“We Used to Get our Water Free…” Identification and Protection of Aboriginal Cultural Values of the Pilbara Region Contract No. 7-57044-3 A Study and Report prepared for the Water and Rivers Commission of Western Australia by Hilary Rumley & Kim Barber April 2004 Table of Contents FOREWORD............................................................................................................................................4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY..........................................................................................................................5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS............................................................................................................................7 ACRONYMS ...........................................................................................................................................8 LIST OF MAPS........................................................................................................................................9 1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................10 1.1 AIMS OF THE STUDY ......................................................................................................................10 1.2 THE PROJECT OBJECTIVES.............................................................................................................11 1.3 WA GOVERNMENT AND ATSIC AGREEMENT 2001 ......................................................................12 2. THE STUDY AREA.........................................................................................................................12 2.1 GEOGRAPHY, CLIMATE AND POPULATION CENTERS .....................................................................12 Map 1. Pilbara Region, Surface Water ..........................................................................................14 Map 2. Pilbara Region, Ground Water ..........................................................................................14 2.2 ABORIGINAL GROUPS WITH RIGHTS AND INTERESTS IN THE STUDY AREA....................................16 Map 3. Aboriginal Languages (Tribal Boundaries), Pilbara Region.............................................17 Map 4. ATSIC Pilbara Region........................................................................................................17 2.3 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND WATER .......................................................................................18 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND PROCESS ......................................................................18 4. THE PILBARA: AN ANTHROPOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL OVERVIEW ..................22 4.1 ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL DATA ..................................................................................22 4.2 PASTORALISM, PEARLING AND EARLY MINING ............................................................................25 4.4 LARGER SCALE CHANGES ..............................................................................................................27 Map 5. Pilbara Region, Pastoral Leases........................................................................................29 Map 6. Pilbara Region, Registered Aboriginal Sites (as at November 2003) and Mining Tenements.......................................................................................................................................30 5. ABORIGINAL CULTURAL, SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC VALUES OF WATER SOURCES ................................................................................................................................................................32 6. WATER USE ISSUES .....................................................................................................................37 6.1 DAMS ............................................................................................................................................37 6.2 WATER LICENSING ........................................................................................................................41 6.3 ACCESS .........................................................................................................................................43 6.4 WATER POLLUTION .......................................................................................................................44 6.5 EROSION........................................................................................................................................44 6.6 WRC REPORTS..............................................................................................................................45 6.7 EXISTING MECHANISMS OF GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND PRIVATE SECTOR ORGANISATIONS PROTECTING WATER DEPENDENT ABORIGINAL CULTURAL VALUES AND RELATING TO ABORIGINAL PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES ................................................................................................................46 6.7.1 Water Corporation (WC).......................................................................................................47 6.7.2 Pilbara Development Commission (PDC).............................................................................48 6.7.3 Conservation and Land Management (CALM)......................................................................48 6.7.4 Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR)..................................................49 6.7.5 Shire of Roebourne ................................................................................................................50 6.7.6 Ove Arup................................................................................................................................50 7. EXISTING GUIDELINES AND PROTOCOLS...........................................................................53 7.1 STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT.......................................................................................................53 7.2 ‘CONSULTING CITIZENS: ENGAGING WITH ABORIGINAL WESTERN AUSTRALIANS’......................54 8. RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................................................................................56 9. APPENDICES ..................................................................................................................................59 2 APPENDIX 9.1 LETTER WRITTEN TO ABORIGINAL ORGANISATIONS AND COMMUNITIES IN THE PILBARA ............................................................................................................................................................59 APPENDIX 9.2 LIST OF ABORIGINAL AGENCIES, CORPORATIONS & COMMUNITIES SENT LETTER RE STUDY .................................................................................................................................................61 APPENDIX 9.3 LETTER WRITTEN TO GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND PRIVATE SECTOR ORGANISATIONS ............................................................................................................................................................63 APPENDIX 9.4 LIST OF GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND PRIVATE SECTOR ORGANISATIONS TO WHICH RELEVANT LETTER SENT:- ...................................................................................................................65 APPENDIX 9.5 NOTICE OF COMMUNITY MEETING IN SOUTH HEDLAND ..............................................66 APPENDIX 9.6 ‘ABORIGINAL SITES AND THE FORTESCUE RIVER, NORTH WEST OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA,’ PALMER, K. 1977 ARCHAEOLOGY AND PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY IN OCEANIA, VOL X11, NO. 3, PP 4-8 .......................................................................................................................................67 APPENDIX 9.7 OVE ARUP DOCUMENT (A) 2003 ESSENTIAL SERVICE OPERATOR - EMPLOYMENT & TRAINING INITIATIVE [A KEY COMPONENT OF THE REMOTE AREA ESSENTIAL SERVICES PROGRAM (RAESP)]............................................................................................................................................73 APPENDIX 9.8 OVE ARUP DOCUMENT (B) REMOTE AREA ESSENTIAL SERVICES PROGRAM (RAESP) SUMMARY ...........................................................................................................................................78 APPENDIX 9.9 OVE ARUP DOCUMENT (C) CODE OF CONDUCT (RAESP PROJECTS)...........................81 APPENDIX 9.10 STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT TO A NEW AND JUST RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA AND ABORIGINAL WESTERN AUSTRALIANS........................83 A COMMITMENT TO A NEW AND JUST RELATIONSHIP.........................................................................83 PRINCIPLES ........................................................................................................................................84 AGREEMENT IN GOOD FAITH .............................................................................................................84 PARTNERSHIP FRAMEWORK ..............................................................................................................84 STRUCTURE FOR CONTINUING DIALOGUE.........................................................................................85 APPENDIX 9.11 PROTOCOL AWARENESS (FROM DRAFT ‘CONSULTING CITIZENS: ENGAGING WITH ABORIGINAL WESTERN AUSTRALIANS’ (P26-27)................................................................................87 10. BIBLIOGRAPHY...........................................................................................................................89