Magazine of National Parks Association of Queensland cape york national parks canyon survey undara volcanic national park blackdown tablelands walks blushwood the national park experience Issue 3 June-July 2015 1 Welcome to the Contents June/July edition of Welcome to Protected 2 Protected Cape York Tenure Resolution Process 3 Canyon Survey 6 Michelle Prior, NPAQ President Undara National Park 8 Blackdown Tableland walks 10 A draft decision from the United Nations Blushwood 12 conservation agency UNESCO has recommended that the Great Barrier The National Park Experience 13 Reef not be placed on the World What’s On 14 Heritage ‘In Danger’ list. Whilst this Letter to the Editor 15 provides relief for the Australian and Queensland governments, it remains to be seen if this recent ‘scare’ will Council result in appropriate actions being President Michelle Prior undertaken to provide sufficient relief to Vice Presidents Tony O’Brien the reef. UNESCO flagged concerns Athol Lester about the poor outlook for the reef, and Hon Secretary Debra Marwedel recommended that the reef be placed Asst Hon Secret Yvonne Parsons on the watch list for two years. Hon Treasurer Graham Riddell Councillors Julie Hainsworth This edition of Protected takes Geoff Lowes us to Central, North and Far North Peter Ogilvie Queensland. National parks in Richard Proudfoot Des Whybird Queensland capture areas of natural Mike Wilke and cultural significance, and highlight the biological and geological diversity of Staff our large state. Principle Advocate Paul Donatiu The feature article describes the Business Development Officer land tenure reform in Far North Anna Tran Queensland arising from conservation Project and Office Administrator and Indigenous cooperation. This Jeannie Rice reform delivered new national parks to Queensland, whilst simultaneously Mission Statement assisting the return of land back to The National Parks Association Traditional Owners. promotes the preservation, expansion, appropriate management and The second article provides the context presentation of National Parks in Qld. for, and gives a summary of, what was found during the recent survey of Contact Details Unit 10/36 Finchley Street, Milton The Canyon National Reserve System PO Box 1040, Milton QLD 4064 property near Forsayth in the Einasleigh ABN: 60 206 792 095 Uplands. This and 11 other properties Phone: (07) 3367 0878 Web: www.npaq.org.au remain ungazetted as national parks. Email: [email protected] Far North Queensland trumps again Disclaimer with the finding of the magical cancer Articles in Protected do not necessarily reflect curing berry of the Blushwood tree, the opinion or position of the National Parks which grows only in FNQ. Association of Queensland. The marvels of the volcanic Undara Advertising enquiries National Park are under the spotlight, [email protected] including the wonders of one of the world’s longest lava tube cave systems Images Cover - Starke Coastal Wetlands (Kerry Trapnell) in the world. Page 2 strip - Butterflies on eucalypt flowers at The Canyon property (Sheena Gillman). 2 CAPE YORK TENURE RESOLUTION PROCESS Andrew Picone Northern Australia Campaigner Australian Conservation Foundation The Cape York tenure resolution These changes provided a unique potential World Heritage significance. balance between protection in program is one of the most New beginnings for old parks successful and longest running perpetuity while still accommodating land use and conservation Traditional Owner rights and interests Across Cape York, all national parks planning processes in Australia. under Native Title legislation. This declared since the 1970s are being Since 1995, the Queensland became the basis for allowing Australia’s returned to Aboriginal ownership and Government has returned first Aboriginal owned and managed re-named by local Traditional Owner 3,225,000 hectares of land on national parks. groups. Cape York Peninsula back to A new chapter in Australia’s The first of the old parks to be returned Aboriginal ownership including National Parks was the 37,000 hectare Mitchell-Alice 1,933,958 hectares of jointly Rivers National Park declared in 1977. Reflecting the changes to legislation, managed National Parks and over Back then, little consideration was given National Park CYPAL – Cape York one million hectares of Aboriginal to the Traditional Owners, the Kunjen Peninsula Aboriginal Land – provided freehold. and Oykangand, many of who reside in a unique tenure that allowed joint the nearby community of Kowanyama. Background management of national park between In 2009 it was renamed Errk Oykangand Traditional Owners and the Queensland The process was born out of the early National Park (CYPAL) and is now jointly Government. campaigns to prevent the sale of the managed. Starcke and Silver Plains pastoral The first national park under these new Since then, the once familiar names stations to foreign developers. legislative arrangements was declared of the old national parks across the as Lama Lama National Park (CYPAL) Out of these campaigns, the Cape York region have followed suit. Over the last in 2008 in the country around Princess Land Council, Australian Conservation four years Lakefield became Rinyirru, Charlotte Bay on Cape York’s east Foundation, The Wilderness Society Mungkan Kandju became Oyala- coast. That same year also saw one and the Cattlemen’s Union reached Thumotang and Iron Range became of the most significant conservation agreement with the signing of the Cape Kutini-Payamu National Parks. The outcomes on Cape York for many years. York Heads of Agreement in 1996. re-naming is an important aspect of the Signing on to the Agreement in 2001, With the support of the Kaanju, Umpila, return of the parks and the recognition of the Queensland Government began Lama Lama and Ayapathu Traditional their cultural significance. Jardine River acquiring the most important properties Owner groups the rainforests of the is the final remaining park to transferred throughout Cape York to protect their McIlwraith Range were protected in the across to the CYPAL tenure. KULLA National Park (CYPAL). Together natural and cultural values. Additions Righting a wrong were made to existing national parks with the Iron Range rainforests, they during this period, including Cape comprise some of the most extensive, Importantly, steps were taken in 2011, Melville, but it was not until amendments diverse and least disturbed forests of before the transfer of Mungkan Kandju were made to the Nature Conservation their type in Australia. Scientifically they National Park back to Traditional Act 1992 and the introduction of the are recognised as unique examples of Owners, to put right what then Premier Cape York Peninsula Heritage Act 2007 overlapping South East Asian flora of Anna Bligh described as “a shameful that the Cape’s national park estate more modern ancestry and the more chapter in Queensland’s history”. began its transformation. ancient Australian and New Guinean When Queensland Premier Joh Bjelke- flora and fauna; all contributing to their Petersen declared Archer Bend National 3 4 Park in 1977, which later became part needed protection. Together with the deliver. of Mungkan Kandju, his motivation was Queensland Government the Olkola Since 1994 the Queensland and not conservation. John Koowarta and declared the Alwal National Park Federal Governments have spent a number of his fellow Wik Mungkan (CYPAL), named after the endangered around $48 million on the strategic countrymen sought to purchase the golden-shouldered parrot which inhabits acquisition of properties for cultural Archer Bend pastoral holding in 1974. the area. and natural conservation values. While This land was part of the Wik Mungkan In December 2014, the historic there have been substantial outcomes people’s traditional homelands. They hand-back of five pastoral properties over the last twenty years, a number had maintained a strong connection totalling 633,630 hectares brought the of very significant properties remain with their country by working and living Olkola people’s total land-holdings to subject to ongoing negotiation and on the Archer Bend property for many 766,272 hectares, which is most of their await return to Traditional Owners. This years. ancestral homelands. It was also one includes the iconic Shelburne Bay Despite a legal right to purchase of the largest single handovers in recent and former Bromley lease. Both have the land which the Wik Mungkan history. The deal included one of the substantial conservation and cultural successfully took to the High Court, largest national park declarations since values and have come perilously close Bjelke-Petersen prevented the sale by 2008. The new 269,630 hectare Olkola to destructive development from sand declaring the Archer Bend National Park. National Park (CYPAL) protects ancient mining and the infamous Cape York For the last 30 years, many Aboriginal bora-grounds, rock art and many other spaceport. people saw this as an example of how cultural values important to the Olkola The return of these lands back to their protected areas can serve as another people. Extensive wetlands, rare Traditional Owners under the terms of form of dispossession. and unique tall open forests, remnant the Cape’s unique tenure resolution rainforest refugia and vast tracts of In 2011, 75,854 hectares of the former process provides multiple benefits intact savannah woodlands are also Archer Bend section of Mungkan Kandju across social, cultural, economic and conserved. These habitats also support was revoked from the park’s former environmental imperatives. populations of the critically endangered 456,000 hectares. Of the revoked golden-shouldered parrot and many area, 32,000 hectares became a nature other rare and threatened species of refuge to protect the extensive monsoon flora and fauna. and riverine rainforests of the Archer River demonstrating the Traditional Sticking with a good process Owner’s goodwill and commitment to The process was created to provide conservation. land use certainty through the Charting new ground and re- identification, acquisition and protection making history of areas of high natural and cultural significance.