Upcoming Events
Lake Pedder Restoration Quarterly General Meeting Sunday 19th February 2023 2-3pm
Online via Zoom. Please register in advance for the Zoom link here.
2023 Global Paddle for Pedder | 4-5th March 2023 Wherever in the world you are! | Register your paddle location here
The flooding of Lake Pedder initiated a global conservation political movement to protect nature. Restoring Lake Pedder amid the climate-biodiversity crisis will be equally pivotal. The 2023 Paddle for Pedder event is the same set up as 2022, but we need this year to be bigger, brighter and louder!
Grab your mates and a sign/banner/shirt saying “Restore Pedder” and head to your local river, lake or restoration location, sometime during the weekend of March 4-5th. Simply take a photo of you with the restore Pedder message, post it to social media and tag us @restorepedder (or send us an email lakepedder.org@gmail.com). You can register for the event here.
If you have a location nearby that is being restored or requires restoration, maybe you have worked on a campaign to remove large dams, then host your paddle for Pedder event at the restoration location and share your story of reviving nature with us. Help us raise the profile of Lake Pedder, while sharing your own rewilding project! Together we can demonstrate to the Australian Government that they need to catch up with the rest of the world and rapidly upscale rewilding. It’s the UN decade of ecosystem restoration, Australia needs a large project; Lake Pedder it must be!
Restoring Lake Pedder, Australia’s UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration project; an evening with Christine Milne AO.
March 7th, 6.30-8pm | White Eagle Polish Club, Turner ACT (36 David Street)
Entry by donation, Registration is compulsory, grab your ticket here.
Join former Australian Greens leader and senator, Christine Milne AO in discussion about Tasmania’s Lake Pedder, and why it is critical for all of Australia. Plus, there will be a short film celebrating Olegas Truchanas, who’s work remains a powerful tool in seeing Lake Pedder restored. The bar is open, and entry is by donation. (The restaurant will be closed for the evening, please have dinner before, or after the event)
Parliament Restore Pedder Gathering | March 8th, 12noon-12.45 with Christine Milne, supporting MP’s!
Join Restore Pedder campaigners at Parliament House, including Christine Milne AO, senators , hon MP’s 12noon-12.45, calling of the Labor Federal Government to restore the heart of Tasmania’s wilderness; Lake Pedder. (fortuitously March 8th is the anniversary of the 1955 declaration of the Lake Pedder National Park!!)
Past Events
Big Tasmanian Climate Action Initiatives for the next Federal Government! May 12th 2022. The Duke, Hobart. Thank you to all who made it along to the Duke for the discussion on climate initiatives here in Tasmania that the next Federal government should jump on board with. Dr Jen Sanger of the Trees Project gave a presentation on native forests. From the Wilderness Society, Jimmy Cordwell discussed the present status of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, and what more needs to be done to protect it. Then our own Tabatha Badger spoke on ecosystem restoration, of course including Lake Pedder and the evening concluding with Christine Milne talking about technologies in renewable energy and and importance of protecting biodiversity. Finally, a big thanks to the Duke for having us.
Lake Pedder 50 year commemoration and celebration. March 14th 2022.
Over 80 people made the trip into Tasmania’s south-west to commemorate what was and celebrate what will be once again. It was an emotional day for many original Pedder people who hadn’t returned to the fake Pedder since the environmental destruction in 1972. Speakers included Bob Brown, Christine Milne, Dick Friend, Graham Bury and Jessica Robbins with formalities were hosted by Tabatha Badger.
View the photo gallery from the day here.
Lake Pedder Encore Concert November 27th at Longley International Hotel
A Lake Pedder end-of-year concert featured speakers and performers Bob Brown, Monique Brumby moniquebrumby.com Phil Smith philsmithmusic.com.au Billie Raffety / The Liffey Trio billieraffety.bandcamp.com/releases and Steve Crump SteveCrumpMusic.com end the year on a positive note and raising funds for the 2022 campaign.
Power Production, Politics and Pedder. November 15-16th 2021 Stanley Town Hall and Leven Yachet Club
Christine Milne, Prof Ben Richardson and Tabatha Badger led a discussion about how the present political power production bent echo’s 1970’s Tasmania and explained how restoring Lake Pedder will impact Tasmania’s North West coast.
Pedder Pub Talk 2.0. September 27th, Fern Tree Tavern
Prof Ben Richardson, Tabatha Badger and MC Christine Milne discussed philosophy, law, tourism and politics of Pedder followed by a lively Q&A. Pedder Unplugged Podcast Episode 4 is a live recording of the night. Listen in here.
Restore Pedder Quiz Night! September 11th, 2022. The Duke, Hobart.
Quiz Night at “The Duke” in Hobart helped raise over $3500 for Restore Pedder, with the help of surprise auctioneer Bob Brown. Thanks to everyone who made the evening so enjoyable and The Duke for hosting us.
The UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration: Conversations on the Coast. Saturday July 31st 2021, Bicheno Memorial Hall
A group of 40+ folk gathered in the Bicheno Memorial Hall to learn about local restoration projects and Tassie’s big chance to be a global leader in ecosystem restoration in Lake Pedder. From the Seymour Wetlands Restoration Project, Quentin Smith spoke about the historical complexities of land management, community engagement and pride of place through restoration and touched on the ever present difficulties of securing funding. Bichenos Earth Ocean Networks Kathleen Davis explained the difficulties of preserving the Waubs Bay sand dunes and possible mitigation strategies. The award winning ‘Skyline Tier’ restoration work by the North East Bioregional Network was presented by Todd Dudley, who echo’d Quentin’s evidence of social cohesion through restorative work, and explained the necessity of national standards supporting project implementation quality. Finally Christine Milne spoke on Restoring Pedder and the importance of considering biodiversity in climate decisions for the two are intrinsically intertwined.
Launceston, Lets talk about Lake Pedder. June 25th 2021. Milton Hall Launceston.
The Milton Hall in Launceston welcomed 70+ people to hear Christine Milne discuss the campaign to restore Lake Pedder and the challenges faced. Many in the audience were privileged enough to visited the original Pedder and shared stories of their adventures in the Southwest and the enduring impact Pedder has had, not only on Tasmania bu across the globe. A huge thank you to Launceston’s Wilderness Societies Steve Saunders and Helen Tait for all their help.
‘Wildness’ on World Environment Day. June 5th 2021. Hobart Town Hall
A full audience 110 people who enjoyed the emotive film ‘Wildness’. A documentary about two of Australia’s greatest wilderness photographers Olegas Truchanas and Peter Dombrovskis was a fitting way to mark the UNs official launch of the decade of ecosystem restoration. The screening was followed by a panel discussion, MC’d by Christine Milne, photographer Dan Broun, author Danielle Wood and artist David Keeling. All spoke on emptiness of the present impoundment, but there is optimism in a lake within a lake, hope that Pedder can be revived, a fairy tale awaiting political commitment to become reality.
Special thanks to Melva Truchanas, the Truchanas family and Liz Dombroviskis for their enduring support, to Michael McMahon (Big and Little films) producer of Wildness for supplying the film and his commitment to the campaign, and to the extraordinary Cary Littleford and Glenn Warland for their audio and projection expertise and patience.
‘Earth Day 2021: Big Tasmanian Visions for Restoring out Earth. April 22nd 2021.
Restore Pedder brought together some of the biggest Tasmanian visions for restoring our Earth (In the absence of the major political parties electoral candidates doing so) in the face of a state election, critical for our natural world. From restoration and refuge to reconciliation, a crowd of 50+ people heard the ambitious, but overdue proposals for safeguarding Tassie’s unique environment. Speakers included: Christine Milne on Restoring Lake Pedder. Tom Allen from The Wilderness Society on kooparoona niara (Great Western Tiers) National Park proposal. Eloise Carr, Director of the Australia Institute, Tasmania on sustainable Marine management and the Bob Brown Foundations Jenny Weber spoke on a Tarkine/Tarkine National Park.
‘A Salute to Max Angus’ Alison Alexander Book Launch with Christine Milne.
Max Angus, a poetic and exceptionally talented water-colourist, moved and inspired many with his work of Lake Pedder. Hobart Historian, Alison Alexander has compiled this wonderful new book which brings together all the facets of his life, and in doing so, illustrates Tasmania’s social history over the century that Max’s life spanned. Rich in detail and drawing on the memories of Max’s family and friends, it’s a must for lovers of Tasmanian art and history.
You can order Alison Alexanders biography of Max Angus from 40 Degrees South here. read Christine Milne’s launch speech transcript here and learn more about Max Angus’s untiring legacy here.
2021 Paddle for Pedder: Derwent Edition. 28th March 2021.
In 2021 the Paddle for Pedder took to Hobarts Derwent River on Sunday March 28th, where 23 kayakers came together, raising a ‘Restore Pedder’ banner, calling for all political candidates contesting the state election to put the restoration of Lake Pedder, in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, at the heart of a future vision for the state. Read more on the action here.
Reclaim Our Reserves! Rally. 10th December, 2020.
Tasmania’s public lands, reserves and National Parks are being privatized for commercial development. Join the rally to reclaim the places integral not only to Tasmania’s brand identity but the ecological well being of our planet. Lake Pedder, once a National Park, became one of the first public lands to be sacrificed for questionable industrial development. Rewatch the 14 speakers from local group speak on the issues we will all face as our public land is sold off.
Hobart Town Hall Christmas Celebration and Guest Speakers Thursday 26th November, 5.30-7pm
Hobarts Town Hall has played host to the most significant moments of the Lake Pedder journey, from audiences spilling into the halls night after night to watch the great Olegas Truchanas’s slideshows, the courageous founding of the world’s first green political party, the United Tasmania Group. On November 26th the Restore Pedder campaign again filled (to COVID capacity) the hall in recognition of the growing calls to restore the national icon. After an emotive welcome to country from the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre’s Sinsa Mansell, the honorable Lord Mayor Anna Reyonlds opened proceedings with the history of the halls significance and the visions of the Hobart City Council to rewild local degraded environs, aligning with the vision of restoring Pedder. Christine Milne AO and Lake Pedder Restoration Incorporation Convenor spoke on the ecological and political implications and benefits of the projects, as well as the potential for social wellbeing, job creation and regenerative tourism opportunities. The Lake Pedder feature on from channel 10’s The Project was shared as beverages were refilled before campaigner Tabatha Badger spoke for the next generation, those who have never seen the original Lake Pedder but are calling for its restoration in a bid to reverse the global trend of destruction amid climate and biodiversity crisis. Concluding Bob Brown called on us all to get active in the inspiring campaign “….Trump is out and the UNs Decade of Ecosystem Restoration is in!”
The evening helped raise $3k for the campaign and build new relationships as we step into phase 2 of the campaign to restore Pedder.
An enormous THANKYOU for supporting and largely contributing to the success of the event is extended to the sponsors: Glaetzer-Dixon, Stefano Lubiana, Nandroya, MONA Moorilla Estate and Frogmore Creek
The Findings: Ecological Restoration Study Results and Discussion – October 27th, 2020
Dr Anita Wild joined Christine Milne, Professor Jamie Kirkpatrick and Todd Dudley, sharing and discussing Dr Wild’s Ecological Restoration Study results for Lake Pedder.
“I commend the thoroughness of the investigation of the strong potential to restore Lake Pedder as a globally outstanding functioning native ecosystem. Lake Pedder before being drowned was recognised as a globally exceptional landform. Its restoration as a functioning system would add significant natural value to the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area.” Distinguished Professor Jamie Kirkpatrick of University of Tasmania.
The ecological benefits study of the restoration of Lake Pedder in Tasmania’s South-West Wilderness were released in a webinar showing that the restoration of the Lake and surrounding areas is not only possible but would be a huge boost for the state.
Restoring Lake Pedder will enhance the ecological values of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area including increased Platypus habitat in the Serpentine Valley as well as for threatened flora species; the Pedder Bristlewort, Shortleaf Milligania and Dune Buttercup.
The iconic beach and dune system remains intact. The study also reveals following dewatering, the hydrology of Lake Pedder will likely be similar to what it was prior to the creation of the reservoir; the water runoff processes and rates will initially differ until vegetation cover establishes.
“This is fantastic news for all Tasmanians showing the potential of putting Tasmania at the forefront of restoring the wild at the beginning of the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration.” Christine Milne AO, Convenor of the Restoration Committee.
In late September the North East Bioregional Network held a webinar gathering 9 speakers from Australia and abroad to share and celebrate ecosystem restoration in the lead up to 2021-2030, the United Nations declared Decade of Ecosystem Restoration.
Restore Pedder’s Restoration Ecologist, Dr. Anita Wild, also previewed her restoration scoping study for Lake Pedder.
Remembering Brenda Head: Virtual Film Night – September 8th, 2020
On the 8th September 1972 Brenda Hean and Max Price took off from Hobart Airport in a Tiger Moth aircraft bound for Canberra to skywrite “Save Lake Pedder” over the nation’s capital. They never made it and the case remains an unsolved mystery.
48 years later, 8th of September 2020, more than one hundred people came together from across the country to remember the formidable Lake Pedder campaigner Brenda Hean. It was a beautiful evening that helped raise over $2000 for the current restoration campaign. Along with a virtual screening of the film ‘Whatever Happened to Brenda Hean?’, never before seen footage captured by celebrated videographer Charles Pierre Donnelly ACS (Peter), emerged. It was the last documentation of Brenda and Max as the Tiger Moth departed Hobart’s Cambridge airport on that fateful day in 1972.
Lake Pedder Restoration Committee extends its appreciation to Screen Australia, Film Victoria and Rob Purves AM who invested in the documentary “Whatever Happened to Brenda Hean” and to Scott Millwood, Michael McMahon and the Hean family for their support of this event.
Olegas Truchanas Film Night – 20th May 2020
315 people joined us in a very special virtual screening of Olegas Truchanas original Lake Pedder slideshow. Originally the slideshow was presented in the 60’s with the intent to raise awareness of the largely unknown ‘empty quarter’ (Tasmania’s South-West Wilderness), rallying public support to save Lake Pedder. Olegas, with the assistance of Ralph Hope-Johnstone, set the slides to Fredrick Delius’s tune ‘Brigg Fair’ and presented it to packed town hall’s across the state. Our 2020 virtual screening was as emotive and inspiring as those in the 60’s. Bob Brown and Christine Milne presented the evening, which included reflections on the ‘Save Pedder’ campaign’s inception from Dr Bob Walker and Karen Alexander, two key campaigners from then to the present. Another enormous thank you must be given to Melva Truchanas and her family for so generously allowing the screening, and their enduring support of the campaign. The night’s donations totaled over $7000! Funds raised will be used to support the rapidly growing campaign as we prepare to enter the UN’s decade of ecological restoration.
2020 Paddle for Pedder Video Launch – 22nd April 2020 (Earth Day)
For the 50th celebration of Earth Day, the Restore Pedder community came together, virtually, to launch the 2020 Paddle for Pedder clip and recent footage taken of the original beach, still in tact, 15m below the impoundment surface. Following this a short Q&A session was held with Christine Milne and expedition leaders Andy Szollosi and Gordon Henry along with film makers Rob Blakers and Lykke Olsen.
2020 Paddle for Pedder – March 1st 2020
Paddling for the Restoration of Lake Pedder; eleven kayakers embarked on a 25km return trip to the site of the original lake, where they raisied a banner over the submerged beach, calling for restoration of Lake Pedder and the surrounding environs. A slightly larger group of Paddlers undertook a shorter 8km trip around Scotts Peak.
Meanwhile, at the Pedder Wilderness Lodge, 20+ restoration supporters gathered for a ‘Walk and Talk’ with Restore Pedder co-convenors Christine Milne and Todd Dudley, who were joined in discussion by visiting US eco health academic James Arson and restoration ecologist Dr Anita Wild.
Click here to view the full press release, gallery and reflections.
ROV Submersible mission to original Lake Pedder – 20th Feb 2020
In February a team visited the Pedder impoundment, sending a Remote Operated Vehicle submersible 14 meters into the dark waters below, to the site of the original Lake Pedder.
Pieces of quartzite, which defined the geologically iconic beach, are still visible through a thin layer of sediment, while the root system of the scrub along the eastern shore has, remarkably, held the dune system in place to survive inundation nearly 50 years ago.
‘Lake Pedder – journey to restoration’ Exhibition & Auction – Sidespace Gallery 29 Oct – 4 Nov 2019
Over the course of the week more than 400 people visited the exhibition, as well as the many more who attended the numerous associated panels and auction with helped raise $20,000k for the campaign. The Sidespace Galleries walls were adorned with emotive, mystical images, photos, paintings and media clippings of lost heart of Tasmania’s South-West Wilderness, Lake Pedder.Pieces came from an impressive range of famed Tasmanian artists: Olegas Truchanas, Patricia Giles, Margaret Forsyth, Max Angus, Elspeth Vaughan, Ralph Hope-Johnstone with Diane Masters, Philip England, Andy Szollosi, David R. Blühdorn, Steven Crump and Dan Broun.
The exhibition was a momentous event for the campaign, demonstrating the rapid growth of community support behind restoring Lake Pedder.
Revisit the exhibition online here
Pedder Pub Talk: Why Pedder, Why Now – Ferntree Tavern 26 September 2019
A bustling and inquisitive crowd at the Fern Tree tavern shared in learning the practicalities of restoring Pedder, the campaign history and that of the Hydro. With insights and knowledge from a formidable panel; Bob Brown, Christine Milne, Chris Harries and Dr Anita Wild. The night MC’d by Leanne Minshull. Re-watch the discussion here.
Chuffed Fundraiser – $20,000 raised during September 2019
WildMinds ‘Saving the Earth:Next Steps’ – WildIsland, 21 August 2019
Restore Pedder Project officer Jessica Robbins join Millie Rooney at Wild Island speaking on progressive collaboration to help shape a sustainable thriving future on earth – watch their inspiring discussion here.
Paddle for Pedder – 22nd April 2019 (Earth Day!)
Inclement South West weather tested a dozen kayakers on the inaugural Paddle for Pedder. Paddling 25km return to the location of the submerged Lake Pedder and its iconic beach the intrepid crew lifted the ‘Restore Pedder’ banner over the sacred site as the campaign and community support to the restoration of Pedder, and her surrounding environs, grows amid climate and biodiversity crisis’s.
Pozible Crowd Funder – $30,000 Raised during March 2019
From the Film Night through to mid March the committee ran a highly successful crowdfunder, raising funds (and growing support) enabling the restoration committee to commence engaging with experts (scientific, legal, hydrologists and engineers) in the first steps of compiling the restoration management plan.
Restore Pedder Film Night – State Cinema, 27 February 2019
A sold out crowd celebrated the launch of the ‘Restore Pedder’ campaign. Thanks to the support from Patagonia the crowd enjoyed a special screening of ‘Dam Nation‘ followed by Q&A with campaign co-convenors Christine Milne and Todd Dudley, secretary Bob Brown and restoration ecologist Dr Anita Wild.
Restore Lake Pedder 