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Revisit the biggest environmental movement Australia has ever seen: the 1982 Franklin River Blockade. This story is nuts. Missing people, death threats, savage political moves, young people flooding into Tasmania to put their bodies in front of bulldozers. Host Jo Lauder investigates how this movement beat the odds and came to inspire a new generation of environmental activists that have shaped Australian politics through to today.

EPISODE 1

01 | A mystery in paradise, before the Franklin River fight

The fight to save the Franklin River started in a totally different part of Tasmania's wilderness: with a proposal to dam the paradise inland beach of Lake Pedder. In this episode of Saving the Franklin, a mystery disappearance and a devastating loss signal to campaigners just how far they'll have to go in the next battle.

34 min
EPISODE 2

02 | The battle lines: 'Greenies' vs workers

The Franklin Dam proposal symbolised a lifeline to struggling communities on Tasmania's West Coast, recovering from the end of a mining era. Yet for environmentalists, it symbolised destruction and greed. In this episode of Saving the Franklin, the battle lines are drawn between pro-dammers and environmentalists and the State Government is caught in the middle, until it's forced to act.

39 min
EPISODE 3

03 | Secret cave: a game-changing rediscovery no one expected

The campaigners had painted the Franklin River as an untouched natural wonder, a place free from human interference: a wilderness. But the rediscovery of a cave along the Franklin throws everything into question. The finding is so significant it reshapes modern understanding of human history – and it paves the way for a new strategy to save the River.

36 min
EPISODE 4

04 | 'All we had was our bodies': The blockade begins

In this episode of Saving the Franklin, thousands of protesters fly into the sleepy town of Strahan to prepare for the biggest moment in the campaign: the blockade. An army of national media descend, and the first bulldozer is taken upriver, for a shocking confrontation on the water.

34 min
EPISODE 5

05 | Threats, accusations and a Federal election

In this episode of Saving the Franklin, scenes on the West Coast get uglier and uglier, and the campaigners turn to the mainland for support as a Federal election looms.

32 min
EPISODE 6

06 | West Coast shockwaves; a new era for politics and protest

The Franklin river's fate all comes down to a legal challenge between state and federal powers. In the final episode of Saving the Franklin: the moment this so-called wilderness war all came to an end.

35 min
EPISODE 7

BONUS 1 | ‘Just keep going’: The persistent protestor, Christine Milne

Christine Milne is a name synonymous with the Greens in Australia, and for her, like so many others, her environmental career began after she was arrested at the Franklin blockade. In this extended interview, Christine takes us through the highs and lows of her career, and why she believes environmental activists should "just keep going".

29 min
EPISODE 8

BONUS 2 | The Palawa perspective: Michael Mansell

The Franklin campaign isn't just an environmental conservation story, it's also a story about Aboriginal heritage. Tasmanian Palawa man, activist and lawyer Michael Mansell talks to Piia Wirsu about this chapter in history, his experience growing up in a white Tasmanian society, and why he saw many of the Franklin activists as racist.
SEASON 3 TRAILER

INTRODUCING — Saving The Franklin

Australia's biggest-ever environmental battle was over a wild river in a remote part of Tasmania: the Franklin. Protesters flooded in from all over Australia to stop the Franklin River from being dammed for hydropower. They stood in front of bulldozers and were jailed for it. But for lots of locals, the dam represented a job opportunity at a time of economic crisis. This fight tore apart communities and captured the attention of the nation. Today, more people are concerned about the planet than ever before…so in a fight for the environment, this season of Dig investigates: What does it take to win?

3 min

See All Season 3 (9)

Revisit the biggest environmental movement Australia has ever seen: the 1982 Franklin River Blockade. This story is nuts. Missing people, death threats, savage political moves, young people flooding into Tasmania to put their bodies in front of bulldozers. Host Jo Lauder investigates how this movement beat the odds and came to inspire a new generation of environmental activists that have shaped Australian politics through to today.