A 30,000-year-old ochre mine in outback Western Australia has been granted national heritage status by the federal government, a move that will help protect the historic site from encroaching iron ore developments. The Wilgie Mia ochre mine in the Weld Range, northeast of Geraldton, is where Aborigines extracted red, yellow and green ochre, which was then traded across Australia, as far away as north Queensland. Read more
Wilgie Mia is an ochre mine in the Weld Range of Western Australia. Excavations have occurred for at least 40,000 years and 14 000 m³ of material has been removed, leading to suggestions that this is the world's oldest continuing mining operation. Read more