Arkaroola Protection Area

Following the public outcry that resulted from Marathon Resources' misconduct in the Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary—including the illegal dumping of many tonnes of exploration waste in shallow pits—the South Australian Government promised to introduce legislation to ban all mining activities in the sanctuary, with the Premier stating that "we have decided to give the region unprecedented protection". The protected area was established in 2012 by the Arkaroola Protection Act 2012 "to provide for the proper management and care of the area; and to prohibit mining activities in the area". The protection area is reported as satisfying the definition of a "category II National Park". ==Description==

Arkaroola Protection Area is located about north of the Adelaide city centre, in South Australia. Arkaroola was described by geologist and Antarctic explorer Sir Douglas Mawson as "one great open-air museum". covers an area of about . The former of the two leases, which has not been stocked since the mid-1980s, is operated for the purpose of conservation and tourism under the name Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary. Mount Freeling station is to the north of Arkaroola. Distinctive geographic features within the Arkaroola Protection Area include: • Arkaroola Waterhole • "Sitting Bull" (), named by Mawson in 1945 • Freeling Heights () • The Armchair () • Sillers Lookout () • Mount Painter () • Mount Gee () ==Geological and paleontological significance==

The Arkaroola Protection Area is part of the Flinders Ranges geological successions where abundant and diverse arrays of fossils show how animal life began on Earth over a period of 350 million years. As the Earth warmed in the period after the Sturt glaciation, barrier reefs were formed offshore by microorganisms at Kingsmill Creek Gorge. The ancient reefs at Arkaroola and in the Vulkathunha-Gammon Ranges National Park are some of the earliest barrier reefs on the planet, and pre-date the Ediacaran biota by around 90 million years. The Arkaroola Reef and Oodnaminta Reef may have been part of a single large platform, later split by the Paralana Fault. The nomination will be voted on in 2026. ==See also==