Print print page

Indigenous Matters

MCCN’s  guide to the resources, publications and contacts on marine and coastal issues for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. 

Coastal Land and Sea Management

Legislation
The Australian Government, Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts is responsible for various Commonwealth legislation that has an Indigenous element within them. They are:

Indigenous Protected Areas

An Indigenous protected area is an area of land in relation to which traditional Aboriginal owners have entered into a voluntary agreement for the purposes of promoting biodiversity and cultural resource conservation. 

The IPA Program is part of a broader national objective, the establishment of a comprehensive, adequate and representative National Reserve System. State, Territory and Australian Government agencies concerned with biodiversity conservation are working to identify good samples of Australia’s ecosystems which can be conserved and managed effectively in a National Reserve System. 

A scientific approach is being used to identify priorities for the establishment and management of new protected areas across Australia. The scientific approach has identified major gaps in the existing system of protected areas across Australia. It has shown many types of landscapes and ecosystems across Australia are poorly represented in the existing National Reserve System and that some such areas occur only on Indigenous owned lands.

More information: http://www.environment.gov.au 

Indigenous Land Management Facilitator Network 

Indigenous (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Australians are major stakeholders in the management and protection of Australia's natural and cultural resources. 

Many Indigenous communities across Australia are eligible for funding under the Commonwealth Grants Programmes administered by the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts – funded through the Natural Heritage Trust (NHT) and the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality (NAP). A national network of 13 Indigenous Land Management Facilitators helps Indigenous people address their land management needs, contribute to national objectives and access Commonwealth funding through the NHT/NAP. The Facilitators are funded by the Australian Government and are employed through regionally-based host agencies in each State and Territory. 

The Facilitators support Indigenous communities to access funding under the NHT/NAP, and build the capacity of these communities to implement initiatives supported by the NHT/NAP. 

This work includes a number of key activities: 

More information: http://www.environment.gov.au 

Coastal Land & Sea Country Programs and Projects

The following articles have been published in MCCN’s WAVES Indigenous Matters Issue, Vol 13, Number 2, 2007.  To obtain a hard copy of this issue, contact Racel at MCCN's national office or to download pdf version (approx 1MB) click here WAVES Magazine - Indigenous Matters Edition.

Other links: 

Carpentaria Ghost Nets Programme – Source: http://www.ghostnets.com.au 
Ghost nets are fishing nets that have been lost accidentally, deliberately discarded, or simply abandoned at sea. They travel the oceans of the world with the currents and tides continually fishing as they progress through the waters. As they are unattended and roaming, they fish indiscriminately, not only catching threatened species but undersized and protected fish as well. 

What is the Carpentaria Ghost Net Programme?
“The Ghost Net Project is for people from (Indigenous) communities all around the Gulf of Carpentaria to find ways to work together to get rid of marine debris in their sea country.”  Djawa Yunupingu, Dhimurru Land Management Aboriginal Corporation. 

In Northern Australia Indigenous Sea Rangers noted that many turtles were being captured in ghost nets that were washing up on the beaches. As much of this coastline is the breeding and foraging ground for 6 culturally and ecologically important species of marine turtle there was a real concern that so many were getting trapped and dying. 

The Rangers collaborated with other non-government organisations, calling themselves “the saltwater people”; a name which recognises the shared concerns & custodianship for marine wildlife. The project is managed by the Northern Gulf Resource Management Group (NGRMG) who received $A2M over a three year period from the Natural Heritage Trust, which is an Australian Government initiative to address issues relating to the management of our natural resources. 

The aim of the project is three fold:

More information: http://www.ghostnets.com.au

Guideline for Integrating Land and Sea Management for Council and Community Planning in the Torres Strait - http://www.lgaq.asn.au
The guide is produced by Local Government Association of Qld and aims to assist Torres Strait Island Councils to build land and sea management into all their plans. The guide is relevant to all levels of planning in Council – strategic, community,

operational and project plans. It includes an overview of opportunities and tools for land and sea management, and a clear case as to why land and sea management is core business for Councils. The guide is designed as a practical tool for Councils. It avoids highly technical explanations, and instead focuses on the ‘why and how’ of land and sea management for Councils. The Torres Strait Regional Authority particularly the Land and Sea Management Unit has an important role in supporting land and sea management.

National Native Title Tribunal - http://www.nntt.gov.au/about/
The National Native Title Tribunal (the Tribunal) works with people to develop an understanding of native title and reach enduring native title and related outcomes that recognise everyone's rights and interests in land and waters (see types of applications). It works in an impartial and fair way, taking into account the views and concerns of everyone involved in the native title process. Hundreds of agreements have been documented throughout Australia since the Tribunal was established in 1994.

The Tribunal is an independent Australian Commonwealth Government agency set up under the Native Title Act 1993 (Cwlth). It is part of the Attorney-General's portfolio and mediates native title claims under the direction of the Federal Court of Australia .

On request, the Tribunal may assist people in negotiations about proposed developments (future acts), such as mining. The Tribunal acts as an arbitrator or umpire in some situations where the people involved cannot reach agreement about proposed developments. The Tribunal also assists people who want to negotiate other sorts of agreements, such as indigenous land use agreements.

Fishing Bulletin

Indigenous Fishing Bulletin - http://www.nntt.gov.au
The Indigenous Fishing Bulletin aims to provide subscribers with a complimentary information service about significant issues relating to Indigenous fishing interests.