A Photographic Diary: Two weeks on the Franklin River blockade February 21 to March 4, 1983

Ian Wright’s photographic memoir of the Franklin River blockade is a … vital record of the life of the river-savers and the community of people from all over the nation who came to remote nature’s aid in such lethal (for the river) circumstances. ~Bob Brown

In 1978 the Tasmanian Hydro Electric Commission announced plans to create a hydro-electric dam on the Gordon River near its junction with the Franklin River, in South West Tasmania.

The dam-building proposal ultimately led to the greatest environmental protest ever seen in Australia; a protest planned and coordinated by the Tasmanian Wilderness Society. Global voices lent their support and ultimately the dam was stopped.

A key element of the protest was non-violent-action to disrupt work at the dam site on the Gordon River that resulted in hundreds of protesters being arrested. A protest base was established by the Tasmanian Wilderness Society near Strahan on a property affectionately named ‘Greenie Acres’.

This book is a personal account, richly illustrated with original, never before published photographs. The stunning photographs have an immediacy that enable the reader to share in the intense experience of being part of the blockade.