Antinuclear

Under Northern Territory legislation, the Watarrka national park has no real protection from oil and gas exploration or mining operations, according to David Morris, the principal lawyer of the NT Environmental Defenders Office (EDO).

The 105,200 hectares of land is under the custodianship of the Martutjarra-Luritja people and contains three Aboriginal living areas: Lila, Wanmarra and Ulpanyali. The park contains more than 600 species of plants and numerous native animals. It is culturally significant to Aboriginal people and continues to be a place of traditional observance, customs and ceremony.

On Tuesday about 30 traditional owners will file two applications with Hunt seeking to protect it.

One is an emergency application to protect the park against an exploration licence granted to Palatine Energy, which has indicated it would use the hydraulic fracturing process of extraction.

The second seeks a permanent declaration under the federal Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act to protect the area from mining “of all kinds” for the foreseeable future.

“The traditional owners have been very clear that they see any kind of resource extraction in the park as inconsistent with their obligations to continue managing it,” Morris told Guardian Australia.

“We’re talking about an area of land declared a national park jointly managed between Parks and the Aboriginal traditional owners, and recognised as a significant Aboriginal area in a place that’s particularly important in Aboriginal culture, but they don’t have that veto right which is associated with most other Aboriginal land.”

Watarrka was declared a national park in 1989, and in 2005 was scheduled under legislation as NT parks freehold land.

“The park’s land tenure provides a framework under which the traditional owners’ wishes can be undermined by the government of the day in the Northern Territory, despite having joint management rights,” the application, obtained by Guardian Australia, says. This land tenure has meant that Palatine’s application is still on foot, despite repeated requests to the government that it be refused.”…..

The application notes concerns by Aboriginal custodians, particularly around the use of scarce water resources, a reduction in groundwater levels and springs, potential contamination or weed introduction, and land-clearing in a “non-traditional manner”.

“Watarkka is one of the few places in the region where enduring water sources are found,” the application states.

“Those water sources support much of the bush tucker and animals that Aboriginal people continue to hunt and gather in accordance with their traditions. [Traditional owner] Marjorie Braedon stated during the preparation of this application that ‘water is the main thing that’s around there, I don’t know what happens if the water gets less, or gets messed up.’”……..

The Central Land Council (CLC) supported the traditional owners lodging the application and called on NT’s chief minister, Adam Giles, to clarify how proposed reforms to NT environmental regulation would protect the park.

“The traditional owners of the park have long voiced their strong and consistent opposition to the granting of exploration licenses to Palatine Energy covering the whole of the park,” said CLC director David Ross.

The CLC and traditional owners of the park will accept nothing less than a decision to protect the park for future generations by prohibiting exploration or mining within its boundaries.”……..http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2015/nov/24/indigenous-landowners-want-protection-from-mining-i-dont-know-what-happens-if-the-water-gets-messed-up