He could be the longest-serving councillor in the country but now he has decided to hang up his boots

The biggest Shire in the world will soon say goodbye to potentially the longest-serving councillor in the country when Lang Coppin OAM hangs up his boots in October. Cr Coppin, 73, has served on the Shire of East Pilbara council since 1977 and has announced he will retire after the upcoming election. Many within the Shire believe Cr Coppin is the longest-serving councillor in WA — and likely also the country. As a pastoralist, Cr Coppin ran the famous 10,000 head cattle Yarrie Station near Marble Bar He said the reason he was able to stay on the council for so long was because of his strong ties to agriculture. “A time comes when you have probably done your lap,” he said. “The reason why I have probably hung in for this long is because, for a lot of times, I was the only rural representative on the Shire. “At times we had two or three from an agricultural background but for many years I was the only one from an agricultural background. “Agriculture was getting pushed into the rubbish bin because of mining and all the rest of it.” The Coppin family are noted WA pastoralists with Christopher Coppin founding Yarrie Station in 1886. While the 250,000ha station is now run by his daughter, Cr Coppin also spends time working on a farm in Badgingarra. Outside of agriculture, Cr Coppin said advocating for better roads had been one of his priorities in the Pilbara. “One of my best achievements was linking the road from Marble Bar to Alice Springs,” he said. “That was one my my main projects I was working at for many years and it took a long time to get that road across there. “That was the best satisfaction to link the road from Marble Bar to Alice Springs.” In 2013 Cr Coppin was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for his service to the East Pilbara. He was a founding member of the Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association Pilbara, which ensures geographically isolated children receive equal access to education. Although he is retiring, Cr Coppin said if the Shire did something he didn’t approve of, he would be the first to raise his voice.