Woodsreef Mine

The Woodsreef Mine is a former chrysotile (white asbestos) mine and mill located near Barraba in New South Wales, Australia. It operated from 1971 to 1983 and produced roughly half a million tonnes of asbestos fiber, leaving behind approximately 75 million tonnes of mine tailings that remain on site. It is one of the largest abandoned asbestos mines in the Southern Hemisphere and a recognized source of environmental asbestos exposure.

Origin

The mine takes its name from the Woodsreef serpentinite body, a chrysotile-bearing geological formation in the New England region of New South Wales. Commercial production began in 1971 under Chrysotile Corporation of Australia and ceased in 1983 when global demand for asbestos collapsed and operations became uneconomic.

Significance in Asbestos Context

For patients with asbestos-related disease in Australia (particularly those who lived in or worked near Barraba, the broader New England region, or who handled Woodsreef chrysotile downstream), identifying Woodsreef as a fiber source can be important for both exposure history and provenance analysis. Chrysotile from Woodsreef has distinctive mineralogical features (including associated tremolite contamination in some ore zones) that experts can sometimes link to lung-tissue fiber burden studies. The site is also a documented source of community and bystander exposure: tailings were used locally as road base, school yard fill, and on driveways, meaning exposure histories may extend well beyond former mine workers to families, students, and residents.

Example Sentence

Her occupational history showed three years working at the Woodsreef Mine mill in the late 1970s, which her treating team and legal experts identified as the most likely source of her mesothelioma decades later.

Related Terms

Chrysotile, Tremolite, Serpentinite, Tailings, Provenance Analysis, Bystander Exposure

Notes

• If you or a family member lived in Barraba or surrounding areas during or after the mine's operation, document the addresses and years. Environmental exposure from tailings used in local infrastructure is a recognized pathway.
• Ask former workers' family members to preserve payslips, employment records, union records, or photographs from Woodsreef or Chrysotile Corporation of Australia; these documents are often decisive in Australian dust diseases claims.
• Tell your doctor and legal team specifically about any Woodsreef connection, including secondary exposure (laundering a worker's clothes, visiting the site, or playing on tailings), as this can affect both clinical workup and the entities named in a claim.
• In Australia, claims may be pursued through state dust diseases tribunals (such as the NSW Dust Diseases Tribunal); time limits and procedures differ from general personal injury claims, so seek specialist advice early.