Why is the Franklin River famous?
The Franklin River in Tasmania's southwest is famous for the 1982-83 campaign that stopped a hydroelectric dam from flooding it, a turning point for Australian environmental protection.
The Tasmanian Hydro-Electric Commission planned to build a dam below the junction of the Franklin and Gordon rivers. Conservationists, led by Bob Brown and the Tasmanian Wilderness Society, launched a campaign to save the river.
Thousands of protesters blockaded the dam site in the summer of 1982-83, and around 1,200 people were arrested. A famous photograph of Rock Island Bend helped win public support.
The High Court decision
The federal government, newly elected in 1983, passed laws to stop the dam. In July 1983, the High Court ruled that the federal laws were valid because the area was World Heritage listed.
The case strengthened federal powers over the environment. The river now flows freely within Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park.
Rafting the Franklin is one of the world's great wilderness river journeys, taking around a week through gorges and rapids.
Did You Know?
Bob Brown later became leader of the Australian Greens.