The petition is being delivered to Parliament by Forest & Bird Denniston campaign lead Scott Burnett, who says the plateau is home to globally important ecosystems and rare native species found nowhere else in the world. The Denniston Plateau, located north of Westport, is internationally recognised for its ancient sandstone landscape, extensive wetlands and unique biodiversity. Conservation groups say that heightened public awareness is also reflected in the strong support for the Denniston petition. Forest & Bird maintains the plateau’s environmental significance outweighs the economic case for further extraction, saying once these ecosystems are damaged they cannot be recreated. For Forest & Bird, the message is straightforward: some places are simply too precious to mine.