KALGOORLIE (miningweekly.com) – The Western Australian government has repealed the much-maligned Aboriginal Cultural Heritage (ACH) laws, and has restored the original Aboriginal Heritage Act, but has added amendments to prevent another Juukan Gorge incident.

The new Aboriginal heritage laws were introduced on July 1 with the aim of modernising the systems that protect and manage cultural heritage in the state.

However, the Western Australian government on Tuesday said that after serious consideration and consultation, the decision was taken to reppeal the laws, saying the legislation "went too far" and was "too prescriptive and complicated".

“The Juukan Gorge tragedy was a global embarrassment, but our response was wrong, we took it too far, unintentionally causing stress, confusion and division in our community. I've been the Premier for eight weeks now, and it's obvious that we need to make changes, restore confidence in our cultural heritage system and get the balance right,” said Premier Roger Cook.

“The complicated regulations, the burden on landowners and the poor rollout of the new laws have been unworkable for all members of our community, and for that, I am sorry. The original intent of the legislative change nearly two years ago, was to prevent another Juukan Gorge, and my government will deliver on that commitment. 

"As Premier, I will always lead a government that listens, and governs in the interests of all Western Australians – we are here to help and to deliver responsible government,” Cook said.

“Western Australia is home to some of the world's oldest known Aboriginal cultural heritage; we want to preserve this into the future and ensure Western Australians can continue to live their lives and reach their full potential.

“We got the balance wrong, what we did hasn't worked, it's vital we manage cultural heritage in a common sense manner, so we can move forward together as a community,” the Premier said.

The government instead introduced the amendments to the previous Act that would see the newly formed Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Council take on the role of the previous committee to make recommendations to the Minister, while also giving proponents and native title parties the same right of review for Section 18 decisions.

The state government will commence a long-term plan over the next ten years to undertake heritage surveys of un-surveyed areas in high-priority areas of the State, with the consent of landowners. Surveys will be centrally held and published by government, and available to view by all land users. 

The cost recovery model introduced for proponents who need to submit a management plan to the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Council will also be replaced with a fairer and simpler model, to be established with industry in coming weeks.

The concept of Local Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Services will not continue, Cook said, instead support will be provided to existing relevant Native Title groups, including the relevant prescribed body corporate, registered claimants or native title representative bodies, to improve capacity.

The resources sector on Tuesday said that the mining industry remained committed to working with the government to ensure cultural heritage areas were preserved.

“The resources sector has been working with government and stakeholders over the past five years to facilitate the implementation of the 2021 heritage regime and continues to be invested in achieving this goal,” Chamber of Minerals and Energy (CME) Western Australia CEO Rebecca Tomkinson said.

“Certainty of regulation is important to maintaining our state’s reputation as a safe and stable jurisdiction to invest.

“It was not unexpected that the new ACH framework would require modifications during implementation, and we welcomed government’s commitment to take action and address issues as they arise. 

“Similarly, the application of the amended Aboriginal Heritage Act must be informed by practical, on-the-ground experience of participants from all stakeholders to ensure it is workable. Ongoing consultation, adequate transition provisions and an educative approach will be critical,” Tomkinson said.

She said that the CME remained committed to working with the government to ensure there was a functional regime in place which ensured Aboriginal people had an active role in managing their own heritage while also providing certainty for sustainable industry development.

“The ultimate aim is for a balanced approach that safeguards heritage values and supports Western Australia’s economic growth and prosperity,” she said.

The Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (Amec) said that the new amendments proposed to the previous legislation would ensure that events such as the destruction of Juukan Gorge could never happen again.

“The mining and mineral exploration industry has endeavoured to work with government and traditional owners to ensure that the newly minted framework would work in operation,” said Amec CEO Warren Pearce.

“When it became clear that this was not the case, and that all involved were struggling with the complexity of the new requirements, we realised that a new approach was needed. Government has heard this message and is responding to industry and community concern.

“In fact, many of the amendments announced today, closely reflect the changes suggested by Amec and industry much earlier in the consultation process.”

Peace said that while Amec’s members had put significant time and effort into implementing the soon-to-be-repealed legislation, the industry believed that it was the right decision.

“It will see them return to a simpler process for engaging with traditional owners and protecting cultural heritage, one which with they are already familiar.”

Amec is a member of the Implementation Group and will work with government, other industry representatives and traditional owners to effectively implement this change.