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North Kimberley subregion overview and future directions Kimberley regional water plan working discussion paper Looking after all our water needs Department of Water October 2009 Department of Water 168 St Georges Terrace Perth Western Australia 6000 Telephone +61 8 6364 7600 Facsimile +61 8 6364 7601 www.water.wa.gov.au © Government of Western Australia 2009 September 2009 This work is copyright. You may download, display, print and reproduce this material in unaltered form only (retaining this notice) for your personal, non- commercial use or use within your organisation. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, all other rights are reserved. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the Department of Water. ISBN 978-1-921675-10-2 (online) This discussion paper forms part of the Department of Water Kimberley regional water plan process. We have divided the Kimberley into six subregions: Ord catchment, Fitzroy catchment, and the Dampier Peninsula, North Kimberley, La Grange, and Desert subregions. As a working draft for the North Kimberley subregion, this paper requires review and input from stakeholders. It may contain omissions or outdated information so it should not be cited or used for other purposes outside of this planning process. The key issues identified in this draft paper have been drawn from a range of documents, forums and discussion with stakeholders. Coverage of these issues may not be comprehensive, so they will be reconsidered after consultation with key stakeholder groups. This discussion paper, and feedback provided by stakeholders, will be reworked and incorporated into the final Kimberley regional water plan. Disclaimer: The Department of Water is committed to quality service to its customers and makes every attempt to ensure accuracy, currency and reliability of the data contained in this document. However, changes in circumstances after time of publication may impact the quality of this information. If you would like to provide input please contact: Susie Williams – Department of Water, Kimberley region Tel: + 61 8 9166 4100 Email: [email protected] Postal address: PO Box 625, Kununurra WA 6743. Kimberley regional water plan working discussion paper Contents 1 Introduction..............................................................................................................1 2 Regional setting.......................................................................................................2 3 Natural values .........................................................................................................5 3.1 Water resources...............................................................................................................8 4 Current water use and management .......................................................................9 5 Stakeholder overview ............................................................................................10 6 Planning processes and current initiatives ............................................................11 6.1 Issues of significance.....................................................................................................12 Water management and planning..........................................................................................................12 High-conservation-value waterways ......................................................................................................13 6.2 Policy development and future directions.......................................................................13 6.3 The planning process — next steps...............................................................................15 Appendices................................................................................................................17 References ................................................................................................................24 Appendices Appendix A — An overview of key stakeholder groups in the North Kimberley subregion ..............................................................................................................17 Appendix B — Aboriginal communities of the North Kimberley .................................21 Appendix C — Pastoral stations in the North Kimberley............................................22 Appendix D — Government policy and legislation.....................................................23 Figures Figure 1 Pastoral stations and Aboriginal communities located within the North Kimberley planning boundary .............................................................3 Figure 2 Wild rivers and Department of Environment and Conservation estates within the North Kimberley planning boundary ...................................6 Figure 3 Aboriginal reserves and native title determinations within the North Kimberley planning boundary. ............................................................7 Tables Table 1 Key objectives for the North Kimberley subregion ............................14 Department of Water iii Kimberley regional water plan working discussion paper 1 Introduction The area referred to as the North Kimberley subregion in this discussion paper is situated between Derby and Wyndham, extending along the Gibb River Road and extending north to the coast as shown in Figure 1. This area has seen a change in land management practices over the last 10 years, with the growth of tourism ventures, expansion of cultural and environmental conservation areas, and prospective expansion of mineral resource development. Increases in tourism and the spread of weeds and feral animals has resulted in increased pressure being placed upon the region’s waterways, many of which have high conservation values. The aims of this paper are to: 1 describe the current status of water use and management in the North Kimberley subregion 2 identify key people and groups 3 identify issues facing water management in the subregion for the future 4 suggest future directions and ways forward, to manage and resolve identified issues. This paper forms part of the consultation process for the Department of Water’s regional water plan, contributing to a framework for water management in the Kimberley that clearly recognises and builds upon the significant progress already made by the community, local stakeholders, government and other organisations. Department of Water 1 North Kimberley subregion overview and future directions 2 Regional setting The North Kimberley subregion covers approximately 17 185 square kilometres within the Timor Sea drainage division. The area has a tropical monsoonal climate with rain predominantly falling in the wet season between October and April, during which the region receives 90 per cent of its annual rainfall. The Gibb River Road is the main access route through the North Kimberley, with the subregion spanning the shires of Derby, West Kimberley and Wyndham, East Kimberley. In 2001 there were 1345 people living in the subregion which is less than five per cent of the total Kimberley population of 32 700 (ABS 2001), of which 74% are Aboriginal. The North Kimberley subregion has 32 Aboriginal communities and outstations (Figure 1) which incorporates 19 key language groups with many more localised, overlapping dialects. In addition, there are four native title claimant groups in the subregion. The Wanjina Wunggurr Wilinggin claim was determined in 2005 and the Dambimangari, Uunguu and Balanggarra claims are in progress. There are 31 pastoral stations located within the North Kimberley subregion, some of which are only partly included in the study area (as the stations extend outside the subregional boundary – Figure 1). Cattle production is the predominant land use with approximately half of the pastoral leases operating various-scale tourism ventures as a secondary form of income. Aboriginal corporations own seven of these stations and have plans to develop cattle and tourism enterprises. Pastoral leases in the Kimberley, which have existed for many years, will come up for renewal in 2015. The state government has recently carried out a process to identify key parcels of land for excision during the lease renewal process, mostly for expanding the region’s conservation estate. The regional economy is primarily supported by pastoralism and tourism, with a significant local customary economy (including, fishing, hunting, knowledge exchange, language and cultural maintenance as examples) being critical for many Aboriginal communities. 2 Department of Water Kimberley regional water plan working discussion paper Figure 1 Pastoral stations and Aboriginal communities located within the North Kimberley planning boundary A number of reports have documented land use and management pressures facing the North Kimberley. Most of these have focused on the impact of increased tourism activity associated with the Gibb River Road and growing coastal tourism. Examples of these reports include: • Tourism and the Kimberley coastal waterways: environmental and cultural aspects of expedition cruising (Scherre, Smith & Dowling 2008) Department of Water 3 North Kimberley subregion overview and future directions • Independent travellers in the North Kimberley – Benefits, impacts and management challenges (Greiner et al. 2005) • The relationship between landholders and tour operators – An investigation of the areas adjoining the Gibb river road in the North Kimberley (Greiner & Larson