge office to bear the brunt of miners’ frustrations and anguish as they battle to deal with the inaccuracies of the maps provided by their own Department.

When prospectors are issued with OPLs, they rely on the Department to provide accurate maps to indicate where drilling/prospecting can and cannot take place. The Department, however, puts the onus on the OPL holder to know where the boundaries are, knowing full well the maps they are issuing are incorrect. Should a prospector step outside of those boundaries, they are penalized for illegal mining and are used as a negative/bad example by the Department, at every given opportunity.

Fundamental errors like those mentioned above must be corrected before a title is issued to ensure prospectors are given a fair, accurate, and equitable representation of the OPB they are working on.

Thank you for your support of my previous post. Please keep sharing this information so our message is heard far and wide.

Signed,
Ormond William Molyneux
Lightning Ridge, May 2026



Courtney Houssos Dave Layzell Michael Daley MP Jamie Chaffey MP Jeweller Magazine

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15/05/2026

FROM THE DESK OF ORMIE - part 1/2:

Prospecting is the life blood of all mining ventures, nowhere more so than in the opal mining industry because it is impossible to assay the opal bearing clay to assess its potential. All processes should be considered prospecting, including tunnelling, trenching, and open cutting, yet the Act separates prospecting from mining.

Recent policy changes indicate the intent of the Department to restrict drilling for opal on highly potential cretaceous ground within the Narran-Warrambool Reserve (NWR). It is from this ground that roughly 70% of all commercial opal is currently being produced. The drawing of an imaginary line on a map by the Department to dictate where drilling can no longer occur displays both arrogance and ignorance. This line has been placed on the Department’s current Opal Prospecting Area (OPA) and Opal Prospecting Block (OPB) maps which are available at Department offices and/or on Minview.

The Department initially justified the creation of this line following subsidence issues at two mine sites. The first site was at Kitty Hawk opal field on Sorrento, while the second occurred at Knightlife opal field on Muttabun. Both of these properties are located on OPA 2 at the northern end of the NWR.

The subsidences at these sites occurred during significant rain events when not only did a substantial amount of rain fall within a short period of time resulting in the flooding of existing workings, but regular rain continued for a further six months, thereby stopping the rectification of the problem - one which would have been an easy fix for any competent operator had the Department allowed it.

The Department used these two sites as examples for their misleading representations that opal mining under black soil is unsafe for mining and impossible to rehabilitate when mining is complete.

The affected landholders then got even more creative and used these sites as justification to stop mining operations and prospecting beyond the ecotone of the ridge lands.

Currently in the NWR, there are many sites where intense opal mining is occurring, and has occurred in the past, under the black soils, including during the same wet periods mentioned above, with no problems or issues arising. Some of those mines are as far as 200 metres beyond the ecotone, with many of those claims still active today.

Prospecting on the black soil and in areas beyond the ecotone has always been allowed provided they were within an OPA with only one restriction, that is, no drilling on agricultural (cropping) land. It is of paramount importance to the survival of the opal mining industry that this status quo is maintained.

Please share this information and help us get our message out.

Part 2 to follow…

Signed,
Ormond William Molyneux
Lightning Ridge, April 2026

07/11/2025

Here it is…