Wittenoom Memorial Update

In 2021, the ADSA launched a community education campaign to discourage visitors to the closed mining town of Wittenoom, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. After disturbing images were flashed across social media of ‘adventure tourists’ playing in the deadly dust of Wittenoom, we decided to monitor this behaviour and develop a communications strategy that would get the message through that there is no safe level of asbestos exposure, especially in relation to contracting incurable mesothelioma cancer. It appears that many people today are unaware of Wittenoom’s legacy - that it continues to kill. Sadly, we know the death toll from Wittenoom won’t stop, until the visitors stop.

To read more about the Wittenoom Community Education Campaign, click here. For regular campaign updates, follow us on Facebook or sign up for our email newsletter.
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We recently hosted an online petition for a permanent memorial to be erected in Karijini National Park with the names of the thousands of Wittenoom workers, residents, traditional owners and their family members who lost their lives to asbestos-related diseases.

As the time between initial asbestos exposure and the onset of symptoms is usually 20 to 50 years, we will also be allocating space on the memorials for the hundreds, even thousands, of victims that have yet to be diagnosed.

We hope these memorials will create a beautiful place for loved ones to reflect and grieve. We also hope it will act as a deterrent for those tempted to visit Wittenoom. To read more about the petition, click here.